Sabbatical: Stop ‘moving in silence’ - it’s time to socialize!
Someone, please explain to me what this whole ‘move in silence’ movement is about.
The advice to ‘move in silence’ refers to keeping your plans and goals to yourself rather than sharing them with others. Maybe you’ve seen it on Twitter or LinkedIn - it is usually on a post titled “10 Steps To Success”. (Why is it always 10? … I digress….).
I get how moving in silence might be beneficial if you have a brilliant idea and you want to maintain a competitive edge… but come on.…what are we, secret agents? Sounds to me like some people might be afraid of a bit of feedback.
No offense to the actual secret agents out there, but admit it, even you could use a trusted sounding board once in a while.
How about this…instead of hiding away in the bushes and plotting your dream getaway, let’s socialize the fact that you're going away. It is a very important step. Now that you have your purpose, location, and finances figured out….it's time to tell your people.
Tell your mom, your friends, your kids, your dog, etc., if they don't already know your plans. And also, here comes the scary part, tell your place of work. It's essential to check in with work. The earlier the better.
Why? Because you're part of a system. Your decision to act in any particular way (like taking a well-deserved break from work) will impact your work and your colleagues. Plus, you might even find that people are rooting for you and want to support your goals.
Who’s ready for an activity!? Read on….
Reflect on the consequences of your absence with the handy-dandy Futures Wheel.
Image sourced from Majid Behboudi’s Medium article on the Future’s Wheel
The Futures Wheel is a decision-making, strategic planning, and foresight tool that allows us to map out the direct and indirect implications of any decision. Shout out to futurist Jerome Glenn who created this back in the 70’s. You can read more about it here.
This exercise should help you answer the following basic questions:
Will my absence have any impact on my colleagues and the work they do?
Is there anyone else I need to speak with before I leave to ensure a smooth transition?
You might never go back to your old ways of decision-making. The Futures Wheel has become a staple in my creative problem-solving toolkit; a default way of working through any decision, big or small. It’s definitely useful in other realms of planning your sabbatical, as well as flushing out that brilliant idea of yours. Check out this cool build on the classic Futures Wheel by Board of Innovation where they put a social impact spin on decision-making, making it easier for any organization to be better to people and our planet.
OK that’s enough resource sharing. Clearly, I am obsessed with this tool.
In case you’re curious how socializing my sabbatical went for me at the Gov of Canada:
During a routine biweekly 1:1, I mentioned to my boss that I am thinking about taking time off work to pursue some personal goals. I wanted to have this conversation WAY early, like while I was in the beginning of my planning phase with my sabbatical potentially 6 months out. I did this purposely so it could be an ongoing, open conversation because, as human beings, we prefer to feel included rather than informed. Happily, my boss was delighted that I had the chutzpah to actively follow my dreams and pointed me to all the references I would need to consider: diverse leave options, impacts to pay / healthcare benefits, potential tax implications, etc. We even talked about how this could positively impact my career progression ;) Overall, it was a really positive first conversation that left us both feeling confident and in control of next steps.
I recognize that it’s lucky to work in a supportive organization, under supportive management. This might not be the case for everyone. Nonetheless, the Futures Wheel should help you come up with an action plan for socializing your time off, regardless of whether you continue to move in silence or shout it from the rooftops.
A bientot!
Milena
