You are living the dream! Sadly, I didn’t figure this out until just recently. But now that I know, I’m doing my best to integrate my “work” and “life”. I think there’s some travel blogging in my future too! :)

Sounds like you have some great options! Guaranteed work is a great safety net to have. I wish more companies could offer this!

Sweet! Work/Life balance is a great thing to reflect on, and *how* you work makes a big difference. Sounds like if/when you go back to work you’ll be more conscious about the things that lead to stress and overworking! Good luck with the time off and enjoy the process – let me know how it all goes! – Joel

I figured that I needed to decompress a little bit, but what I didn’t realize was just how heavy the toll of working the way I had was. I’m approaching a month and a half and I’m still decompressing! I haven’t hit any really defined epiphanies but I’m starting to mentally go in some interesting directions,

Hey Suzy! It’s great to hear you are coaching others and helping them learn a good balance also. I think it’s cool that you’ve got a little income also during your sabbatical – that goes a long way while taking time off full-time work.

Hello over there! Yeah I think many people are guilty of focussing on work too much (myself included!). It’s strange thinking that such a horrible pandemic is slowing people down and helping them reflect on the important things in life.
Cheers Josh – have a good one mate!

I am in the middle of my second self-funded sabbatical. My first was in 2012 and was a great success. It took lots of planning and thought for me to take the leap and I am happy to say it worked out great. Travel, volunteer work, and lots of self-discovery happened in the course of the year. The best outcome was starting new exercise routines that I still do today!
In August of 2019, I quit my full-time job to begin my second self-funded sabbatical. The fall and winter of 2019 were great with lots of trips and time spent with family. In the spring COVID-19 decided to tag along and it changed my plans of traveling the world but hasn’t put a complete damper on my sabbatical. I am still enjoying remote (Zoom, Messenger, etc) time with family and friends as well as reading, online classes, and lots of golf. I am lucky to be in Virginia where they still allowed golf.
I have no plans to go back to full-time work until the year is completed. In the meantime, I have a small coaching practice and help others with job transitions and to plan their own sabbaticals as well as manage work/life balance.
I would love to see more companies recognize the need and benefits of sabbaticals. Even if your company doesn’t offer a sabbatical, I would encourage workers to fund their own sabbatical. It isn’t easy and well worth the risk and unforeseen opportunities that arise.

Thanks, Suzy

In the UK, we have a scheme for COVID called furlough and I have basically had 10 weeks away from work and it has really given me chance to reflect.

Best wishes from the UK!