What I learned on summer sabbatical


As I get ready for my first day at Evans Hunt on Monday, it feels like the first day of school after a long summer vacation. You remember the days when you were a kid and couldn't wait to kick off those glorious summer months. For me that meant freedom, fun and endless time to play and explore. This year I wondered what it would be like to recapture some of that. So in June, after delivering a year-long project, I decided to take a summer sabbatical. 
Usually a sabbatical means that you have a definitive timeline and a job to go back to. But in my case, I decided to leave the door open. A bit risky, but a critical part of the experiment, and something my inner voice told me (very loudly) I needed to do.
Three months later, here's what I learned.
  1. Finding a creative outlet is critical to well-being. Maybe as adults, this means rediscovering creativity as opposed to finding something new. Remember when you were a kid, when you would just make stuff and not care what anybody thought about it? In my case, I finally got my dream piano and started playing again (30 years later). I'm still a little shy to play in front of people (ok, I'm really rusty), but I'm having fun getting ready.
  2. When you have more time, you realize how little time you actually have. This is a bit of a paradox. I used to wonder what retired people were talking about when they said they were busier people after they stopped working. I think it means that you have more time to think about other things and realize how precious your time really is. If you don't pay attention, you'll wonder what the heck happened. Like that great Talking Heads song, Once in a Lifetime..."And you may ask yourself...Well...How did I get here?"
  3. It's ok not to know what's next. And I think that in this landscape of technology and change, it's important to get comfortable with uncertainty. If you take care of yourself physically and spiritually, stay current, read your face off, and stay connected with your network, you may open yourself up to new opportunities that you didn't plan for. 
  4. Choose what you care about. There is a lot of noise out there and it's easy to get distracted. Being selective is critical to keeping yourself straight. This summer I reminded myself to reconnect with what matters most in my world and to direct my energy to those people and places, rather than caring so much about what other people think. So I rode my bike, read books, did some downward dogs, and travelled across Canada with my husband on what we called the "friends and family tour" (including magical St. John's, Newfoundland - everybody should go there).
Ultimately, living my values this summer led me to choose a job based on things that I care about, in a place where I can just be myself. As I kick off this new adventure, I am filled with energy, optimism, and, most of all, gratitude. 

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