When I lost my headhunting job at 58 and walked away from corporate America, I faced a question no one prepares you for: Who am I now, and what do I want next?

I created the word “sagebbatical” to describe that crucial, intentional time older adults need to explore and understand themselves more deeply. The pause between who you were and who you’re becoming or want to become.

Perhaps you’ve retired from a decades-long career, or found yourself unexpectedly unemployed. Maybe health changes or life losses have shifted your landscape. A sagebbatical is your permission slip to not immediately know the answer.

Traditional sabbaticals are often created for mid-career professionals who take planned breaks for research and growth. But the need for reinvention doesn’t disappear with age—it intensifies. We’re living longer, healthier lives, and traditional retirement models feel obsolete and even unkind. Lacking compassion.

What makes a “sagebbatical” different from “just being retired”? Intentionality. It’s not passive drifting but active exploration with loose boundaries and gentle structure. Maybe it’s taking two to six months to listen to yourself for the first time in decades.

The “sage” element acknowledges you’re not starting from scratch. You’re leveraging valuable accumulated wisdom, skills, and perspective to craft what comes next. What will be your encore? This isn’t about proving yourself—it’s about honoring yourself.

A sagebbatical might involve:

– Transitioning from corporate to nonprofit or teaching

– Exploring long-deferred creative pursuits and dreams

– Learning new ways to stay engaged and connected to other people

– Processing major life changes

– Simply giving yourself permission to not know who you are as you age

At 58, the devastation and fear mixed with secret relief from the relentless stress and competition of my work that was chocking the life out of me.

Going on unemployment became my sagebbatical—time to heal, relax, reset, and redirect my life. Those mornings drinking coffee without checking my phone, I realized I was doing something radical: listening to myself. The not-knowing became productive. The uncertainty became spacious and joyful. I wasn’t just unemployed; I was in sacred pause.

Your sagebbatical might involve travel, volunteering, therapy, creative projects, or simply sitting with the questions and discovering your answers.

What matters is the purpose and deep curiosity to honor this transition as meaningful work—the work and privilege of becoming who you’re meant to be next.

In a culture obsessed with productivity and having answers, a sagebbatical is revolutionary. It says your life experience and knowledge deserve space to unfold, and you deserve the time to discover what lights you up now.

What would your sagebbatical look like?

Thanks – Michael (he, him)

Please share this Daily with your tribes.
This is also key – Tell Your Age Story.

#2035