Meet Lyndall
Lyndall Farley | Founder of Beyond a Break
I’ve always wanted to live a life full of experiences of the world. From a young age, I wanted to leave my home country of Australia to see the world. At the same time, my studies and career development were also important to me. I wanted to do both! Before I even knew the word ‘sabbatical’ meant, I was taking extended breaks to recharge from the demands I was putting on myself in my studies and career.
I’ve now taken 11 sabbaticals ranging from a month to a year. Each time, I’ve arranged it in a different way and I’ve done different things. Travel across 60 countries on all seven continents, study, remote working, volunteering. I wouldn’t be where, or who I am today without these journeys of self-discovery.
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In coaching people as they embark on similar journeys and in working with companies dedicated to improving employee wellbeing I've come face to face with the issues facing our working world right now and why we need to get better at giving ourselves a break.
This is my manifesto
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I fundamentally believe that life is for living and somewhere in our race for progress, productivity and perfection, we forgot how to enjoy it.
From ‘burning out’ on the hamster wheel to ‘boring out’ in the daily grind, the way we have been living our lives is not sustainable – for our health, our happiness or our planet.
We need to change the definition of success and reorient towards a life that collects experiences over possessions. We need to build more time into our lives to pause, recharge and reflect so we can move forward with a more intentional life - a life that is designed to keep us on a purposeful path while also enjoying the journey.
I believe we need to give ourselves permission to take longer breaks for total rejuvenation when we need it. These sabbaticals are a chance to recharge, reflect and design what’s next for us.
Sabbaticals shouldn’t be about undoing the damage of life. We need to design lives that aren’t damaging us in the first place.
In many ways, it’s not what happens on sabbatical, but what happens when we return, that’s most important. We have the opportunity to use our sabbatical as a catalyst for change and bring the calm clarity of our sabbatical into our everyday. As we apply a sabbatical mindset, we balance our pursuit of life goals, with time for daily recharge and healthy habits that help us enjoy life along the way.
I call this a living a ‘Sabbatical Life’.
Over my 11 sabbaticals, I’ve learnt about the neuroscience and psychology of this process and how to sustain this kind of life. I’ve used all this experience in building tools, coaching programs and group workshops, to help people live a ‘Sabbatical Life’. I’m here to support people to give themselves a break, recharge their energy, design a great life and live it.
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