Not convinced to book that leave yet? The importance of creative thinking is vital for emotional resilience and intellectual achievement. Let's take a moment to see into the future and learn how creativity will be a much sought after human skill. According to the World Economic Forum in the Future of Jobs Report, in 2015 the top three human skills employers wanted were;

  1. Complex problem solving (part of executive functioning).
  2. Coordinating with others (part of emotional intelligence).
  3. People management.

By 2020 (at the time of writing this, that is just shy of 12 months from now), the top 3 human skills to secure your job will be;

  1. Complex problem solving.
  2. Critical thinking.
  3. Creativity (a very new entry into 'must have' qualities of future employees).

Beyond 2020, the prediction is that the human skill of Creativity jumps to the number one spot and Emotional Intelligence arrives on the scene, moving from the sixth desired attribute in future employees into the top three. These significant human skills will be needed to balance our increasingly technologically dependent world and can be connected with the benefits of taking sabbaticals. I know! How easy is that?

A rested mind is a creative mind.

Creativity is coordinated through the right hemisphere of the brain. Let's not get caught up with thinking this skill is only about creating works of art, making things of great beauty or releasing emotional stress through artistic exploration. Creativity is innovation. It is a human skill that will help you perform better in solution finding (problem solving), allow you to view opinions from different perspectives, explain and comprehend information from new angles and increase success to communicate, connect and conflict resolve with others. Creativity is integral to change adaptation and flexibility, as it lets you cope and deal with uncertainty by allowing you to include the unknown in your thinking.

Sabbaticals can untap your creative potential by delivering time. Time is the quality none of us have and desire the most. A sabbatical forces you to step out of a busy life, preoccupied with 'living' and making immediate choices on a daily basis. It allows your mind to drift, slow down, process and tap into that dusty and underused imagination. Much like the positive effects of boredom to spark your imagination, a sabbatical, by changing your environment, focus and goals, can stimulate the brain to activate a different skill set than you would normally use. Time and personal freedom are the key to growing your creative potential. Two things a sabbatical can offer you.

Emotional Resilience

Research conducted by academics across New Zealand, United States and Israel (Sabbatical Leave: Who gains and How Much?) studied the effects on sabbaticals across 10 different universities. They focused on emotional well-being and found that their colleagues enjoyed enhanced psychological health during sabbaticals, particularly where they journeyed out of their home country, in comparison to those who did not take leave. This cohort also showed increased resource levels (productivity and resilience).

Our mental health is improved by the time we take to venture into the world and gain new experiences. But leave your work and screen obsession behind. Our brains are not designed to be switched on 24/7. They are engineered to problem solve, whether that is a complex problem or an emotional issue, by slowing down and allowing information to randomly explore possibilities. Mastering emotional resilience is a part of effective problem solving. Contrary to what most might believe our brains need time to disconnect from excessive focus, restructure the process of seeking information, develop the capacity for insight or deeper understanding of the issues and relish in the very scientific term, the 'A-ha' moment, which is the sudden realisation of a solution to the problem (according to Simone Sandkühler, and Joydeep Bhattacharya in their research on insightful problem solving). None of which can be mastered in our hectic working lives but can be generated by taking sabbaticals and allowing us to connect with our emotions, randomly work through hurdles and learn to explore and stabilise intense feelings. The brain needs to slow down in order to do this and work as it is intended. If we are screen obsessed and use holidays to stare mindlessly at technology or continue work tasks, you may as well stay at home and continue the grind because the benefits are going to pass you by.

Studies such as these confirm what we know instinctively; that taking a break will have a positive outcome on your general physical and mental well-being. How you use your sabbatical is also important. We need to create space and time to switch off our working brain and explore and develop our creative brain. Having a different focus, exploring the new and novel, breaking a routine and even being bored by too much free time on your hands, are positive outcomes from taking that much needed break. It is the restful escape that will develop a more creative, emotionally resilient and intelligent you.

Sabbaticals, especially regular sabbaticals, have the ability to improve our brain function, release our creativity, enhance our emotional intelligence and alter our genetic map for the better. It is time to embrace the body and brain benefits of planning sabbaticals and reap the emotional and physical rewards. Employers should look more positively on the long-term outcomes that sabbaticals can have on their staff, their productivity and overall employee well-being. A well-planned sabbatical has the ability of helping us all.

On that note, I think it is time I got myself a safari suit, picked up a shovel and booked my own sabbatical. Afterwards I can return to my career and family rested, inspired, creatively improved and physically ready for the year ahead.

Sarah is a lateral mentalist providing coaching psychology for two decades focusing on personal development. She works with her clients to build successful futures, speaks at conferences and writes books and blogs on discovering how to improve your life, find happiness and master human skills.

You can contact Sarah by emailing her at hello@sarahgodfrey.com.au

It is common knowledge that taking a break is good for us, although in the current climate it seems finding weeks to put aside for rest and relaxation has become more and more difficult. It's time we paid attention to the increased benefits of, not only taking a holiday, but investing in frequent sabbaticals. These benefits extend across your psychological, physical wellbeing and your brain function.

Time-lining sabbaticals into our lives has substantial positive effects on our executive function, creativity and overall career performance.

What we already realise is that extended periods of time off do us the world of good. For starters sabbaticals;

  • Improve your immune system to fight illnesses (like viruses, colds etc)

  • Enhance your emotional well-being

  • Build self-esteem and confidence by positive risk taking, new experiences and increased socialisation

  • Decrease your stress (allowing cortisol levels to stabilise)

  • Re-energise motivation by breaking routines and feelings of apathy in daily life

More recent research is showing us exciting and significant effects on how sabbaticals can improve our brain and body functioning. The Icahn School of Medicine, University of California and Harvard, conducted a study that showed a six day retreat was capable of causing genetic changes. These genetic changes improved the immune system, decreased stress levels and even lowered the levels of proteins in the brain associated with depression and dementia. Not only that, but the study indicated that these genetic effects were still present one month later.

We can only imagine the long-term benefits from frequent sabbaticals aimed at self-improvement or skill enhancement. (As yet there is no research cross comparing a healthy sabbatical with a cruise ship '24-hour-drink-fest-party,' however I'm sure there will be plenty of volunteers for the later). So, sabbaticals can improve our physical immune system and may help the physical signs of depression and dementia. The benefits lasting much longer than the holiday itself. It doesn't stop there. Here is another fascinating thing about a well-earned extended break. It can also;

  • Boost your creativity

  • Increase your emotional intelligence and resilience

  • Increase your executive functioning capabilities

There is growing evidence on how sabbaticals can enhance executive functioning, (the area of the brain associated with planning, thinking, organising and problem solving), and allow the creative mind in us all, to be released. And a creative mind is what you need moving into the future.

Judy Willis M.D.M.Ed in The Impact Of Creativity On The Brain, outlines the importance of creativity to enhance brain function. Willis believes that constructs such as 'long term memory, concept construction, intelligence; academic, social, and emotional success; the development of skill sets and the highest information processing (executive functions) that will become increasingly valuable for students of the 21st century,' are by-products of creativity. And creativity is a by-product of taking a sabbatical. Time we all valued a break as a moment to spark our own dormant or unknown creativity.

Sarah is a lateral mentalist providing coaching psychology for two decades focusing on personal development. She works with her clients to build successful futures, speaks at conferences and writes books and blogs on discovering how to improve your life, find happiness and master human skills.

You can contact Sarah by emailing her at hello@sarahgodfrey.com.au

Do you know what I would like to do if I could take 6 months off? Live out my other dream career as an archaeologist. Spend months brushing granules of dirt off an ancient bone, discovering something hidden and long forgotten with equally obsessed amateur palaeontologists. However, balancing an indulged dream against the pressures and demands of a busy life seems nearly impossible. What if taking a sabbatical could actually do more for me than create a chance to realise a dream? How more motivated would I be to take a sabbatical or two, if I knew it would benefit my intelligence, creativity, physical and psychological well-being or help me perform better at my real job?

Being a dedicated employee and priding ourselves on our work ethic are important to our self-esteem and value in our working life. Doing the long hours, putting in the effort and demonstrating endurance in the face of insurmountable tasks, are what we do to be successful. These attributes are highly praised and often come at the cost of regular holidays and planned breaks. Do we discount stepping away from work because we are unaware of the immediate and long-term effects of taking well-earned sabbaticals? And I don't mean just one. The more you take the better the effect.

The biggest hurdle is committing to your own self-care. Can you imagine fronting up to your boss or (family) and asking for a few months or even a year off? Most of us get a little nervous just at the idea of taking more than a couple of weeks away from our jobs. Our self-doubts amp up as we worry about loss of respect, skill decline, fear of being replaced or losing our position, the job being made redundant in our absence and workplace culture and demands changing in the interim. However, even with these concerns, it appears that the value of sabbaticals is starting to make sense. People are increasingly selecting to plan and take extended breaks over staying in jobs, opting for other goals than just workplace achievements.

A sabbatical, unlike general leave (and the two-day weekend we sometimes pretend is like a holiday), is a longer rest from our working lives. Sabbaticals often last more than one month and can extend up to a year, depending on your workplace and career. In most businesses' employees begin to generate long service leave after a period of ten years. Accruing time off for longevity and loyalty in one work environment generally gives a return of around two months paid leave. Sabbaticals fall under a more fluid guideline. They can include paid or unpaid time off. The length of time away from your job is determined by yourself and the flexibility of your employer. It is not determined by length of tenure.

A sabbatical is an autonomous decision to invest in yourself.

The need for self-development, to discover untapped potential and enhance our skill base are driving us to seek something beyond the working life. We no longer need to see time out and our careers as opposing forces. Instead of viewing long leave as the end of our career, it might be time to re-think our approach to taking sabbaticals. Employers may want to embrace the benefits of encouraging sabbaticals in the workplace when they realise those absent employees may return with more skills and ability than before they left. Quality time out might just be the key to increased professional success, reduced psychological injury, profitability and positive performance cultures.

Sarah is a lateral mentalist providing coaching psychology for two decades focusing on personal development. She works with her clients to build successful futures, speaks at conferences and writes books and blogs on discovering how to improve your life, find happiness and master human skills.

You can contact Sarah by emailing her at hello@sarahgodfrey.com.au

In my book Life Works When - Piecing Together Happiness for a Successful Life, belonging is the third piece of the happiness jigsaw. It was the third piece because I believe that before we can make bonds with others in a healthy and happy way, it's really important to build an understanding of self-care and purpose first. If you haven't read them, follow the links and check them out.
I'm pretty sure you have all realised we are very socially driven creatures. We function so much better in groups and amongst like-minded people. Just think about social media, it is hugely popular because we all desperately want to belong. Even if it is by a bunch of strangers on the other side of the world. Who cares if you don't really have a relationship with your followers or FB friends? You have a thousand likes and are part of something, that's belonging, isn't it? Or is it?

Let's have a think about what belongingness is. To start with having and maintaining a sense of belongingness is one of our most basic needs and impacts upon our psychological and physical wellbeing. To belong really means we are able to develop attachments to groups or individuals. It is part of all our genetic makeup to want to be accepted and embraced into a group of some kind, (think family, culture, religion, relationships, social or work). It is this human connectivity that gives us a sense of being loved, similar and valued with and by others. In turn, this sense of belongingness allows us to give back to those we are attached to, increasing our wellbeing. (I am all about what we give back to this world as a part of our happiness).

We all have a slightly different version of what belongingness could look like. Each of us has our own unique interests, desires, attractions and motivations to seek and join with others. These variances help define who we are and show others how we can be identified as separate and part of social groups. Take me for example, I belong to a family group, a workgroup, a professional group, a social group, a relationship group, and a few different friendship groups. If I think more on it, I also have many peripheral groups, all of which give me a sense of belongingness. Some are more permanent than others. Some are stronger in the attachments than others. They all give me a sense of having a place in this world and the security of being loved, cared for or valued. And that creates happiness. If you don't believe how important belongingness is to our happiness, as always, here are some evidence-based facts.

Psychologists Baumeister and Leary whose research on belonging and attachment believed that belongingness was an essential human motivator found in all cultures. The research showed that when belongingness isn't achieved, it had serious consequences on our wellbeing. We all need to belong and when we can't or fail to or are prevented from belonging to our social world, the outcomes are not good.

Leary showed that because of the effect an inability to belong had on our emotional, physical and social health, belongingness was not just something we wanted in life. It was a need. Just as the character Mo in my book, realised in not belonging he had grown increasingly unhappy, so to do we long for real, authentic bonds with others. It is in our DNA. We need to be a part of groups and relationships.

As Leary indicates, the quality of our bonds is far more important than the quantity. Our need for belonging is not met by superficial relationships. Belongingness, as a key to the jigsaw of happiness, has to be more than a like or follow on social media or an unknown FB friend. For Belongingness to work, our relationships must be meaningful, consistent, interactive and lasting. They need to grow and develop, mature and strengthen over time. Belongingness does not survive in conflict and abuse. Or in relationships that keep breaking down or are frequently damaged. Belongingness can only grow in healthy bonds that we maintain with truth, authenticity, love and compassion. It is an investment in happiness that, like most things in life, requires work and commitment.

Here are some more fun facts on belongingness and happiness:

  • Belongingness is a goal-directed action that only needs a minimum number of stable healthy bonds in order to be achieved. (Tick for quality!)

  • We don't necessarily find more happiness from any extra relationships we may seek beyond those stable bonds. (Cross for quantity!).

  • These extra relationships can cause us more stress as they are more likely to end.

  • When we lose a sense of belonging with the end of a relationship, we look to replace it with a new bond, even if it is superficial. (Jumping straight into an intense new relationship straight after ending a long partnership would be an example of this.)

  • If we are missing belongingness from one area in our lives, we will compensate by seeking it in another area. (If you leave family and friends behind for a job you may try to establish strong bonds in your new work).

  • Intense feelings around commitment and intimacy do not replace regular physical contact to fulfil a need of belongingness. (Thinking your need for belonging will be met by sexting or an online romance, just won't cut it.)

  • Just believing a relationship exists does not create a sense of belonging that will build happiness. (That's any of you who think you are in a relationship with someone just because you like them.)

  • We are more likely to bond with those near us, over those who may live some distance but are more similar. (Frequency of physical presence trumps having the same hobbies every time.)

  • We can find a need to belong in negative (traumatic) as well as positive (healthy) experiences. (If you have seen the movie Speed, you know this is true. And they struggle to last.)

  • When we belong, we feel better, experience happiness, are more satisfied with life, care for others, are healthier and stronger physically and psychologically. (Belonging equals happiness)

  • When we don't belong, we feel guilty, rejected, anxious, depressed, angry, alone, jealous and isolated. We are more inclined to show behaviour problems, commit crimes and have suicidal ideation. (Not belonging equals unhappiness.)

  • The psychological pain of not belonging involves the same areas in the brain as physical pain. (We really do feel loneliness like a physical injury.)

  • Impression management is a term where we try to control our image in order to influence others into accepting us into a group. (Not belonging can make us inauthentic in order to bond.)

So, there you have it. A little more background on the third piece of the jigsaw from my book to find happiness in life. To be happy means to achieve belongingness. Try to move away from online dating apps and social media chats and be present with the people, be part of groups, interact frequently in real life and have a constant physical presence in others' lives. In this way, we can begin to believe we are in a stable, loving, ongoing and honest relationship that defines our need for belonging and increases our chances of happiness.

Next blog is on the fourth piece of the jigsaw, self-esteem. Stay tuned and don't forget to get the book!

“The purpose of life is a life of purpose.”

– Robert Bryne

Don’t you love that saying? The purpose of life is a life of purpose? A simple message that can often be forgotten amidst the hectic lives we lead. Getting distracted and just stuff going on make it all too easy to lose direction as we get lost amidst the endless demands made upon us. And those that we feel obligated or select to accept. Sometimes the goals we gravitate towards aren’t right for us. Or worse some purposeful objectives might be chosen for motivational wants defined by greed, envy and false illusions of happiness. Other times our purpose is linked to our developmental age and stage of life. When this happens, we can forget to adjust and adapt our goals to growing up, life experiences and getting older. The issue is we all need some kind of destination to push us forward and excite us to master and work towards endeavours that will be meaningful in some way. In turn, we get a sense of where we are going and why.

 

In my book, Life Works When – Piecing Together Happiness for a Successful Life – the second part of the jigsaw of happiness is the attainment of having purpose. I have been asked why purpose? Surely there are more integral needs to know in order to find true happiness than purpose? I don’t think so. Purpose is a gift that enhances our quality of life. What are we, if we do not have an aim in life? What is a life led without goals and motivation? If true purpose fails to connect us with what we need and each other, then we are rudderless to navigate our lives. Directionless with our dreams and empty of drive and determination.

But don’t just take my word for it, research shows we are engineered to have purpose because it generates a sense of wellbeing compared to those who are purposeless. We are happy when we have a reason to motivate us in life. Whether this is a spiritual, emotional or financial purpose, the act of moving towards a destination gives us reason to battle the tough times, helps us to master resilience and encourages us to hold on to hope.

For some purpose is finding a life partner, maybe having children, could be a career, self-development, generating wealth or building connections within our communities and each other. Purpose is individual and intrinsic to your needs and wants. Having a sense of purpose gives us a balanced meaning to our existence. It allows us to allocate time and resources to goals and dreams. And dreams create passion and energy. We all need to be excited about something, no matter if that drive is to feel better, care for our wellbeing, imagine a better life or to invent something truly amazing. Purpose is passion. And a life without passion is an empty vision.

So, what happens when we are purposeless? Just like Mo in my book, without having a destination to inspire us, we can easily give up, feeling lost and confused what direction we should take to find happiness. We start to experience apathy when our dreams disappear. It seeps in through the cracks of despair as we grow increasingly aimless. Depression is the outcome of a life that has lost meaning and motivation. Purpose is a salvation to hopelessness and a remedy for low moods. Knowing what gives you passion and purpose is the secret to true success.

Ikigai (the Japanese term for reason for being and a philosophy of finding happiness), is correlated with a sense of purpose and longevity. According to research those of us who connect with a strong sense of purpose are more likely to live longer, have less heart disease and be resilient in life (BlueZones). Having said that, it isn’t enough just to have a general, vague purpose to improve your health, a purpose with passion is the key. For the people in the research purpose included family, fishing or regular exercise that connected the mind and body and fulfilled a sense of joy. These studies indicated that having purpose is a protective factor for human beings.

The links with who we are and what we do are essential elements of having positive purpose in our lives. If we extend this out of ourselves and embrace our communities with purpose than the destination of wellbeing becomes a global need that could benefit us all. And having meaning is infectious. We are better lovers, family members and work colleagues when we are driven by our passions and celebrate a life full of meaning and motivation. When purpose becomes a unilateral destination then we can change the world.

Here are my tips on creating your purpose and in this way defining a destination of physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

How to have purpose.

  • Write a list of things you enjoy. Make a plan to learn, master or at least try as many as you can.

  • Define what you are passionate about (spiritually, creatively, physically, morally and ethically) and incorporate at least one of these passions into your everyday life.

  • Do not give up on a dream. Purpose is about resilience and mastery, a dream can be rearranged, reshaped and reinvented, but don’t give up on the passion to achieve.

  • Have a mental destination. And then another one. And then another one.

  • Link your purpose with other parts of your life. Isolation is defeating for true happiness, so your purpose needs to benefit other areas of your life and connect you to others.

  • Your purpose does not need to be huge. It can be to love with an open heart, to live in authenticity, to share your knowledge and wisdom. Find purpose in the small and every day activities around you.

Now, I have fulfilled my purpose of explaining the pieces of the jigsaw to happiness from my book Life Works When. Stay tuned for the next blog on Belonging as the third part of the puzzle to a successful life.