Today marks day one of my sabbatical journey - something that only appeared as a distant option until today. I’m now commencing what I hope will be one of the most extraordinary transformation periods of my life. Congratulations to those that have alreadt taken this first step, it is one of courage, I'd be keen to hear your stories!

I hope that someday, if you have not already commenced, that you get the chance to step back from the noise and give yourself the thinking time to cultivate within yourself a life that brings the peace you so dearly deserve.

I don’t know where this journey will lead me, but the most exciting part is that I am allowing my heart to lead me, and from that I know that the path will be filled with fruitful lessons and potentially contented triumphs.

My drive? To become the happiest, most fulfilled version of myself so that I can be a more loving partner, son, sibling, uncle…

The Trigger for Change

After almost 10 years in the fast-paced environment of Research and Development, as an engineer, working with many talented performance-driven teams, I’ve finally decided to take the “plunge”, hand in my resignation and forge out a personal reflection period for some unknown amount of time. The desire to re-light that inner flame has been one of the lingering drivers for this.

When I asked myself subconsciously each morning whether I was excited to face the day ahead and what it entailed, that excitement was not there. No matter what pursuit you undertake, on some days it may just be difficult and you need to press on. However, when there are more days lacking that excitement than the days when you feel exhilarated for what’s ahead, something needs to change.

The Feeling Within

This feeling had festered for a while and I would always be thinking about the personal projects I wanted to dive into and only really ever had evenings (when I was already tired from a busy day) and weekends (where my relationships with my partner and family would be prioritised, and rightfully so). I felt in an endless cycle of suppressing what I wanted the most at the expense of engaging within a high-performance workplace culture.

Don’t get me wrong, there is a place of growth within high-performance roles and teams, however this comes at an expense of the things I mentioned above; your personal pursuits, family time and self-development time. The question that needs to be asked is “What am I willing to sacrifice to be a high performer?” If you are content with all that is to be sacrificed, props to you, I envy your commitment and consistency, I even may have a thing or two to learn from these types of high performers.

I have decided to start documenting my journey through an email newsletter, if anyone is interested to follow along: https://the-freedom-to-think.beehiiv.com

I wish everyone all the best as they embark on this uncertain journey!

I created a fun game, let me know what you think!

https://tennerthegame.com

I’ve always loved how the word Zestos goes beyond just temperature. It’s that feeling of a space that welcomes you or a person who makes you feel safe. I decided to design and frame this definition for my guest room to set that exact vibe. Does anyone else have a favourite Greek word that describes a specific "feeling" rather than just a physical thing?