In a recent survey of business owners by American Express, half the respondents expressed worry about jeopardizing a major client account by going away on vacation. A Staples poll found that 37% of business owners cant easily recall when they last had a vacation. So if taking a week or two off is challenging, its no surprise that for most business owners, the idea of taking a sabbatical trip seems about as do-able as going to Mars.
A sabbatical does take lots of planning and preparation. But the rewards can be priceless. I recently took 10 weeks off to drive from Massachusetts to Alaska and back with my husband. It gave me fresh product development ideas, put business stresses in perspective and totally cleared up a health problem that could have become serious.
Based on my experience and discussions with other business owners and self-employed professionals, here are some things to think about if the sabbatical idea appeals to you.
1. Decide whether your finances permit a full or partial sabbatical. In 2003, my husband and I took a three-month road trip around Canada and the “Lower 48” United States, but I wasnt thinking of it as a...