Is sabbatical a bad idea?

Photo by Chris Mead on Unsplash

Recently, a friend reached out in panic. The reason for the alarm was a decision that one of our friends was evaluating. The common friend wanted to take a break from work for an extended period. In other words, the common friend was contemplating a sabbatical. When this issue was put forward to me, I had almost forgotten about the term sabbatical. A decade ago, I presented the option of a sabbatical to some of the bright young engineers. But…