A career break is a period of between 3 and 24 months in which a person takes a break from work to spend time on self-discovery, skill development or a side project. Few employers offer such a formalized opportunity to their employees. More often, they should have a conversation themselves about the need for such a break and the ways in which it can happen. Research shows that people who have taken a career break do not return to exactly the same positions as before, as they have acquired new skills in that period and are ready to apply them.
Approach strategies
Three approaches to the career break have been identified. The first is a “working break.” This means that a person takes a career break in which he/she first rests and recovers physically and mentally, and then works on a project outside his/her traditional workplace. During a career break, it is not good for people to completely disconnect from the environment they were in before. In order to stay connected to the topics they have been working on and to avoid losing their network of contacts, it is recommended that professionals on a career break attend events from time to time. Online courses and reading websites and journals in specialized topics also helps to keep in touch with the topics. Volunteering is also a good way to use current knowledge and acquire new, transferable ones.
The second approach is “free diving” into the uncharted waters of the career break. It is for people who want to achieve a goal or challenge they have set for themselves during this time, but due to lack of time or other commitments cannot achieve it. They take long trips and explore new places and cultures. Often, however, the trip turns out not to be exactly what they imagined and they encounter unexpected difficulties such as broken limbs or exotic illnesses far from home. It’s these situations that make people think outside the box and that makes their experiences transformational.
For the third, those seeking a career break due to overwork and total exhaustion are in the process of “searching.” They need a period of rest in which to recharge their batteries through sleep and through distraction with television, books and other ways of unplugging. Once restored to strength, one rearranges one’s priorities and is on the road to returning to work, whether in another position or in another industry.
What do they lead to?
Out of school or university, people often start work straight away and get caught up in everyday life, rarely stopping to think about what they actually wanted to do. Their identity becomes the job. This is why people who go on a career break involuntarily because of job cuts or because of a burnout or illness see the biggest changes.
The period of reflection helps them understand that they have valuable qualities that they can apply in other areas. After a period of rest and renewal, with clear priorities and goals, people return from a career break with a better sense of work-life balance, and a more fulfilling life.
