Step away with purpose. Return with clarity.
For many leaders, the idea of completely stepping away sounds wonderful—and impossible. I've done it.
In 2022, I left for three months.
No business emails. No business phone calls. No daily, weekly, or monthly reports. No financial statements. No decisions routed back to me.
For three months, I lived completely disconnected from every facet of the company I had spent decades building.
But the sabbatical didn't begin the day I left. It began with preparing the organization for me to leave.
A sabbatical requires more than a plane ticket.
With the help of my advisory board, we prepared Laminate Works not simply to remain safe while I was gone, but to grow and flourish without me.
- What decisions still depended on me?
- Who needed the authority to make them?
- Where was knowledge concentrated in one person?
- What would happen when something went wrong?
- Which issues genuinely required the owner?
The organization gets a sabbatical from you, too.
Other people have room to lead. Decisions get made without automatically moving up the ladder. Weaknesses become visible. And the organization discovers how dependent it really is on one person.
A sabbatical can become more than a season of rest. It can become an act of leadership.
Let the field lie fallow.
There is an ancient agricultural practice of leaving a field unplanted for a season. The field isn't abandoned. It's allowed to rest, recover, and prepare to produce again.
That's how I've come to think about sabbatical: a season to rest, recharge, reflect, and consider what matters most.
Planning the time away.
Purpose & Readiness
Why are you going? What do you hope the season creates space for? Is the organization actually ready?
Leadership & Boundaries
Who carries responsibility while you're gone? What does “disconnected” really mean? What, if anything, could justify contacting you?
Return & Renewal
What changed while you were gone? What did you learn? What should be different when you return?