After a 12-year career at a $2B company, Rick jumps into a sabbatical that takes him from a startup executive to a writer, giving him the opportunity to live life with meaning.
My sabbatical sparked an unexpected revolution in my identity.
I had planned on taking a quick sabbatical, then starting a company. But a few months in, it took a different turn…
After a 12 year run as an early startup employee, turned executive at a $2B public company – my plan was to take 3 months off, get bored, then start a company of my own.
It did not go as planned.
My sabbatical can be divided into 3 major phases:
- Leaning In
- Going Dark
- Writing
Phase 1: Leaning In
In the first phase, “Leaning In,” I only slowed down a little. While I shed an overwhelming corporate calendar, I replaced my time with new business ideas. I had 100+ ideas mapped out, ranked from best to worst. I started building plans, talking with potential co-founders, and meeting investors. I was driving hard at a few ideas and starting to generate momentum.
Then, about 3 months in, I asked myself a simple question: “why do I want this?”
I felt like I had accomplished a lot in my career. But I had become so consumed with continuing with the-next-logical-thing. I was thinking: “Okay, so I was an Early Employee/SVP at a $2B public company. I guess that means I need to become a Founder/CEO of an even bigger company! Right?”
But something didn’t feel right about where I was headed.
This began my second phase: “Going Dark.”
Phase 2: Going Dark
After some advice from a mentor, I disappeared as much as possible. I stopped working on business ideas, taking calls and meeting work connections. I hit the unsubscribe button on industry news.
I limited all my obligations and focused on a few select areas, which I called the 4 Fs (because my last name is Foerster and I like alliteration):
- Family
- Fitness
- Fun
- Flection (like reflection… get it?)
In that period, I feel like I had what I call an “awakening.” The awakening was that I was completely obsessed with work (not unlike many others in our culture). Work was the overwhelming center of my identity. It was how I valued myself. And all my ambitions and future plans revolved around work. Work was my religion.
But on a sabbatical, I wasn’t working. So I was forced to grapple with questions like: “who am I without work?”
This led me to my third phase: “Writing.”
Phase 3: Writing
I decided to start writing every day. Some of it was wrestling with existential questions of identity and meaning. Some of it was retelling stories of important parts in my life. And some of it was reflections on my working years.
After several months, I decided that this writing may be useful to other people. So I decided to package it up into a newsletter, called The Way of Work.
Now, I’m writing every day and loving it. I feel like I’m doing exactly what I should be doing.
Every time I hit “publish,” I feel proud of what I’ve put out into the world (regardless of the reception). And even more powerful has been the rich, personal messages I receive from old friends and even strangers. People who are going through similar internal battles in their life.
This has motivated me to keep writing and see where this project takes me.
Overall, I believe that my unique work experience, combined with a new perspective about the culture of work, is a gift that I want to continue to explore and share back with the world.
Activities you engaged in during your sabbatical as possible:
- Started writing (thewayofwork.com)
- Advised startup founders
- Coached kid’s soccer
- Volunteered as mentor
- Built a website
- Daily walks with my wife
- Picked up kids from school everyday
- Home for 99% of dinners/bedtime with my kids
What catalyzed my sabbatical?
Positive event (company acquired, financial windfall, etc.)
How long was my sabbatical (in weeks)?
52 Weeks
What was I most concerned about when contemplating a sabbatical?
Optics – what will colleagues, friends and family think of me?!
Did HOW you work change at all, post-sabbatical?
Went from company employed to self-employed; committed to taking significantly more time off
Should (or shouldn’t) people take sabbaticals? Are there occasions in life where it’s particularly helpful?
I think that sabbaticals should become common and expected practice in the arc of a long career.
In my experience, taking a “mid-career” sabbatical is particularly beneficial because you’ve been in the working world long enough to gain some perspective. But you’re also at point where your decisions now, will direct the next 10-20 years of your life. And maybe those years among the most important in your life: when your kids are still young, you still have your health, your parents are still alive, and so on.So either a sabbatical a) enables you to come back refreshed and recommitted to what you were doing, or b) like me, enables you to make a change that shouldn’t wait any longer.That’s a no-lose scenario.
You can connect with Rick Foerster here.
Interested in sabbatical stories from corporate to creative? You might like Marielena’s story.
