Ep 63: Creating the "Perfect" Sabbaticals for Peak Experiences | DJ Didonna [Founder, the Sabbatical Project]

Have you ever thought about taking a sabbatical? Or have taken one yourself? If so, then this week’s STIMY guest will be of interest to you. DJ DiDonna is the founder of the Sabbatical Project, which is the first-of-its kind research into when and why sabbaticals are being taken by professionals, and how they lead to positive outcomes and an opportunity to tap into their inner self. DJ shares his personal story of first completing his MBA at Harvard Business School before spending the next 7 years of his life building Entrepreneurial Finance Lab: a microfinance startup he founded because was deeply passionate about pursuing access to finance and credit. It was a highly successful startup and they succeeded in unlocking over $1 billion for entrepreneurs and individuals that would otherwise not have access to such funding. However, no one told him that you could burn out from doing the job you loved. And that’s exactly what happened. In this episode, we dive deep into DJ’s experiences being burnt out, what he did during his sabbaticals as well as the findings that the Sabbatical Project has produced to date. Highlights: 4:08 Doing an MBA at Harvard Business School 6:37 Launching a microfinance startup that would unlock over $1 billion for entrepreneurs & be featured in the New York Times 8:58 Burning out from doing a job you love 10:01 Burning out versus just needing a vacation 12:13 Guilt 12:49 Maximising productivity during his sabbatical as a Type A 15:10 Completing the 900 mile (1200 km) Shikoku Pilgrimage in Japan 16:13 “Ossentai” 22:51 Collaborating with Professor Matt Bloom 24:00 Founding the Sabbatical Project 26:26 Defining what a “sabbatical” is 27:33 Is there such a thing as a sabbatical that’s gone on for “too long”? 30:06 Travel doesn’t guarantee disconnection 33:11 Getting in touch with your inner self 34:20 Testing your assumptions with others 35:52 Has anyone ever regretted taking a sabbatical? 37:19 Sabbaticals help to fight FOMO 38:03 How to structure a sabbatical 40:08 Designing a system to capture your learnings from your sabbatical 43:16 Employers who want to implement sabbatical policies in their companies 45:24 Forced sabbaticals 46:56 When people should think about taking sabbaticals (without waiting for burnouts or something bad to happen in life) 48:13 Best way to ask employers for sabbaticals 50:42 Functional workaholism 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/63 💌 Sign up for the weekly STIMY newsletter: https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/ebf231f605 🪙 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/sothisismywhy