Episode Transcript
In December 2021 and January 2022, I am taking a break from life and going travelling. And in today´s episode, I want to share with you why I am doing it and what I am trying to experience during this break.
At the end of November, I am finally leaving my corporate job to fully focus on my business. But before I hit the gas pedal on my business, I am taking the opportunity of a break.
I call it a few different things: my freedom trip. My trip to celebrate my freedom from my 20+ years of a corporate career. I like to call it a mid-career break and we will talk more about that new phenomenon today. And then I call it a break from life. That is really the most meaningful for me and I will explain why and how you might want to think about doing something like it yourself.
※ TRAVELLING ALONE, BEING BY MYSELF AND TAKING A BREAK FROM LIFE ※
I´ve mentioned in previous episodes that I love going on trips or holidays by myself for the purpose of spending real time with myself – without any distractions. I have done it so far 2 times, last summer and this summer – each time for a week. This time I want to extend the time and be very mindful of spending my time on this trip really by myself. (Episode 43)
You might be asking what I mean by that when I say to be by myself.
We all lead very full lives with a lot going on. Even if we find the time to focus on ourselves with mindfulness practices, we still hardly ever have time that we don’t fill with actions, to-dos or with our family and friends.
Last year when I was out of work with my burnout, I knew I had to take myself away from my life and leave home. I had to get to a place where I would not be able to distract myself by taking care of the household, DIY jobs and going grocery shopping. So that’s what I did. I went for a week to a hotel in the countryside! Without a car to go anywhere and without any activities.
“THIS WEEK BY MYSELF WAS THE MOST POWERFUL WEEK OF MY LIFE.”
Sure, it was uncomfortable at times to really sit with me and listen to the voices inside of me. But all the time I spent meditating, journalling and expanding my horizon on myself provided me with so many positive shifts. Now I am a huge advocate for taking time off by myself.
It’s like going to a training camp. Sure, you get better over time when you practice something once or twice per week. But going to a training camp and focusing each day on your practice gives you such a boost in development. You could not have achieved the same through the weekly training back home.
I kind of see it as a training camp: the Me camp where the focus is to do Mesearch!
※ RESEARCH ON MYSELF – MESEARCH! ※
So this time around I will spend a long time all by myself. My whole trip will last about 6 weeks and the last 4 weeks of it will be spent by myself. Yes, I am travelling to different places but this is not going to be a sightseeing trip. I want to spend time in nature, walking and enjoying beautiful sceneries. Otherwise, a big chunk of my day will be spent on my mindfulness practices and getting to know myself better. I hope I can release a few things from my life during this time. AndI hope to find out new things about myself.
This might sound scary to some of you and you might never want to consider doing this. And that´s absolutely ok. It might not be for everyone. I am sharing it with you because I know what kind of quantum leaps it can create in your personal growth journey. And growth is not always pain-free or easy – but we always know afterwards that it is so worth it.
So, that’s my main goal for the second part of my trip. To see what I can release and let go of and make space for new things to step into my life, new perspectives, new ideas and a new version of me. If you want to follow my journey, you can do so mainly through my stories on Instagram and Facebook. This is where I plan to share how I am getting on. Who knows – maybe it does inspire you to take that next step in your growth journey.
※ TAKING A BREAK FROM LIFE AND YOUR CAREER ※
I mentioned that I see this travel as well as my mid-career break and talking about it with people in my life and work, it seems that more people than ever take the opportunity to have a break in between jobs or when they pivot to a new direction in their work.
In the past, it was more common for people to take time to travel and explore the world and themselves around the university time, maybe before, during or after university before starting their first job. Now there are more and more people taking a similar opportunity in between jobs.
And the reasons vary. It can be for travelling and experiencing new parts of the world. It could be to recharge the batteries after 20 years of climbing the career ladder. Or it could be leaving one career and taking a break to assess what comes next, maybe a new career, maybe a whole new direction or creating their own business.
“THE REASONS FOR THIS MID-CAREER BREAK ARE VARIED BUT THE NEED FOR IT SEEMS TO BECOME STRONGER.”
I do support this. I think this is fantastic and impactful for our mental health and wellbeing. Instead of working after school or uni up until retirement. Taking a break in between to assess your direction and values in life is not just clever, it sets a tone for the generations to follow. This is a great step towards having a healthier lifestyle and improved mental health.
※ ARE YOU INTERESTED IN TAKING A BREAK FROM LIFE? ※
So how about you? Have you ever considered it? Maybe you have actually done it already? I personally will just take the 6 weeks but I have heard of people taking between 1 to 2 years out of their career. This is awesome, I think this is something for all of us to consider and maybe reflect on when and how we could all build this into our lives in the coming years.
I will make sure to report back to you via a podcast episode at the end of January of what I have taken away from my travel and what I experienced. I am also interested in how we can bring more of these breaks for ourselves into our everyday life – so we might not even have to have long breaks and avoid falling ill due to burnout and stress. Well, more to come on this next year for sure.
If you are not ready yet for such a break, I have a great resource for you to get more clarity in your mind and to get to know yourself better. Last year I read “Cleaning up your mental mess” by Dr Caroline Leaf which is a fantastic book filled with scientific research and proof. Caroline has as well the App Neurocycle which I use when I have a topic in my life that I want to go deeper with. I can highly recommend the App and book FOR YOU.
