Sabbatical for Creative Reflection: A beginner’s guide
Mastering the fine art of doing nothing
About a year ago, I decided to quit my full-time high pressure job at an international NGO to moved back to India. First, I was planning to get a job. But then, I remembered the story of the famous designer Stefan Sagmeister, who takes a year off every seven years for a creative sabbatical. “Damn, If only I could that”, I thought when I first read about him. And suddenly, here was my opportunity.
Except, this was not a creative sabbatical. That is something one would do if you were a world famous designer who had a long wait list of clients. I was a mid-career nobody having a crisis. What I needed was not a creative sabbatical, but a sabbatical for creative reflection. I needed to work on crazy ideas, learn new things and meet inspiring people and eventually, find that spark.
So, I wanted to summarize my experience into a month-by-month toolkit for aspiring sabbaticalers (yes, in case you are wondering, thats a made-up word).
Month 1: Do Nothing
Yes, absolutely goddamn nothing. Eat, sleep, exercise, read, spend insane amounts of time watching funny cat videos and internet memes. If you can't really do this, then give up your creative sabbatical and go back to your job.
Month 2: Find many things that excite you
Not one thing, but many things. Even better if these things are completely unrelated. Best if you try and stay away from your previous career and skills. For instance, I got psyched about tech start-up’s and politics. Yes, they both have nothing in common. But, who cares.
Month 3: Meet interesting people
It would be good to focus on meeting people who work on areas that interest you. It would also be good to meet random but interesting people. Make an effort to listen, I bet everyone has something to offer.
Month 4: Shortlist projects
By this point you probably are bubbling with ideas in your head. Your projects don't have to be coherent and meaningful. Embrace the randomness. The key is to do things that you would never imagine yourself doing. For instance, some of my projects included: learning to code, starting a information curation company, becoming a political organizer, creating a coworking space, launching an online business…
Month 5 — 11: Work on your projects
Give yourself the time to work on your projects. You could be learning something new or getting a start-up off the ground or building your own standing desk. Whatever. If you are working with other people or with an organization, make sure you are involved as a volunteer. Make it clear that you have the choice of walking away anytime. However, give every project your 100 percent.
Month 12: Do Nothing, Again
Duh. Cat videos.
