Sabbatical: When It’s Time For A Rest

ZenZen
edited November 2010 in Articles
Sabbatical: When It’s Time For A Rest

A sabbatical is usually defined as a break or a rest from work. A typical sabbatical lasts at least two months but can definitely vary in length. When used in Academic institutions, the arrangement is generally for a sabbatical every six years of employment. Sabbaticals can either be paid or unpaid depending on the employer. Sabbaticals can be taken by people from many different professions and accomplish many different goals. Some people take a sabbatical from work to write a book or do research for their profession. Some take a sabbatical merely for rest and relaxation. Pastors, educators, musicians, and scientists are among those professions that sabbaticals are most common.

What are the benefits of sabbaticals to both the employee and the employer? First of all, if you are doing research for your profession or furthering your education by taking a few classes, you can become more knowledgeable in your career field. Obviously this would benefit not only yourself (maybe by even receiving a raise in pay), but also your employer as you are more competent in your career field. Secondly, you could see an increase in productivity. Sometimes when one has been in a profession for a while, things start to get awfully tedious. There may be a dip in the quality or amount of work that you accomplish.

When this happens, a sabbatical may come in handy so that you can have a break away from your profession. Upon return to work, there will possibly be an increase in productivity and maybe even new ideas generated. Another great side benefit of sabbaticals may be that you realize that you are not in the right profession. Sabbaticals can sometimes be a good time to evaluate where you are in your life. You may realize that you are not in the right profession. You might realize that you would be more fulfilled somewhere else. There is no better time for a career change. There are even more reasons that sabbaticals can be helpful in every profession, too many to put into a list. Just a few major benefits have been mentioned here in hopes that you would gain a more complete knowledge of sabbaticals and their benefits.
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