Fumbling and Feeling My Way Through a Sacred Sabbatical

Not just a staircase — it was a portal back to myself, where I found rest in the stillness between the steps.

I’ve been fumbling my way through a sabbatical, trying to understand what my natural rhythms and rituals are. Feeling my way through a new operating system that can better support a life of spaciousness and abundance.

I first encountered the idea of sabbaticals through a job benefit in my past life. They offered two months of paid leave — but only after five years of loyalty. Once the first few months of work felt tolerable enough, I locked myself in, committing to stay long enough to afford more than two weeks off at a time. I tucked my dreams of not working out of obligation into the constraints of a workplace benefit. A benefit that, in exchange, asked me to tolerate behaviors and norms that tested my willingness to do the right thing over an insistence on working hard and keeping my head down.

The cracks showed up sooner than I thought: the pile-on of menial tasks, the detour away from creative capacity, and the slow erosion of resilience. I witnessed colleagues enduring just about anything to reach the “reward” for loyalty to a corporate mission. But at what cost?

I remembered my own agency through a Black woman client who first remembered her own. We had met in the office, two familiar faces orbiting around an organization whose loyalty was a leash. We began meeting regularly, holding space — what I now recognize as the roots of Rooted Reset offering. Our conversations shifted from active projects to dreaming of a life beyond the scarcity and ego of corporate survival.

One day, she announced: “I need a break!” Not PTO. Not medical leave. A break untethered from the expectation to plunge back into the workplace dumpster fire.

Together, we built the confidence for her to imagine her first sabbatical — a three-month, self-designed micro-retirement. Watching her reclaim her time, energy, and vision gave me permission to consider my own.

My sabbatical wasn’t planned. It came through the unexpected opening of a layoff — the very dream of working less, living more, knocking at my door in a form I didn’t expect. Battling self-doubt and the indoctrination of a career steered by corporate dreams, I jumped feet first into figuring out how to build a life centered on spaciousness.

I started this season doing things I’d normally do on weekends or on PTO: resting without an expiration date, taking time to do nothing, catching up with friends and family, romanticizing errands, investing in body care, indulging Youtube Edu binges, turning off alarms, and allowing a natural rhythm to catch my body up to my racing mind. For once, I didn’t have to pack care into a few permitted days. I didn't have to brace for re-entry into the grind. I could simply be.

It took nearly three months just to reach neutral. To reflect on leaving Brooklyn. To grieve the career path I thought I'd have. To release anger and resentment from a toxic job.

Mexico City offered generous magic, but my inner work demanded that I loosen my grip on old measures of success. For weeks, I moved where my appetite, curiosity, and tenderness led me. I experimented. I allowed myself to do nothing — and to trust that even rest was doing something important.

The fear still lurked: contingency planning, anxious and desperate job searches to soothe the discomfort of being untethered. Rejection letters, strangely enough, reassured me that I wasn’t veering too far off track — I was being rerouted toward something more aligned.

Gradually, my focus shifted. The anxiety of needing a backup plan softened into opportunities to re-articulate my purpose. The guilt of stepping away from traditional work gave way to a creative rebrand that feels more rooted in who I am today. Instead of measuring success by productivity, I began witnessing what felt good, what felt true, and what wanted more structure to thrive. Even with black-out curtains and the absence of alarms, my body still rose early, ready for wonder. My creativity still craved discipline, not as punishment, but as a tender invitation.

This sabbatical wasn’t just a vacation or an escape — it became a sacred reclamation.
A re-rooting.
A return.

As I see more and more of my community sitting with the opportunity to invest differently: choosing between the old paradigm of work and impact in favor of a new vision of service and empowered futures. I share these lessons in the hope that they inspire a sacred sabbatical and season of reclamation for you.

3 Lessons from A Sacred Sabbatical

Are you looking to embark on a sacred sabbatical?

Are you looking to (re)fuel your journey toward transformation?

Are you ready to trust your self and activate your ideal vision for the future?

Let’s connect on how to take your growth journey to the next level. I’ve created unique affirmations and a how to guide for developing your own sacred sabbatical to support vision and dreams coming to life.