The unexpected gift I received from taking 5 weeks off.

I just got back from a five-week-long sabbatical, and holy smokes, sweet friend — it was so much different than I thought it would be.

Now, if you have been with me for a while (or listened to Sabbatical 101: How I’m Prepping for 30 Days Away From My Business), you know that taking an extended time away from my business is something that I have been wanting to do for years. It took a lot of preparation, hard work, and countless lattes — but I made it happen!

Going into it I had some expectations about how things would go. I knew that I would have the time of my life at Chloe’s wedding in Mexico and that I’d create some really great memories with my family at our new lake house. I also knew that being away from my business might cause some anxiety, but heck, that’s what skinny margs are for, right?

But something happened over the course of my sabbatical that I didn’t expect. As I got further and further away from my business, I realized A LOT about myself that I wasn’t necessarily ready to confront. There was an emotional and eye-opening component to my time away that I was not prepared for — and if you know me, you know I like to be prepared.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am SO glad that I took this sabbatical, and in the end, I walked away with a life-changing gift…

… But would I do it again? You’ll just have to tune in to find out.

Here’s a glance at this episode…

[03:01] I just finished my five-week sabbatical!
[04:47] The good: I loved spending so much time with Hobie. I went at a slower pace and took the time to really take care of myself.
[07:03] The bad: It was really difficult to disconnect. After Mexico, my head started to spiral around work. I had anxiety, which was alarming to me.
[09:26] The ugly: Was that I realized that my identity was in my work. I felt restless when not checking things off of a list. I started to get FOMO.
[11:23] The flip side of identifying with my work so strongly is that I really love my work and feel great about it. I love my team, my students, and all of you listeners!
[12:33] The gift: I need to explore who I am beyond my work. I need to feel loved, supported, and accomplished even if I don’t have a thriving business.
[13:17] Would I take five weeks off again. No! Five weeks is too much. I’m thinking two weeks each quarter might be more fitting for me personally.
[20:09] You might wonder how I was even able to take so much time off of my business. I’ve created a program called Systems That Scale which is all about how I run my business.

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#478: 5 Weeks Unplugged: Lessons From My Sabbatical