Sabbatical Sundays Archives

07Oct 2022 by Elizabeth No Comments

8 Unemployment Lessons From the Last Recession

Just a few months ago, I wrote about how I quit my job during the last recession and how I was terrified I would do it again. Well, here we are! I recently gave notice, and started my sabbatical, and the markets continue to plummet. The Nasdaq and DJIA are both down over 20%; and even more notably the normally more stable bond markets have taken a huge hit too. So now what? Surprisingly, I’m not as scared as I thought I would be. First, I saved a considerable amount to be ready for my sabbatical, and I can get health insurance. But, I must admit I’m still a little bit nervous. So I spent some time reminding myself of the unemployment lessons I learned during the last recession that…

24Aug 2022 by Elizabeth No Comments

How to Get Health Insurance If You Quit Your Job

Sabbatical Sundays

Are you thinking about quitting your job but worry you can’t quit because you’d lose health insurance? Or maybe you’ve just quit your job and are now panicked because you got a COBRA statement and it’s insanely expensive? The good news is I’ve been there and done that and am here to tell you all about it. The better news is you can get health insurance coverage too. If you quit your job for any reason you have at least two and maybe three options for health insurance coverage. I’ll lay them out here along with additional details I have from personal experience. (For more on my personal experience, here are 9 Lessons I Learned from Quitting My Job to Take a Sabbatical. And if you are really unsure if…

16Aug 2022 by Elizabeth No Comments

What Does Freedom Mean to You?

Sabbatical Sundays

Women’s Money is about helping you to fund your freedom. What does this mean? It means affording the life you want. But what exactly does freedom mean to you? Every person has her own definition. For you, is freedom being free from something? Or being free to do something? Are you looking for freedom from a job? From a boss? From a salary? Maybe you’re looking to move. Maybe you’re looking to be free from a person. Or you want the freedom to choose when and how you work? Do you want the freedom to buy whatever you want? Fly first class around the world at the drop of a hat? Or does freedom look like spend an afternoon hiking in a local park, with no constraints on your time?…

08Aug 2022 by Elizabeth No Comments

Sabbatical Update: Rock Bottom on the Amalfi Coast

Sabbatical Sundays

Picture this: 3 weeks into my sabbatical we arrived on the Amalfi Coast. White stony pebble beaches, waves crashing, and endless turquoise water. Limoncello and olive tree groves at every turn. And despite this supposed beauty and peace, I hit a new low. A message popped in from a recruiter. For a position at one of the largest make-up manufacturers in the world. I got really excited and decided I should apply. I had the skills. The position was remote. The salary was incredible. I started picturing myself interviewing and getting the job. I checked the company’s stock price, it had been a rough year but an incredible five years. The type of position they reached out to me for showed they are a sophisticated and complex organization. I awoke…

02Jan 2022 by Samantha S No Comments

9 Lessons Learned: Preparing to Quit my Job to Take a Sabbatical

Sabbatical Sundays

This is my last “regular” column for Women’s Money. Over the last year, I’ve written a regular series about planning to take a sabbatical – you can find all of my posts here. To sum up the past year, I’ve put together a list of the six primary accomplishments and nine things I’ve learned as I’ve prepared to quit my job and take a sabbatical. What I’ve Accomplished Here are my primary accomplishments on my path towards a sabbatical: I’ve created a sabbatical plan that involves taking a sabbatical abroad. I’ve considered why I want to take a sabbatical, including 8 signs of burnout. I’ve done some serious reflecting on my hopes and fears - including talking about my first sabbatical, fearing quitting during a recession, questioning whether I should take a…

19Dec 2021 by Samantha S No Comments

Find Those Who Support Your Sabbatical

Sabbatical Sundays

I told one of my oldest friends (we go back to middle school) that I was planning to quit my job and take a sabbatical. “You’re such a millennial,” was her reply. (Technically, I’m an “elder millennial” - I barely make the cutoff.) Rather than be happy for me, she thinks my plan is flaky. She asked if I was going to become a scuba instructor in Bali. As much as that would be awesome, I’m not Elizabeth Gilbert of “Eat, Pray, Love.” Also, just the thought of scuba diving makes me feel claustrophobic. So, I won’t be transforming into a Bali scuba instructor anytime soon. Instead, I plan to take my kids and spouse with me as I travel around the world. But hearing the skepticism from my friend…

06Dec 2021 by Samantha S No Comments

Don’t Ask: What Should I Do With My Life? Ask This Instead

Sabbatical Sundays

If you’ve been reading my Sabbatical Sundays series long enough, you know that I’ve been struggling to find my purpose. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what I want to do with my life. Additionally, I’ve been reading books, watching TED talks, listening to podcasts, talking to people, thinking, and journaling. I’m a few months away from quitting my job, without much of a plan. Some days, I feel truly spectacular about that. I mean, who doesn’t want to just have a bunch of free time to read, exercise, clean out closets, cook, and travel? But other days, I don’t feel so spectacular about my plan. I worry about money, and I start browsing LinkedIn, looking at job opportunities. I begin to question if maybe it’s just another…

07Nov 2021 by Samantha S No Comments

The Best Question to Help You to Find Your Purpose

Sabbatical Sundays

“You cannot be anything you want to be -- but you can be a lot more of who you already are."- Strengthsfinder 2.0, Tom Rath As part of my work to figure out what’s next after my sabbatical, I’ve been doing a lot of reading in order to try to find my purpose. I’ll share a list of recommended books at a later point in time. One of my recent purchases was StrengthsFinder 2.0. For those who aren’t familiar with it, StrengthsFinder is part of Gallup. It leverages enormous amounts of data to help people uncover their strengths. I highly recommend it. In the intro to the book, Tom Rath challenges the conventional wisdom about trying to improve your weaknesses and, notably, that you can be anything you want to…

31Oct 2021 by Samantha S No Comments

The Great Resignation – Why We All Want to Take a Sabbatical

Sabbatical Sundays

In case you’ve missed the news lately, one of the biggest talking points is “The Great Resignation.” It seems everyone is quitting their jobs these days and effectively leaving the labor force with undefined plans about what to do next. The Great Resignation As an “elder millennial,” here are my thoughts on The Great Resignation, why I plan to take a sabbatical, and why I think so many are in the same boat. 1. We Have Already Lived Through Several Recessions and Know Our Country’s Reslilancy One of the primary reasons to work is to make money. But, having lived through several recessions, I know that what goes down must come up and vice versa. What does this mean? We will experience another market crash. But it isn’t going to…

24Oct 2021 by Samantha S No Comments

Quitting Your Job Without a Plan

Sabbatical Sundays

James Clear posted some timely questions in his weekly habits email recently. One of his questions was: “If you want to find a better path, you have to be willing to explore a different path. Sounds simple, but how often do you try something different?” I’m now just a few months away from quitting my current role. While I have some specific plans, I’m not entirely sure what’s next. That’s right, I’m going to quit my job and take a sabbatical, but I don’t have an exact plan. This has led to sleepless nights lately. I’ve Googled “what’s my purpose in life” (I’ll save you the time, Google can’t answer this one for you…), watched numerous Ted Talks, listened to podcasts, and have been reading books trying to figure out…