Taking a Career Break
What’s the Method or Madness Behind It?
Several people in my professional network have been curious about why I took a sabbatical in the middle of my career when I had ‘the wind in my sails’. Moreover, I find many wish they could do the same but for various reasons, choose not to. Taking a sabbatical or career break certainly has many considerations: e.g. it’s a big financial sacrifice and it might derail career momentum. However, the other real factor that gets in the way is fear. I certainly had to overcome fear in this journey, but can genuinely say that taking a career break has been deeply refreshing and worthwhile.
One of the questions that kicked me off the fence of indecision is, “am I going to look back on this phase of my life and wish I had worked more and taken fewer risks?”. I’ve often read the quote, “Risk is the flavour of life” and got to a point where I was finally ready to taste it!
In the next 8 sections, I’ll share my thoughts about my career break. In preparation, I had to consider my career identity, leaving my comfort zone, my relationship with money and my objectives for the break. Although it won’t be a ‘how-to’ guide, I hope anyone considering a similar decision will gain some useful insights.
Did I Have a Career, or Did My Career Have Me?
Answering this question sensitised me to the blurred lines that can exist in high performance environments. When the momentum of a career pulls you in to work harder to either survive or thrive, it can be debatable how much control one feels along the way.
A career path can quickly take over as a persona of its own, especially when things are moving in the right direction. Success sure can suppress the desire to ask too many questions about what seems to be a winning formula!
In my case, I toggled between mostly being in control of my career, and sometimes feeling like my career was in control of me. Going forward, I’m better equipped to be more thoughtful, intentional and self-led in my career management strategy. However, I am grateful for the times when I felt like I wasn’t in control because they gave me some of the best insights about what I was trying to achieve and why.
In my experience, the ups and downs of a career identity helped to reveal my true values. From there, as you consider a break, it becomes easier to decide what values you might be willing to retain or let go of/unlearn as part of the journey.
Getting Unstuck
I know what it feels like to have a great career and still feel like there must be ‘more’. Though undefined and unquantified, this concept of ‘more’ beckoned me to search for a new career path. The answers as to what this could mean were not forthcoming in the nights and weekends I spent ruminating about this issue. It became clear I wasn’t going to find the solution if I kept repeating the same search process that had gotten me nowhere at that point. I needed to create real space for the change I was inviting into my life. I liken it to hitting the refresh button and making forward-thinking career choices on the basis of who I want to be. I realised my previous soul-searching was stymied by trying to project my past self into a future she didn’t belong in.
Grappling with the comfort zone
18-24mths passed from the time a career break moved from concept to reality. Several questions came to mind:
Could I really not figure this out whilst employed?
Isn’t it irrational to leave a sure thing for the unknown?
What if I can’t get a job when I want one?
What if I’m giving up the best opportunity I might ever have?
I was fighting myself on something I needed which is counter-intuitive. Instead, I had to focus on why it would be good for me and how to do it. I know this sounds obvious. But the warmth of the comfort zone can deter risky decisions. Growing up in Zimbabwe and dealing with the consequences of its broken economy made this mental battle real and tough.
I saw that although my life reflected abundance, my mindset was framed by scarcity. If I could thrive in one industry, why wouldn’t I be able to replicate that elsewhere? If I couldn’t get a job, why wouldn’t I be able to start a business? As a 30-something year old, how could I not believe there was much more ahead than what I was leaving behind? Questions were healthy as I moved from the comfort zone to growth zone, but I needed to frame them from a place of abundance and optimism.
Reaching a Turning Point
No single factor caused me to shake the indecisiveness I previously harboured. Whilst I was in that holding pattern, I chipped away at some of the usual financial concerns like paying down debt and increasing my savings. I found that a decision like this, though quick to operationalise at the turning point, was really the last mile of accumulated reflection. An enlightening conversation with a friend showed me I had run out of excuses. It was time to take the leap!
My new abundance-oriented mindset helped me switch into action mode with excitement and resolve. Now the questions about the career break were aimed at:
What kind of experiences do I want to have?
How much time off would be ideal?
How much money do I need?
What must I sacrifice to make this break a reality?
What mental preparation do I need for this new chapter ?
I centred on roughly these 5 themes as they were broad enough to make sure my planning would be sufficiently detailed, but concise enough to feel addressable. Having faced an internal battle for so long, I knew I had to strike while mental clarity was hot! Each question took me on different journeys that I’ll cover below.
Free Time: How to Spend It?
Although I wanted to rest and brainstorm, my Type-A self needed something specific to focus on along the way. I enrolled in a 13mth Executive Masters at IE University in Spain to study Digital Transformation and Innovation. I chose it because it’s strategic, professionally advantageous and personally enriching.
Duration-wise, I settled on roughly 15mths off. I started the program whilst employed so that I graduated in the middle of the break instead of at the end.
With travel cancelled for most of 2020, I had a resurgent desire to complete a writing project I’ve had in mind since 2016 but simply didn’t have the headspace for. All this time at home helped reclaim parts of myself (especially in the creative domain) that I’ve either ignored or didn’t know how to nurture. I put my head down and 6mths later, a blog and e-book were born.
These 2 main activities have led me to explore other ideas as well. I’m grateful I can explore wherever curiosity leads me, despite the unusual circumstances 2020 has presented.
In closing, you can plan your break but try to leave room for the spontaneity to respond to the ‘unknown’ that might flourish if given an opportunity.
Money - The Uncomfortable Subject
I’m no personal finance guru but I enjoy managing my accounts in detail. Even so, I wrangled for a while with the concept of how much money would be enough for a break. My spreadsheets made the answer clear and yet, parallel calculations kept running in my head as I imagined all sorts of disaster scenarios that would wipe out my savings. Taking this decision prompted a re-assessment of my relationship with money, and here are a few outcomes.
More money is always welcome, but being clear about how much money is enough to be satisfied has simplified many decisions before and during the break.
When I was hesitant, I thought of this decision as an expense. Now, I think of it as an investment because a refreshed and inspired mind is unstoppable.
I view money as a facilitator of my goals rather than a security blanket.
I find limiting beliefs and emotional baggage about money drive much of the fear that deters some people from taking a worthwhile risk, be it starting a business, changing career paths or taking a break. It’s a very personal thing to probe, but it’s key to having a healthy relationship with money and its interplay with how we manage our careers.
Getting My Mind Right
Having decided to take the break, the months building up to my last day were quite pleasant. Work was actually more fun and I wasn’t physically burnt out. What led me here was a quest for a new challenge, and I wanted to start that search in the best shape possible. I also really respect my ex-colleagues and workplace so it felt natural to leave on good terms. The upfront mental preparation meant I could immediately start doing all the things I had in-store with closure on what I was leaving behind. My career has never been part of my personal identity or how I measure my self-worth so there hasn’t been any separation anxiety to process in that regard.
Working with a career coach during this period has been an excellent way to put things into perspective with an eye towards what I want next. I find that an optimistic, agile mindset is important to thrive under the uncertainty that a career break brings. It’s a decision that reminds you that whatever happens from that point onwards is really up to you. I enjoy this responsibility of acknowledging my life is my own. For anyone considering a break, this is something to truly reckon with before you dive into the deep end!
Wrapping Up
As the year comes to an end, I remain joyful about the journey I’m on. I’ve planted several seeds that are sprouting at their own pace. I’m okay not knowing the answers to the big questions that will shape my career going forward. Being comfortable with uncertainty is a part of my particular process, despite the natural desire to control as much as possible. Life outside the comfort zone has sparked so much creativity and growth; and that can never be a bad thing!
My key learnings over the past year included new truths and known truths I needed to truly internalise.
5 points are top of mind:
Create space for the change you wish to invite into your life.
While our values and beliefs anchor us, it’s a fine balance to not hang onto anything so tightly that we lose our flexibility to respond to change.
When considering how to move forward, what you must unlearn can be just as important as what you must learn.
Protecting our peace can require us to say ‘no’ more often, and finding opportunities can require us to say ‘yes’ more often. The power of those key words ‘yes’ and ‘no’ is very nuanced.
Circumstances are what they are, all you can do is hold yourself accountable for living on your own terms.