Sabbatical Basecamp
5 Weeks
·Cohort-based Course
The best thing you can do for your career—and life—is to take time off from it. Get equipped and out the door for the journey of a lifetime.
Sabbatical Basecamp
5 Weeks
·Cohort-based Course
The best thing you can do for your career—and life—is to take time off from it. Get equipped and out the door for the journey of a lifetime.
Course overview
Use your sabbatical wisely.
Sabbatical Basecamp is a month-long intimate workshop led by the leader in research on sabbaticals for professionals: DJ DiDonna. Whether you’re looking to explore, heal, or create something new, your time in the Sabbatical Basecamp will ensure your time away is time well spent.
Who is this course for
01
Seekers
You're conventionally "successful" but looking for time to EXPLORE—inside and out—and return recharged, ready to make an impact.
02
Wounded Warriors
You're burned out, bored, or ready for a change in your career and/or life. But first, you've earned some time to HEAL.
03
Achievers
You've always wanted to ACCOMPLISH—a book, business, or living abroad with your family. You don't want to waste this opportunity.
Topics covered
Sabbaticals 101
Taking extended leave is an ancient human ritual. See how your desire to take off fits into a healthy and productive journey through life and career.
Taking the First Step
How to message—and ask for—extended leave at work, and among friends and colleagues. Make a concrete action plan to set off.
The Inner Journey
We’ll use personal assessments and coaching frameworks to help you discover more about yourself. These learnings will be the foundation for your next steps upon return.
The Outward Journey
The design process model will expand your thinking about what’s possible on your time off. Hear from sabbatical alums about setting boundaries and other tips.
Packing List
Learn best practices and how to avoid common pitfalls from sabbatical alumni guests. Get inspired by your sabbatical peers from all walks of life.
Returning Home
Synthesize your experiences into a coherent plan for your life upon return. Take advantage of coaching and peer support within the community.
Sabbatical Basecamp
See what people are saying
Nidhi
Alissa
Louis
Lindsay
Meet your instructor
DJ DiDonna
dj believes that sabbaticals are the key to sustaining meaningful, impactful lives.
Over a decade ago, dj created his dream job, a company which helped over a million entrepreneurs in emerging markets gain access to finance.
But, six years in, he found himself yearning for time off; space to do things that really mattered outside of work. His life had very little balance—he found himself disappointing friends and family with constant travel and around-the-clock hours. Burned out and disillusioned, dj set off searching for answers.
His four month sabbatical—the longest break of his life—changed his life dramatically. He walked 900 miles across Japan on pilgrimage, remodeled a cabin in the woods with his father, adventured, mourned and charted a very different course for his life upon return.
After returning from sabbatical, he began meeting fellow sabbatical-takers with similar stories: not only were sabbaticals crucial in healing burnout, they led to more creativity, life-satisfaction, and greater positive impact in one’s career.
dj collaborated with researchers at Notre Dame and Harvard Business School to understand the impact of sabbaticals and their role in the future of work. This research is the foundation of The Sabbatical Project, a home for evidence, stories, and community around sabbaticals.
Course syllabus
01
Sabbaticals 101
1. Discover what the research has to say about the benefits of sabbaticals. Explore the definition of a sabbatical.
2. Address the three most common fears (cost, optics, responsibilities)
3. Identify your personal obstacles and make a plan to overcome them
02
Leaving Home
Overcoming fears and constraints
1. Actually get your sabbatical off the ground.
2. Create and execute on plan to leave (and return to) work
3. Apply these lessons to your personal life and professional network (messaging, expecation setting etc)
03
The Journey
How to plan, adjust and what not to do
1. Design your sabbatical based on YOUR needs and abilities
2. Understand the most common pitfalls in sabbatical design
3. Use design and research principles to create, adapt, solve for what you need on sabbatical.
04
The Inner Journey
Getting to know yourself (again)
1. Gain a better understanding of who you are at this point in your journey.
2. Test your assumptions with others
3. Work with a coach to better understand your unique needs during your sabbatical.
05
Returning Home
Hold yourself accountable (to yourself)
1. Design system to capture learnings from your trip
2. Be intentional about your next steps - avoid falling back into what you were doing before (unless that's what you want)
Watch DJ's Tedx Talk on the sabbatical research that started it all
Learning is better with cohorts
Active learning, not passive watching
This course focuses on live workshops and hands-on projects
Learn with a cohort of peers
You’ll be learning in public through breakout rooms and an engaged community
Learn with a cohort of peers
Surround yourself with like-minded people who want to grow alongside you