Sabbatical
What is it?
Sabbatical, as per this paper, is an extended period of time intentionally spent on something that’s not your routine job. It’s a rest or break from work. Someone who deliberately takes it may or may not get paid by the employer. But it certainly offers another kind of benefit. Kira Schabram of the University of Washington, one of the authors of the paper said that people who take sabbaticals uniformly return to work feeling affirmed in their own voice, with confidence, and a renewed sense of purpose.
The researchers determined that there are three types of sabbatical, categorized by trajectories formed by the combination of three purposes: to recover, explore, or practice.
1. Working holidays, alternating between recovery and practice.
2. Free dives, alternating between recovery and exploration.
3. Quests, an unfolding progression from recovery to exploration to practice.x
Post sabbatical, those who followed the quest trajectory experienced the most transformative changes, Schabram said.
The Need for Sabbatical
In August last year, I decided to take a quest trajectory sabbatical, and it was the second best decision I made last year.
I have always wanted to do this since the 3rd grade of high school. After taking the national exam (UN), I thought of taking a gap year before continuing to university. I wasn’t sure about my choice to study Industrial Engineering at that time. I want to take more time to understand the employability of different majors, how is it to live far from home, and to avoid being miserable by choosing something that I’m not sure that I will enjoy. But I was too afraid to take a gap year. The top student didn’t take a gap year. Most people are in a gap year not by choice, but because they weren’t admitted to the university of their preferences. I was too self-conscious and couldn’t bear how others thought of me. I ended up in uni right after high school.
Fast forward to last year at uni, I was juggling between working on my final thesis, part-time work, and side hustling on my startup idea….in the middle of covid pandemic, and away from family — when most of my friends were at their homes. I was depressed, clinically diagnosed, but fortunately still managed to graduate in the 9th semester (Ideally 8). This was one of my lowest times and the most stressful moment and again…I’m thinking of taking a break. But a few months before the graduation took place, I was offered a full-time job at a global IT consulting company. Despite the need for a break, I accepted the offer because it was still in the pandemic. I couldn’t go out traveling to refresh, and home wasn’t refreshing anymore after months of mandatory isolations and online meetings after online meetings.
Consulting job was very demanding. Remote working blurring the boundary of place and time to work. Practically I was overworked for months. After 1 year, I moved to an early-stage startup and assumed a higher position to be able to freely manage time and achieve work-life balance. It turns out that I still work a lot, outside the regular 40 hours a week, but definitely not as much as in the previous job. Again, the need to deliberately take a career break popped out. It was 7 years from the young me having thought of taking a gap year. 7 years of engineering education, consulting job, and early-stage startup. The need to take a break has never been so high. That’s not all. On July 1, 2023, I channeled all of Tom Cruise’s energy and pulled out the most impossible mission: prepare a marriage in 1 week. Yes, you heard that right, 1 week.
My then-girlfriend admitted to a master’s degree in Sweden that was previously listed as a reserve. One man on the other continent woke up and decided to cancel his enrollment so my wife took the spot. She should be in Sweden in August or else will be ditched from the program. I agreed to her before, that if she is admitted, I will accompany her. If I accompany her, we need to be married first. And the announcement of acceptance came out one week before our supposed engagement. Because of that, we need to overhaul the event and change it here and there to fit for marriage ceremony.
After that marathon, I am now preparing a move to Sweden and I thought that it is the best time ….. to take a break. I resigned on August 18, 2023, to take on a quest sabbatical.
My Sabbatical
I started my sabbatical with rest and reset. Playing football. Cafe hopping. Cooking. Binge watching. Playing with my nephews. Meets high school friends. Ohh it was the best! The next was even better.
Traveling
Of course, traveling is a must. After all, what is the essence of a career break without traveling, right? I went to Pangandaran and Wakatobi. Swimming, snorkeling, watching the sunset, catching the sunrise, doing water sports, eating fresh seafood, and eating more seafood.
Family Business
In October, I had the opportunity to help my mother-in-law with her business. She owns an embroidery business, selling outerwear such as blazers, jackets, and long coats. I learned the production process from design to finishing. Purchased the raw materials. Talked to her employees and her business partners. Built her a website for the business, it’s called https://miabordir.com. And participate in product exhibitions at Inacraft 2023.
Umrah
In the middle of October, I had the opportunity to perform Umrah. Umrah is a voluntary ‘little’ pilgrimage to Mecca that consists of carrying out a set of rites. It is a greatly encouraged act of worship in Islam and it is seen as a blessed invitation by Allah Himself.
It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
The pilgrims performing Hajj and Umrah are a delegation to Allah. If they call upon Him, He will answer them; and if they ask for His forgiveness, He will forgive them.
[Narrated in Sunan Ibn Majah]
It was a humbling experience seeing the Kaaba for the first time. One school of thought in Islam believed that Kaaba was built by Prophet Adam AS.
More Traveling
In November, I said goodbye to my family and friends, and moved to Sweden. Saw and touched snow for the first time. Went to Copenhagen, Denmark, via the infamous Øresund Bridge. Traveled to Barcelona, Madrid, Granada, Cordoba, Sevilla, and Faro, Portugal. Visited iconic places such as Sagrada Familia in Barcelona and the used-to-be mosque-church, The Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba. Experienced the football culture of Spain by taking a tour at Santiago Bernabue in Madrid, visited Spotify Camp Nou in Barcelona, and Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium at Sevilla. The best moment, apart from entering the Santiago Bernabeu Museum was visiting the Al Hambra in Granada. The Alhambra is a historic palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Spain. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a testament to the rich cultural and architectural heritage of the Islamic period in Spain.
Conclusion
I’m grateful for this opportunity. This is where I listen to my deepest self. To understand and validate the longing quest for rest. I finally get the time that I need to do what I always wanna do. Reading all day. Attending course. Binge watching. Learning something new. Visiting new places.
Time affluence means feeling like you have the time to do things you enjoy — wellandgood.com
In doing so, I found perspective. I understood the larger picture in a way that wasn’t possible in the bustle of everyday life. Deliberately silencing the noise around me, to be able to hear the quiet voice I needed to listen to.
I feel connected again with my true self. This break helped me gain clarity on what I want to do for the next stage of my life. I turned 25 last year, this clarity may shape me for the next 25. I get the confidence when and where to say no. Courage and enthusiasm to say yes. I’ve never been this alive.
I would suggest everyone who is currently in need of a break…take your break! Reconnect with yourself. Listen to your voice. Believe in yourself. It may give you a high ROI.
