Sabbatical Retro

Hey everybody,

Just back from my 4 months sabbatical this week and I want to share my retro with you here. When I mentioned that I am “off” for a sabbatical many people reacted interested, disturbed, or jealous. This leads to my first learning I will share in several blog posts over the next few days.

Valuable Time “in-between”

In our hyper efficient western business world, there is no room for hiatus or idleness:

“Idleness is the beginning of all vice”

For me, the sabbatical was a time of poor productivity but a source of new energy to marshal the next phase in my life. I did this consciously after finishing my master degree in the US in 1995. Then, my three month trip in the US and Canada from east to west and north to south was not only a great culture and nature experience. It gave me a clear mind & heart on my future professional and family life.

Similarly, in my 2022 sabbatical I reflected on my “first software career” and how family life changes with grown up kids. Do you remember the time you finished your last university exam and now looking forward towards a bright future expecting new opportunities? This is how I feel today, fresh for a start in a second career: 51 years old still 15+ years to go 😉

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Claudia’s little Buddha in Flores

Taking off 2-4 months has tremendous value, and I asked myself: Why didn’t I do this earlier? The Bosch Sabbatical program is so easy to implement and well thought through. I think the biggest hurdle is the expected social pressure. Hence, it is your decision which people you allow to judge you. My recommendation: allow yourself a valuable time window between two phases in your life.

The following posts guide you through different topics during my sabbatical: 

Overall, I have re-calibrated my perspective on humans and earth, from the very tiny to the wholistic. From July onwards I will concentrate my energy on Climate-Tech by joining the start-up TREEO.


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