Transcripts
That's the purpose of life, right?
It's not happiness, it's aliveness.
Speaker:And so it brings you
into this question of,
Speaker:What am I willing to risk
in order to be alive?
Speaker:And when you focus on that,
Speaker:you realize that you're probably
willing to risk quite a bit.
Speaker:Hello and welcome back to
Remember Why You Are Here,
Speaker:a podcast for seekers and sensitives
where you can relax, receive,
Speaker:reconnect yourself, and remember
the most important thing of all:
Speaker:why you're here. I'm Asia Suler, author,
Speaker:earth intuitive, teacher,
and in this episode,
Speaker:we're going to talk about something
that's really close to my heart right now,
Speaker:which is how to take a sabbatical.
So this is particularly close
Speaker:to my heart in this moment because I'm
about to take my first ever sabbatical
Speaker:and I'm so excited.
Speaker:I am taking off the rest of
the year from running courses,
Speaker:creating courses, answering emails,
Speaker:being on most social medias.
Speaker:I'm taking time off from all of
those things to work on my next
Speaker:book, and I'm so excited about it.
Speaker:This book is a little bit of a secret
because I haven't really talked about it
Speaker:very much yet,
Speaker:but I had this realization at
some point that if I was going to
Speaker:write this book, I would likely
have to do something like this:
Speaker:take off concentrated time
to actually get it done.
Speaker:I've had the idea of this book swirling
around my brain now for six years.
Speaker:And in the interim, I've had a child.
Speaker:I'm still very much in the
thick of parenting a young one.
Speaker:And it just got increasingly
clear that if I was going to
Speaker:accomplish this book, or the very
least, be able to start it in a real,
Speaker:deep kind of way,
Speaker:that I would need to take
special time in order to do this,
Speaker:time away, time to create. And so
for the last two years actually,
Speaker:I've been figuring out how I
could take a sizable sabbatical
Speaker:to work on this.
And over that time I've really fallen in
Speaker:love with the concepts of sabbatical,
Speaker:doing all this research
about how to take one,
Speaker:what you need to consider, what to
expect once you're on a sabbatical.
Speaker:And so in this episode today, I want
to share a little bit about my process,
Speaker:but also lay out a guide for you, a map.
Speaker:If you are someone who's feeling
that call to take a sabbatical,
Speaker:then hopefully this map will
really help you know how to take
Speaker:those first steps and know how to
design something like this for yourself.
Speaker:Because here's the thing that really
comes up for me with sabbaticals,
Speaker:is that we need to reclaim
this in our culture at large,
Speaker:that we so often glorify the hustle.
Speaker:Especially where I live
in the United States,
Speaker:the hustle's like one of our gods.
Speaker:And we glorify this sort of
Speaker:constant busyness, constant
work, or it's opposite:
Speaker:like the total vacation or
the time taken off where we're
Speaker:doing the opposite of work or just not
having to think about anything or the
Speaker:time that we create to deal with burnout.
Sabbatical is not any one
Speaker:of those things.
Speaker:There's something inherently
spiritual about taking a sabbatical.
Speaker:And it's also a shorthand
that a lot of people tend to
Speaker:understand. It's one thing
if you say to people,
Speaker:I'm taking a vacation or I'm
burnt out and I'm doing this,
Speaker:but if you say I'm taking a sabbatical,
Speaker:there's this sense of deep respect around
the choice to do something like this,
Speaker:to choose to step away and go deep.
Speaker:So let's talk a little bit about
what a sabbatical actually is,
Speaker:because I think this will help frame
what it is that we're trying to do,
Speaker:what it is that I'm providing
a roadmap for you for,
Speaker:and also why it makes sense that we
have so much respect for this concept
Speaker:of a sabbatical in our culture.
Growing up,
Speaker:I thought sabbaticals were only
for people who were in academia.
Speaker:And this is a big part of academia,
especially if you are a professor,
Speaker:that it's sort of built in to your
career that you're expected to take a
Speaker:sabbatical at least once,
Speaker:that you're expected to take time away
to work on a research project or a book.
Speaker:But sabbaticals don't just
have to happen within academia.
Speaker:It's not just for professors.
Sabbaticals are for all of us.
Speaker:Sabbaticals are a sacred pause. So again,
Speaker:sabbaticals aren't vacations,
Speaker:and they're not remedies for when
you've pushed yourself too far.
Speaker:Sabbaticals are taking
intentional time to create space -
Speaker:and this space could be space
to focus on a book or another
Speaker:creative project.
Speaker:It could be to travel or go on
pilgrimage - but there's this aspect of
Speaker:deep intentionality around a sabbatical,
Speaker:that you are purposefully stepping
away from your normal work life,
Speaker:your normal routines, the
way you go about things,
Speaker:to go deep inside yourself,
Speaker:to take a sabbatical from the daily
Speaker:existence,
Speaker:to take a sabbatical and
see a different side of
Speaker:reality. There's a deep spiritual seeking
that's kind of inherent to this word
Speaker:sabbatical,
Speaker:and it's almost like making this
commitment to your spiritual unfoldment,
Speaker:like I'm taking this break
away from life in the
Speaker:trajectory that it was going,
Speaker:in order for me to really focus on
and listen to that soul calling.
Speaker:And so whether that soul calling is
taking you to travel or volunteer,
Speaker:or complete some sort of project,
or start some sort of project,
Speaker:sabbatical is you listening to that
whisper of your soul and really
Speaker:giving yourself permission to
take time to follow that whisper,
Speaker:to follow that nudging,
Speaker:and allowing the daily structure
of your life to change,
Speaker:to allow your trajectory
to possibly change.
Speaker:Often sabbaticals are life changing
in this way. By their very nature,
Speaker:they help us rewire and
rewrite the way we think about
Speaker:ourselves, our creations, productivity.
Speaker:We're going to get into that in just
a moment. But I think in general,
Speaker:sabbaticals,
Speaker:you can imagine them as the
fertile fallow period in a
Speaker:phase of gardening. It's like we
are so productive all the time.
Speaker:We're always planting and
pruning and harvesting.
Speaker:And a sabbatical is specifically
deciding to let a garden bed rest
Speaker:for a season while you go inwards,
while you focus on something else,
Speaker:while you direct your
attention to the deep spiritual
Speaker:undertow within yourself, and
whatever it is that is a part of that,
Speaker:whatever project or gleaning or
aspiration that you have that's within
Speaker:that. And we know in a garden
that these fallow periods,
Speaker:these periods where you're
just letting that bed rest,
Speaker:or you're only sowing one cover crop,
Speaker:you've got your clover going or your
oats going, or you're just letting it be,
Speaker:that that's really important for
the garden's overall productivity.
Speaker:And this is true for ourselves as well,
Speaker:our creative minds,
Speaker:our spirit's ability to feel
fully inhabited in this life.
Speaker:Sabbaticals are incredibly
helpful and regenerative for our
Speaker:soul and for our creative spirit.
This is not just time off,
Speaker:it's time in. It's choosing
to spend time inwards.
Speaker:And I really want to normalize
the taking of a sabbatical in
Speaker:our culture. I want this to become
something that is just... yeah,
Speaker:something we hear about more often.
Something that more people do.
Speaker:Something that everyone's expected to
do and supported to do at some point in
Speaker:their life. So your sabbatical
could be a moon cycle,
Speaker:it could just be from full moon to full
moon. It could be several months long.
Speaker:It could be a year long. All of these
things are going to require a certain
Speaker:amount of planning and consideration.
Speaker:But I think when we reframe, sometimes,
Speaker:the deep work that we're doing and that
we're taking intentional time and space
Speaker:around, as a sabbatical,
Speaker:we help those around us to orient
to what it is we're actually doing,
Speaker:and we flag what we're doing and the
significance of it for our own spirit,
Speaker:for our own psyches and awareness that
yes, I'm not just frittering time away.
Speaker:I'm not just taking a break, although
breaks are great and we need them too,
Speaker:but there's something about the word
"sabbatical" that really signals to our
Speaker:inner spirit, this is a deep time.
This is a time of soul commitments,
Speaker:and I'm interested in seeing where it
goes. So how do you know that you need a
Speaker:sabbatical? As I'm talking, you're
probably thinking to yourself,
Speaker:I need a sabbatical.
Speaker:Because I think most of us do.
Speaker:But sabbaticals often
come up when we are in a
Speaker:phase where we feel like
we're sort of locked into a
Speaker:way of thinking or locked
into a way of working,
Speaker:locked into a calendar or a schedule,
Speaker:where we don't feel like we have the
space to lean into the nudgings or the
Speaker:whispers of our soul. Oftentimes the call
to take a sabbatical begins with that
Speaker:whisper or that nudging inside of
yourself, and that realization that,
Speaker:in the way my life is
currently functioning, I
don't have the space for this,
Speaker:and yet I feel my soul
calling me towards this.
Speaker:That is a clear sign that
it's time for sabbatical.
Speaker:Sabbaticals can also be
taken in life transitions.
Speaker:Maybe you're moving from one country
to another, one house to another,
Speaker:ending one relationship
and opening to another.
Speaker:These are really beautiful times to
intentionally decide to take a sabbatical,
Speaker:to be in deep listening with yourself.
Anytime we experience a feeling of
Speaker:inner creative stagnation or clutter,
Speaker:it's often a sign that it's time
to take this intentional season for
Speaker:ourselves to clear the
decks, to open ourselves up,
Speaker:to have the space to be able to
listen to our soul and to the
Speaker:soul-led creative projects, awarenesses,
Speaker:and openings that are calling to us.
Speaker:Anytime we have this feeling or this
sense of, I need a time out of time,
Speaker:I need to touch another
timeline, another way of being,
Speaker:that's often the call for a
sabbatical as well. And there's
Speaker:this really interesting thing that happens
within intentional periods like this
Speaker:where we do create new
timelines for ourselves.
Speaker:So timelines in our life are the
result of the way that we are
Speaker:currently operating, our
current level of consciousness,
Speaker:the way that our day-to-day
flows, the structure of our lives:
Speaker:that creates the timeline of our
lives. When we shift those things up,
Speaker:our routines, our habits, our patterns,
Speaker:we create the possibility
for new timelines,
Speaker:to jump into a different timeline of
what's possible for us. And so anytime the
Speaker:timeline that you're on starts to feel
like a little sticky or suffocating or
Speaker:just not like a big enough container for
what it is you feel you're meant to do
Speaker:or meant to explore in this lifetime,
Speaker:that's also a sign that it
is time for a sabbatical.
Speaker:And I think it's really important,
especially for empaths and sensitives,
Speaker:for us to reframe the guilt that we can
feel around this, the guilt that says,
Speaker:who am I to be taking this time?
Speaker:Who am I to have the privilege to take
this? What are people going to think?
Speaker:People are going to feel like
I'm not showing up for them.
Speaker:Are people going to be upset? And so all
of this guilt is actually a sign that
Speaker:there's deep material here, and
it's actually part of, I think,
Speaker:the purpose of a sabbatical like this...
Speaker:is to come up against the hard stuff
within us, the stuff that tells us,
Speaker:I can't do this, for whatever reason.
Speaker:And we're going to dive
deeper into that soon,
Speaker:but I want you to reframe this as
like, you're not abandoning your life,
Speaker:you're tending it. You're tending
the deeper currents of your life,
Speaker:who you truly are, why you're truly here.
Speaker:In fact, in our day-to-day
lives, when we're just,
Speaker:whatever it is following the
routine, following the schedule,
Speaker:doing all the things
we think we should do,
Speaker:that's us abandoning our deeper lives.
And we so often feel that right?
Speaker:We can feel that sense of having
abandoned ourselves and it's so painful.
Speaker:And sabbaticals really help us
reorient, to reclaim ourselves,
Speaker:to tend our lives in the way
our soul is calling us to do. So
Speaker:how do you take a sabbatical?
Speaker:Let's get into the logistics
on a physical level,
Speaker:but I also want to talk
about the logistics on an
emotional and spiritual level
Speaker:here as well. And I've been thinking
about this a lot because I am,
Speaker:starting this week, taking my
sabbatical until the end of the year.
Speaker:And so I've been in deep preparation
mode to make this possible. Sabbaticals
Speaker:start long before they begin. What
do I mean by that? Well, most of us,
Speaker:unless we have a lot of ease and
financial abundance in our life,
Speaker:we're going to have to really
make sure we plan this out.
Speaker:I recommend taking at least a whole year
to figure out how your finances work.
Speaker:So if you are in a job where
you're getting a steady paycheck,
Speaker:you're going to have a pretty good idea
of how much money you make during that
Speaker:time, how much vacation days you have,
Speaker:how much time you can take off without
being penalized or being able to come
Speaker:back to your job. All those
logistics are really important.
Speaker:If you work for yourself or
you have your own business,
Speaker:you might even need a couple years of
legwork here to just really get the full
Speaker:picture of like, Okay,
Speaker:how much money can I expect
to make during this time,
Speaker:if you have passive income, or,
Speaker:how much money do I need to save
in order to make this possible?
Speaker:And so that's why I say sabbaticals
start long before they begin,
Speaker:because there's often a long
preparation period to make sure that,
Speaker:of cours,e you're going
to be provided for,
Speaker:your family's going to
be provided for that,
Speaker:that you have the kind of security
that you do need to make sure that
Speaker:your basic needs in life are met and
your family's basic needs are met. And so
Speaker:this planning phase,
Speaker:while it can feel like a
little left-brained and
Speaker:logistical, at the same time,
Speaker:it's exciting because it really starts
planting these seeds of possibility in
Speaker:your mind of what is possible for me?
Speaker:What can I do with the resources I have,
Speaker:with the potential that is in
my life? And often actually,
Speaker:there's a lot more potential
than we realize or than we
Speaker:currently see, or are telling
ourselves as possible.
Speaker:If you do work for someone else,
if you do work for a company,
Speaker:find out what the policies are.
Speaker:Sometimes there's actual
sabbatical policies and you
don't realize it until you
Speaker:read the fine print.
Speaker:But if you were to save up all
your vacation and sick days...
Speaker:as much as possible, right?
Speaker:Because we do also need
sick days from time to time.
Speaker:But if you took advantage
of all of those things,
Speaker:how much paid time could you get off?
Speaker:How much unpaid time can you take off
and still make sure you have that job
Speaker:security? Obviously, these are all
important questions to ask and research.
Speaker:And in my experience, if we're
feeling this deep call to sabbatical,
Speaker:there's going to be some way in
which we can make it possible.
Speaker:And that the time that we find
will meet the time that our
Speaker:soul is needing at this
moment in our life.
Speaker:Once you figure out logistics
of what is possible for you,
Speaker:tell everyone you can. There's
a few reasons for this:
Speaker:Obviously we need to inform
our employers, our employees,
Speaker:and people who do childcare
for us, all the things.
Speaker:We need to make sure we inform people
of this decision as far in advance,
Speaker:frankly as possible.
Speaker:Because it helps everyone orient to that.
So of course there's a logistical
Speaker:reason behind telling everyone,
Speaker:but there's also a more
emotional reason behind it.
Speaker:A psychological reason behind it is that
if you tell everyone you're going to do
Speaker:this, you're going to feel
beholden to actually do it.
Speaker:And so I started telling people that I
wanted to take a sabbatical last year.
Speaker:And in fact, I didn't say "I want
to take a sabbatical." I said,
Speaker:"I'm planning on taking a sabbatical."
And it was like planting these
Speaker:inbred little sign markers
or mile posts for me
Speaker:of accountability, of like,
Speaker:I have told people I will be
taking a sabbatical at this date.
Speaker:I know when I see them again,
Speaker:if I run into them in the
grocery store or whatever,
Speaker:they're going to ask me about it.
Speaker:And so I've planted for
myself this roadmap,
Speaker:this insurance of having
that little bit of
Speaker:positive pressure to make sure
that I do it. So I encourage you,
Speaker:once you figure out the logistics
and you come up with this plan,
Speaker:to start telling people about it. Because
it's going to hold you accountable,
Speaker:and it's also going to give your community
an opportunity to show up in support
Speaker:for you,
Speaker:to show up and be cheerleaders
for you as you step into
Speaker:this time.
Speaker:And it's been such an interesting thing
that when I tell someone I'm taking
Speaker:a vacation or I'm taking a
break, people are like, okay.
Speaker:But when I tell someone I'm
taking a sabbatical, it's like,
Speaker:I feel the whole field of their
curiosity light up, and they're like,
Speaker:tell me more. What are you working on?
Speaker:And so it's also this intriguing bit of
conversation too when you tell someone
Speaker:that you're taking a sabbatical,
people are really interested.
Speaker:They want to know more.
Speaker:It opens up possibility for communication
and connection. It's become one of
Speaker:those things that I really love
and especially when you're...
Speaker:maybe you're at a dinner
party or a gathering,
Speaker:and you're in sort of that
small talk area of like, well,
Speaker:what have you been up to?
What have you been up to?
Speaker:And it's like both of you are
maybe slightly understimulated,
Speaker:but you also know this
is part of connecting and
Speaker:developing relationship. And I
find that bringing in the topic of,
Speaker:I'm about to take a sabbatical,
it shakes everything up.
Speaker:And people get really intrigued and really
interested. And I also start to see,
Speaker:a lot of the time, people's own inner
wheels start turning to think about,
Speaker:could I take a sabbatical?
If I took a sabbatical,
Speaker:what would I want to do during it?
Speaker:What is the creative projects
that's calling to me?
Speaker:So it's a really great conversation piece
as well as just this thing that will
Speaker:keep you accountable to this plan that
you have for yourself. And of course,
Speaker:it's really important to set an intention
and then set boundaries around your
Speaker:sabbatical. So the intention is,
Speaker:what do you want to do with your
sabbatical time? What are you intending?
Speaker:Even if you don't have a very
specific project you want to work on,
Speaker:there's still an inner project,
there's a soul project,
Speaker:there's a psycho-emotional
project that's important to you.
Speaker:Find a way to name that, to write it down,
Speaker:to have something that you're going to
say when you tell people that you're
Speaker:taking a sabbatical, and
they inevitably ask, oh,
Speaker:what is it you're going to be doing?
Speaker:So make sure you're
clear on that intention.
Speaker:That intention is really going to give
you the focus that will move you through
Speaker:this time,
Speaker:that will help you get to the deeper
and deeper levels that you're here to
Speaker:experience within your sabbatical.
And part of creating this focus and
Speaker:this goal, this thing that's
going to lead you forward,
Speaker:is also creating boundaries around
this. When we have a goal, we're saying,
Speaker:"This is what I'm focusing on,
Speaker:and I'm not focusing on all of this."
And so I want you to be really clear when
Speaker:you're creating your sabbatical
time, of like, what is my goal?
Speaker:What is my focus? And setting boundaries
around everything that is not that.
Speaker:And you might have to be realistic
here. Maybe you're like, okay,
Speaker:I can't not check my
email for four months,
Speaker:but I can only check my email once a week.
Speaker:That's a boundary. Write these
boundaries down beforehand.
Speaker:Get super clear about them, communicate
about them with other people,
Speaker:because these boundaries are really
going to help you stay on task with the
Speaker:deepening that is wanting to happen here
through this experience. And perhaps
Speaker:the most important boundary of all is
set a date and a timeframe and stick to
Speaker:it. And there's a piece
here, right, where,
Speaker:no matter what we decide, there's going
to be a part of us that is resistant.
Speaker:There's going to be a part of us
that doubts that this is possible.
Speaker:There's always going to be
more that you have to do.
Speaker:It's just the reality. But setting a date,
Speaker:setting a timeframe,
Speaker:and sticking to it is so important because
you are signaling to your inner self,
Speaker:to your spiritual self and
your soul that this matters.
Speaker:That your own inner discovery,
Speaker:your own unfoldment in this life matters,
Speaker:that you're willing to listen
to the dictates of your
soul and take those steps.
Speaker:So get this down in writing.
Tell the people in your life,
Speaker:set the boundaries about what you will
be doing, what you will be available for,
Speaker:and what you will not, and
step into it bravely. Now,
Speaker:in all of this,
Speaker:I want to mention that there's
going to be parts of you that say,
Speaker:there's no way I can do this.
Speaker:And I think sometimes during certain
times of life, that's true, right?
Speaker:We do live in a physical reality
with all of its limitations,
Speaker:with all of its sociopolitical
complications, all of that is real.
Speaker:And, oftentimes,
Speaker:if we are feeling that deep
inner nudge to take a sabbatical,
Speaker:that voice that says,
there's no way I can do this,
Speaker:is actually a message coming
from our own programming that is
Speaker:up to be released.
And you will come up against this every
Speaker:step you take in planning your
sabbatical. You will come up against this,
Speaker:I'm sure, during your sabbatical.
Speaker:You'll come up against this as you review
all the details you need to make it
Speaker:possible.
Speaker:And instead of having that
thought make you panic or make you
Speaker:think, I'm just not
emotionally up to this,
Speaker:I'm not evolved enough to do this,
Speaker:know that this is part of what
a sabbatical is designed to do.
Speaker:It's designed to make you question
the things you thought you needed,
Speaker:the security that you thought you needed,
the permission you thought you needed,
Speaker:the money you thought
you needed in your life.
Speaker:All of that is going to come up to be
questioned during this. So when you have
Speaker:that question come up of like,
there's no way I can do this,
Speaker:it is asking you to be with and sit with,
Speaker:the part of yourself that is afraid,
Speaker:the part of yourself that is afraid of
what you will lose and what that will
Speaker:mean.
Speaker:And I really encourage you when
this thought comes up to sit with it
Speaker:and to see if there's any way in which
you can actually work with that same
Speaker:statement to find truth.
Speaker:So what do I mean by this?
Speaker:I really love Byron Katie's process
of "The Work" where she walks people
Speaker:through these statements that bring
stress to our bodies and ourselves and our
Speaker:minds and our nervous systems,
Speaker:and turn them around to find how actually
these statements that are causing
Speaker:stress are showing us
where the truth lies.
Speaker:And it often lies on the opposite
side of what it is that we're telling
Speaker:ourselves.
So in the process of the work,
Speaker:when we have a stressful
thought come up like,
Speaker:there's no way I can possibly do
this, and it's causing us anxiety,
Speaker:first we ask ourselves, is this true?
And sometimes we might say, yes,
Speaker:it is true for all these reasons.
But then you follow up with,
Speaker:can I absolutely know this is true?
Like beyond a shadow of a doubt,
Speaker:objectively, for sure, this is true.
Speaker:Most of the time the answer
to that's going to be, no,
Speaker:I actually don't know for sure that
that's true. I haven't even done it yet.
Speaker:I haven't even taken this sabbatical yet.
Speaker:There's magic and mystery to
life that I can't conceive of.
Speaker:Then we ask ourselves, who would
we be without that thought?
Speaker:And often the person that we would be
without that thought is someone who is
Speaker:free, who is connected to themselves,
Speaker:who has the resources and the things they
need to follow the guide-map of their
Speaker:soul,
Speaker:someone who does have the capacity to
take a sabbatical. And then you look for
Speaker:the turnaround.
Speaker:And so the turnaround is like a 180
switch of that sentence or whatever the
Speaker:phrase is, or the feeling or the
thought that's coming up for you.
Speaker:And so a turnaround
might be something like,
Speaker:there's no way I can possibly do
this because I'm going to become
Speaker:destitute and I'll let down my family
and my friends and my employers.
Speaker:A turnaround for that might
be, if I don't do this,
Speaker:I'm going to let down my family, my
friends, my employers, and my soul,
Speaker:because this is what I'm supposed to do
in this lifetime and in this lifetime,
Speaker:following what you're supposed to do is
what brings the light that you're meant
Speaker:to carry into this world into being.
Speaker:Or there's no way I can do this,
Speaker:original statement. Turnaround:
there's no way I can't do this.
Speaker:There's no way I can continue to live in
my life and not do this for myself. So
Speaker:you're going to find the turnarounds
that work for you with whatever the
Speaker:stressful thought is,
Speaker:but I really encourage you to just be
curious when you have those thoughts of
Speaker:like, there's no way this can
happen because..., come up,
Speaker:play with it a little bit. Is this true?
Do I know for sure that this is true?
Speaker:Who would I be without that thought?
Speaker:And what might a flipped version of
that statement be that actually makes me
Speaker:feel expanded and free and
like something is possible.
Speaker:That's pointing you towards truth.
Speaker:And this will really help you to start
to notice and dissolve some of these
Speaker:programs that you have within yourself.
There's also a very real
Speaker:element, when you're preparing
to do something like this,
Speaker:where you have to ask yourself,
what am I willing to risk?
Speaker:Because there is a risk. Of course there's
a risk in doing something like this,
Speaker:in dashing the programs and changing
the routines and stepping away and
Speaker:being that fool on the edge of
the cliff, like in the tarot card,
Speaker:about to jump off. You don't
know what's on the other side.
Speaker:But asking yourself this question,
what am I willing to risk,
Speaker:can really bring you into the aliveness
that's available for you here.
Speaker:That's the purpose of life, right?
It's not happiness, it's aliveness.
Speaker:And so it brings you into this question
of what am I willing to risk in
Speaker:order to be alive? And
when you focus on that,
Speaker:you realize that you're probably
willing to risk quite a bit. So for
Speaker:me, in my experience,
Speaker:I had already been planning
this sabbatical this year
when Hurricane Helene hit
Speaker:our mountains last fall.
Speaker:And when this major
catastrophic event happened,
Speaker:I lost my whole apothecary,
Speaker:which was a significant portion of
my income and my business's income.
Speaker:And not only did I lose this
significant portion of my business's
Speaker:income,
Speaker:but I also lost months of
work because I was focused on
Speaker:mutual aid, raising money for
our communities, the rebuild,
Speaker:as well as recovering myself.
And so when this happened,
Speaker:from the outside looking in, it
would've been really easy to think,
Speaker:there's no way I can do a sabbatical,
this sabbatical, next year.
Speaker:How am I going to take half of
next year off after I lost a whole
Speaker:quarter of work and a significant portion
of our business' income that would
Speaker:take a long time to build
back if ever? And yet,
Speaker:there was something else that
happened for me in that moment,
Speaker:where I touched the preciousness of life,
Speaker:I touched the very real
reality and significance of the
Speaker:fact that life is short,
nothing is guaranteed.
Speaker:And I asked myself,
Speaker:if I were to die tomorrow,
Speaker:what would I have wanted
to do with my life?
Speaker:If another event like this
swept through and I wasn't so
Speaker:lucky to have only lost this,
Speaker:what will I have been so glad
that I took the time to do?
Speaker:What am I here for if
not saying yes to what my
Speaker:soul is asking of me?
Speaker:And I realize after this experience
that I'm willing to take that
Speaker:risk. And it's powerful to ask yourself,
Speaker:what is it that you're truly worried about
that you're going to risk? Of course,
Speaker:for me, there is multiple levels, right?
Speaker:As someone who's the
breadwinner of my family,
Speaker:I'm worried I'm not going to be able
to support my family, support myself,
Speaker:pay my mortgage, pay my healthcare.
All of those things are really real.
Speaker:But also,
Speaker:really afraid of letting
other people down.
Speaker:Deep concerns around making sure
I can still pay my employees,
Speaker:like my amazing team. I
want them to be supported.
Speaker:I don't want them to lose their income.
Speaker:This was essential to me.
And this was something too,
Speaker:these layers of things,
were something that really,
Speaker:at previous times in my life really held
me back from making riskier decisions
Speaker:because I wanted to make sure
that there was enough safety and
Speaker:security and assurance for everyone,
Speaker:for all these things. And yet there
was something about this threshold
Speaker:moment of experiencing such a catastrophe,
Speaker:of experiencing something where
I was brought very close to that
Speaker:veil and really asked,
what do you want to do?
Speaker:As Mary Oliver says,
Speaker:what do you want to do with
your one wild and precious life?
Speaker:And the answer was so clear.
It was this. This next book,
Speaker:this is what I'm supposed
to do. Take this time.
Speaker:This is what I'm supposed to do.
Speaker:And I'm willing to take the
risks of what happens when I do
Speaker:that. And that is such a
powerful place to be in.
Speaker:If you are willing to look at
the things you're afraid of,
Speaker:to name the things that is your
worst fear of what you'd be
Speaker:risking,
Speaker:and decide that the aliveness
of your own soul is more
Speaker:important than the things
that you fear, that is power.
Speaker:To be willing to take the risk.
And so often the stories we
Speaker:tell ourselves about worst case
scenario are just so far from the
Speaker:reality of actually
what's going to happen.
Speaker:But it's important that we work with
these parts of ourselves that have fear,
Speaker:that we don't just shunt them away, that
we are with them, that we be with them,
Speaker:because this is the work. This is
part of the work of the sabbatical.
Speaker:It's not something that's
getting in the way.
Speaker:It is embedded in the spiritual journey
of taking a sabbatical itself. So
Speaker:all of this is going to come up
as you approach your sabbatical,
Speaker:as you get ready to take your sabbatical.
Speaker:And so as someone now who
has moved through a lot of
Speaker:this, and I'm beginning
the sabbatical now,
Speaker:I'm going to tell you it's
actually really important that as
Speaker:you approach the date, your start date,
Speaker:that you're aware of
the things that come up,
Speaker:that you continue to work with them,
Speaker:and that you create an exit plan and
stick to it. Because as I said before,
Speaker:there's always going to
be more that comes up.
Speaker:There's always more that needs to
be done. But really ask yourself,
Speaker:get clear with yourself, what are the
steps I need to take in that last,
Speaker:whatever the timeframe is, six
months, three months, one month,
Speaker:several weeks?
Speaker:What do I need to do to
feel like I can step cleanly
Speaker:into this sabbatical time?
And I encourage you too,
Speaker:as you create this exit
plan, write it down,
Speaker:know what you're doing each week,
Speaker:have the tasks lists that you have
to accomplish in order to really be
Speaker:complete and step into this new phase,
this new chapter, this new season.
Speaker:I encourage you to include some
sort of ritual of completion and
Speaker:opening,
Speaker:something that you can do to mark the
end of that era and that timeline and the
Speaker:beginning of this timeline
of your sabbatical.
Speaker:This sabbatical that is
really a time out of time.
Speaker:Rituals really help our
psyches and our spirits to
Speaker:orient to transition and change,
Speaker:to bring themselves fully
into the new chapter.
Speaker:So design some sort of ritual for
yourself that is marking the beginning
Speaker:of your sabbatical, the
end of what came before it,
Speaker:and the beginning of this sacred time.
And then you've
Speaker:become. And then you
are in your sabbatical.
Speaker:And as someone who's just at
the start of her sabbatical now,
Speaker:there's a lot I'm going to
be learning during this time.
Speaker:And I hope to be able to pop back
in and share more about what I am
Speaker:learning as I go. But here are some
of the things that I'm anticipating:
Speaker:When we start a new chapter,
Speaker:often things feel a little
disorienting at the beginning,
Speaker:especially if we've high expectations of
ourselves around whatever it is we want
Speaker:to accomplish or do. But expect to
be disoriented for a little bit.
Speaker:Expect when you step out of your
routines, your habits, your programs,
Speaker:to be like, okay, who am I
and what am I doing again?
Speaker:What am I doing here? Expect to have that
voice of the inner critic come up who
Speaker:says, Ah, you did all this work to
take this sabbatical and look at you.
Speaker:You can't even open that Word
document. Or whatever it is.
Speaker:Expect that to come up.
It's a bit like jet lag.
Speaker:Don't think that you're going to get to
this new place and immediately be able
Speaker:to just jump into adventuring or
sightseeing or whatever it is.
Speaker:You need a little bit of orientation time.
Speaker:Your spirit needs a little bit of
orientation time. So as much as you can,
Speaker:be gentle with yourself in the
beginning, give yourself less to do,
Speaker:lower your expectations, and just
get used to your new reality first,
Speaker:before you try to really start crossing
things off of your spiritual to-do
Speaker:list. Because this is really
an invitation to dive deep,
Speaker:to touch the undercurrents of your
life, to rediscover what inspires you,
Speaker:to find new ways of working and being,
Speaker:to let your routines and
your programs transform,
Speaker:and to allow all of the
emotions that you have
Speaker:around things like
creativity, productivity,
Speaker:the roles you play in your
life, to allow that to come up,
Speaker:because it's going to come up.
But that's by design.
Speaker:That's so much of what you're doing
inside of the sabbatical is actually like
Speaker:redefining your relationship to yourself,
to the things that matter to you,
Speaker:to other people, to your
creative outpourings in life.
Speaker:It will redefine your relationship to
productivity and also your relationship to
Speaker:what you feel is possible.
Speaker:So allow emotions to come
up. If the guilt is there,
Speaker:notice the guilt. Ask yourself,
Speaker:what is it that you think I should be
doing in life? Look for those turnarounds.
Speaker:Just be with what is because this is
so much of the work that we are doing
Speaker:inside of our sabbaticals. The whole
goal here is to follow your soul,
Speaker:not strategy. So you might
have a schedule for yourself,
Speaker:an idea of what you want to be doing.
Speaker:You might have put certain things on
the calendar, but be open to mystery.
Speaker:This is you discovering how
to more closely follow the GPS
Speaker:of your own soul. And so be
open to course redirections,
Speaker:be open to listening, be open to things
going differently than you planned.
Speaker:And that's all part of the wider plan.
But there is something that I definitely
Speaker:want to orient you to and
just have you be aware of,
Speaker:because it always happens. And this is
something I am preparing myself for,
Speaker:and I'm reminding myself, Asia,
you're going to experience this,
Speaker:so don't be surprised.
Speaker:And this is the mid trip
slump Or in this case,
Speaker:the mid sabbatical slump. So
I'm very familiar with this,
Speaker:with creative projects, with
travel. Whenever you're in
the middle of something,
Speaker:there's going to be a slump. And it's
a bit like when you're starting out
Speaker:something big and you're
at the beginning of a hike,
Speaker:and you look out over the trailhead
and the vista, and you're like,
Speaker:I'm so ready.
Speaker:And then you start walking and you get
down to this valley and you're like,
Speaker:I can't see anything. I don't know
what I'm doing. I don't know who I am.
Speaker:Is this even worthwhile? I'm so tired.
I don't want to do anything else.
Speaker:That's the mid project slump,
the mid sabbatical or trip slump.
Speaker:And when you reach it,
Speaker:it's a good sign because it means you've
gotten to the heart of your experience.
Speaker:It means you're right in the
center point of this experience,
Speaker:and you will climb back out. If
you just keep hiking, keep walking,
Speaker:you'll come back up the other side, up
onto the vista, the end point, the view,
Speaker:and go, huh, yeah, that wasn't so bad.
Speaker:Now I look back on that valley
and I see why I had to be there,
Speaker:why that was important for the journey.
Speaker:It was all built in to arriving to
this place. But I just want you to be
Speaker:prepared for this happening
because it's super,
Speaker:super common.
Speaker:And I really think it's actually an
important part where we go deep enough,
Speaker:our spirit trusts us to go deep enough,
Speaker:to do some of this deeper
psychoemotional work inside of ourselves,
Speaker:to release even more of these programs
of limitations that we've been holding
Speaker:onto. This could also look
like boredom, confusion,
Speaker:FOMO, doubt. All of that is
part of this mid trip slump.
Speaker:And the only thing you really have to
do when this comes up is be with it.
Speaker:If possible, name the feeling
that you're experiencing.
Speaker:Turn your attention inwards.
Notice sensations in your body.
Speaker:Where do you feel it? What does it feel
like? Try to use descriptive words.
Speaker:Breathe into the
sensation. Allow it to be.
Speaker:The resistance is part of what
got us in this slump in the first
Speaker:place, so stop resisting it. Just
be in the schlump. Breathe it,
Speaker:feel it,
Speaker:name it in your body. This is a time
to companion our bodies and our nervous
Speaker:systems,
Speaker:because what's happening is our nervous
system is trying to rewire itself,
Speaker:rewrite a new pattern and way of being.
Speaker:And as it does that, what it
needs is just presence from us:
Speaker:presence, gentleness, acceptance,
Speaker:the ability to breathe
through what is happening,
Speaker:to be with the sensations in
our body. And it will shift.
Speaker:There's that discomfort time when we're
rewiring these patterns where, yeah,
Speaker:it's uncomfortable, but
it is going to shift.
Speaker:And this is a big part of what you are
doing and the kind of freedom you're
Speaker:creating for yourself through
this experience. It can
also be really helpful to
Speaker:dialogue with yourself during
this time, to ask yourself,
Speaker:the part of you that is having whatever
these feelings are come up, and say,
Speaker:what are you afraid of? What are
you worried is going to happen?
Speaker:What is the worst fear? And
how can I show up for you?
Speaker:What can I do to help you
just survive this day or this
Speaker:moment?
Speaker:And companioning yourself this
way will go so far in really
Speaker:giving yourself the kind of support
you need to just keep walking.
Speaker:And that's what you're doing.
Speaker:You're just going to keep walking.
And all of sabbatical is a ceremony.
Speaker:And with ceremonies,
all the things come up.
Speaker:Like in a really good,
Speaker:soul-shaking ceremony,
Speaker:it's not just daisies the whole time.
Speaker:In a really powerful ceremony,
Speaker:you're going to have elements come
up that you need to work through.
Speaker:You're going to have the big feelings,
you're going to have the doubt.
Speaker:That's all a part of the ceremony.
Speaker:And so just reframe this whole experience
of the sabbatical that you're taking
Speaker:as a kind of ceremony, an
extended ceremony that you're in.
Speaker:And the fact that stuff is coming up
is a really good sign. And this is the
Speaker:other thing about ceremony.
In true deep ceremony,
Speaker:we do not leave as the same person
we came into the ceremony as.
Speaker:Ceremonies change you. That's
what they're designed to do.
Speaker:And so know that you will be
transformed by this experience.
Speaker:It might be gentle, it might be
overt, it might be fantastical,
Speaker:it might be subtle. But you will
be changed by this experience.
Speaker:So allow the change to happen
and occur while you're within it.
Speaker:During sabbaticals, when we give ourselves
a sacred pause in the sacred space,
Speaker:no matter what it is we're doing,
we touch back into our life purpose.
Speaker:Because so much of our life purpose
as human beings is just to be.
Speaker:It to be, to experience ourselves,
Speaker:to know that our creative
visions, our output,
Speaker:our energy itself, is what
is needed in this world,
Speaker:is what we're being asked to bring.
Speaker:And so you'll be reorienting yourself
to your life purpose within this
Speaker:sabbatical. And it's very rare that I
hear anyone take a sabbatical and say,
Speaker:"Oh, I wish I hadn't
done that." Pretty much,
Speaker:most people who take
sabbaticals come back and say,
Speaker:"I'm so glad I did that."
And it changed my life.
Speaker:It changed my relationship to
myself, to my work, to my soul.
Speaker:And the thing about sabbaticals,
just like ceremonies,
Speaker:is that they then give us the strength
to step back into our life again,
Speaker:to rewrite the way we are living,
Speaker:to jump timelines by deciding
on new programs, new habits,
Speaker:new values for ourselves. And
this is the power of a sabbatical.
Speaker:A sabbatical can do all of this for us.
So,
Speaker:I'm hoping that through this episode,
Speaker:you got some framework for
how to take a sabbatical,
Speaker:whether it's time for you to take one,
Speaker:what might be coming up during
your sabbatical, and perhaps,
Speaker:some inspiration to really start
working on this for yourself,
Speaker:to start imagining what you need
and to be in touch with your soul
Speaker:and know that the risks that
are inherent to saying yes
Speaker:to your own soul's unfoldment
are always worth it.
Speaker:So wish me luck on my sabbatical.
Speaker:We have designed it so that there will
still be podcast episodes releasing each
Speaker:week,
Speaker:and I'm hoping to pop in for a couple
episodes where I give you an update
Speaker:about where I'm at on my sabbatical.
So I'm super excited about that.
Speaker:You'll hopefully be getting a little
more details about what this book is that
Speaker:I'm working on and what I've
been doing behind the scenes.
Speaker:So stay tuned for that coming up.
Speaker:And know that this podcast
is a huge reason why this
Speaker:sabbatical is still happening.
Speaker:Why even with the huge loss and
reorientation that happened last year
Speaker:for me inside of my business, that
it's still happening this year,
Speaker:that it's still possible for
me. Your support, you listening,
Speaker:you connecting in this way has
really given me the strength
Speaker:and the wings that I needed
to feel like I could really
Speaker:fly into this time.
So thank you so much for that.
Speaker:And one thing that you could do to
support me on this sabbatical if you're
Speaker:interested in doing that, is to leave
a rating or review for this podcast.
Speaker:It very literally means that
all these platforms show this
Speaker:podcast to more people when it
has more ratings and more reviews.
Speaker:So if you want to send me a little bit
of magic as I begin the sabbatical,
Speaker:leave a rating or review,
Speaker:and I promise it will be like sprinkling
fairy dust onto these wings that are
Speaker:currently unfolding.
I'm so, so grateful for you.
Speaker:I'm so grateful for all the connections
that have come about through this
Speaker:podcast. I'm so excited
for what's to come.
Speaker:And I would love to hear
if you end up taking a
Speaker:sabbatical, what happens for
you? Let's compare notes.
Speaker:I'm super curious and I can't wait to
let you know what it was like when I get
Speaker:to the other side. So thank
you so much for being here.
Speaker:Know that the callings that
you're feeling inside of yourself,
Speaker:the nudgings that you're sensing
from your soul, that they matter,
Speaker:they're important,
Speaker:that the space will be
made for you to step
Speaker:into those callings, that
that's why they're there,
Speaker:that you would not have those
urgings, those callings,
Speaker:if there wasn't going to be space for
you to be met in those. So know that
Speaker:whatever is moving you,
Speaker:inspiring you at the end of this
episode and in your life right now,
Speaker:that it's there for a reason.
It's there for a purpose,
Speaker:that you have a really special,
Speaker:powerful gift that you're
here to bring to this world.
Speaker:And thinking about taking a sabbatical
or simply thinking about what it
Speaker:is that you're called
to, will bring you back,
Speaker:will bring you back in ways that
are so nourishing and so fulfilling,
Speaker:to that thing that is the
most important thing of all:
Speaker:remembering why you're here.
