The interns never sleep at the BreakAway HQ. Here are 3 ditties that caught their wired eyes, and why…

• Harry & Meghan announce sabbatical

Yes, even the Royals, in their own words, get “tired and even burnt out.” So they’re doing the right thing, and taking 6 weeks off—having endured the birth of their second child, a rigorous travel schedule, and (of course) relentless media attention.

Meghan referred to their whole rigmarole as, “existing, not living,” when they recently appeared on an ABC interview. It’s easy for us commoners to scowl at their ills, perhaps coveting their fortune and popularity. Still, they just want to focus on their family, their missions in Africa, and finding sanity in their incomparably complicated reality. We emphatically approve of their majestic yet humbly human aspirations.

• Nomadic family travel becoming a trend

Sure, Travelers Today may not be T&L, but we like their observations—like these rising trends: Green; Canada, solo, and nomadic.

The nomadic approach seems to be appealing to families—who like to pack it up, leap into home-schooling, and take advantage of a key benefit of the growing freelancing economy: Freedom. Freelancers and nomads rarely know exactly where they’re going, and that’s exactly the point.

Having been there (all over) and done that (going wandering with family), I personally offer a standing O and advise everyone who can conceive of the notion to keep that faith alive. Life offers few profundities that compare. Your children will be forever transformed and, whatever may happen in the hectic years that follow, you’ll cherish those ever-vivid memories.

• After the break, returning to work

Yes, this topic fills the sabbatical nets, and typically focuses on women returning to the office after family leave. I politely like to remind these influencers that men also take family leave and BreakAways of various kinds. (That said, most of the advice, if not the approach, is rather gender neutral.)

Target market or not, Jennifer Gefsky has published a book, “Your Turn: Careers, Kids and Comebacks—A Working Mother’s Guide.” Her Fast Company “5 Minute Read” offers these tips: Revisit past successes; Put yourself in your kids’ shoes (and stay positive for their sake and good modeling); Take a risk (request a big meeting, speak in public); Tell a friend (take on an accountability partner); Don’t over-question yourself—because sometimes the answer really is, “I don’t know.”

• Who knows?

She’s right. “I don’t know” may be the answer to many of life’s hardest questions. Will we save the planet? Will America ever encourage career breaks, family leave, and nomadic escapes? Will YOU embark on the BreakAway of your dreams? Will I…again, and if so when?

I don’t know. But let’s keep asking, writing, photographing, and chasing dreams. For fun, for art, for life, and for Mr. Chekov…

‘If you want to work on your art, work on your life.’ ­

– Anton Chekov

Our interns and executive assistants never sleep. At least since we brought on free coffee as a perk. So here are some recent BreakAways in the News they’ve found worthy of inclusion in this ongoing series…

• Young Swede sails for change

Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old Swedish climate-change activist, has been generating a LOT of attention lately as she sails from Europe to New York as part of her campaign to increase awareness of and action re: climate change. She arrived today—on a zero-emissions sailboat with her dad a crew of 3 others.

Now THAT is one impressive journey! As one of our Sabbatical Suggestions, we state to “Accept Your Mission” when on a BreakAway. Could be to lose some weight. Might be to rekindle romance. Play guitar, learn a language, bake bread. Greta thinks bigger, like, save the world.

Beyond humbling and inspirational, this story brings new profundity to the ending of Mary Oliver’s poem, The Summer Day: “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

• Use your vakay for career dev’t

An upbeat career-coaching site called Thrive/Global offers a fresh take on vacation: Use some time while relaxing to boost your skills. At BreakAway, we cheerlead loudly for people to take ALL their vacation time—and might prefer breaks that prioritize the vacate and the shun. Still, whatever works. Right?

Author May Busch offers 5 tips, including set up an easy win for when you get home…set aside time each day for reflection about work stuff that may otherwise get inadequate attention…and, my favorite, think on paper.

It’s trendy, of course, to go paperless (if that’s possible). But Ms. Busch points out what many of us old-schoolers know and practice: You spark fresh ideas—and activate different parts of your noodle—by noodling creatively on papyrus.

• “Sabbatical” sculpture ignites Burning Man

Burning Man is happening right about now on a dessert filled with tripping seekers and trippy happenings. But you knew that.

We’re unsure of just WHY one of the buzzy sculptures is named Sabbatical by Neophyte Nexus. But it is, and it’s cool. So the interns got excited and are begging for a company junket to the Festival next year. The motion is under consideration.

Meanwhile, check out these top 5 BM installations, including Sabbatical. And maybe—must maybe—we’ll seeya at Burning Man next year!

Summer is super-active; even the loons are busy dodging looping boats. The interns keep chasing after more BITN bits—just ahead. And I’m attending a retiring party tonight for an educator who walks away with full bennies + pension at 58. Not bad, eh? Especially compared to story snapshot #1…

• Retirement? It’s not happening…

The AP tackled a mountain of stats this week further confirming the present economic boom works for some more than others—for whom WORK will remain a key piece of their long-term survival. They hope.

23% say they don’t expect to stop working—EVER. Only 29% over 50 believe they are extremely or very prepared. And 56% of younger adults say they’re unprepared to retire.

The article is loaded with stories and stats that, according to the MYBA Armchair Economist, are nothing short of distressing. Not mentioned (as usual) but most important is the exploding income equality gap: The top 10% now hold 70% of the wealth in the USA. Beyond that, the AP story discusses stern retirement realities including health problems, longer life spans, caring for sick family, expensive healthcare and cost of living, and, of course, a crazy little thing called aging.

Good luck, everyone. We may need it.

• SM mania making many wired

The MYBA interns are tech-savvy, of course, so we take advantage of that AND have mandatory unplugged times daily. That’s a good idea, says this Philly Enquirer story about e-stress, which confirms, “ Several studies have linked social media use with depression, envy, lower self-esteem, and social anxiety.”

To deal with this onslaught of self-induced stress, the article offers some common-sense (yet perhaps unhip) suggestions like:

• Limit when and where to use SM
• Avoid SM before bed; you’ll get better sleep
• Schedule MULTIDAY breaks from SM, and/or limit your daily time
• Trust your feelings (Luke); if SM brings you down, get up and turn it off
• AND BEST OF ALL: Pay more attention to your REAL-LIFE relationships

The article also acknowledges the potential upsides of SM and tech as tools, like, some folks find meditation apps effective. Others find online communities that help with various struggles. And some, we hope, get a laugh a day out of some silly post (though the article didn’t mention that)!

• A BreakAway first: The Blackface Sabbatical

Hmmm. Just a few days ago, the AP reported that a PA school principal wore blackface (to portray a TV star) to a team-building exercise. This was eventually deemed not okay, so the principal was given a one-year sabbatical, and a future position as a teacher—not an admin.

A one-year sabbatical sounds pretty good right about now. So as punishments go…could be worse (as we say here in MN). As I try to think of a final comment to this odd story, I can only come up with: No comment.

Stay tuned for more BreakAways in the News. The world is watching us…

BreakAways in the News remains a full-time job for several part-time interns. And we are pleased with the latest highlights—all of which confirm that those of us preaching the gospel of balance may be crazy, but we are right. And smart!

• Land of the tense, home of the crazed

NYT and a gazillion other media outlets reported the not-fake news that Americans are whack (do people still say that?). Yep. Not only are we Great Again, but we are also at the top of the heap of categories like: the most stressed; the most worried; the most angry. These findings come courtesy of Gallup’s annual poll of 150,000 people worldwide.

Lest we cry alone in our celebration beer, other nations’ peoples are also having some bad days. Anger, sadness, and worry reached all-time worldwide highs, making 2018 the darkest year for humanoids in a decade. There are bright spots, though, like Latin America. They bask in not only sunshine, but also some of the highest numbers for positive experiences and other metrics—despite problems like murder, poverty, and corruption.

Career break in Ecuador, anyone?

• WHO screams, “Put that device down, kids!!!”

Parents, take note. The World Health Organization recently joined a long list of smart institutions stating that children have got to stop playing with their digitalia. Specifically, kids under 1 should NEVER do videos, games, and online stuff. And children 2-4 best do no more than an hour a day. WashPost and pretty much all surviving, credible media took note.

Experts cite some serious risks: Kids may impair development of interaction and social (not to be confused with social media) skills; brain development may blortz; and creativity (and learning) may feel like an outsource-able, rather than personal, pursuit.

Though many of us barely remember life before device devotion, these phenomena are new enough that research is still, uh, young. That said, the findings clearly conclude that development, exercise, sleep, and much more are at risk for families everywhere. So stop reading this story and go play in your sandbox!

• Hey, Geezers: We need you!

First of all, we’ve got to stop using lingo like geezer, fogey, and old farts. Why? Because we need those folks to work, not nap, what with unemployment hitting a 50-year low of 3.6% yesterday. And we are also in (what BreakAway believes) is a reboot boom of Baby Boomers (and beyond) rising new levels of accomplishment, innovation, and creativity.

Today’s WSJ features an essay by Rich Karlgaard, author of the recent Late Bloomers: The Power of Patience in a World Obsessed by Early Achievement.” Mr. Karlgaard explains that brains and skills develop throughout a lifetime—and that many people peak in potential and output in later life, not just in the roaring 20s. “Precocious achievement is the exception, not the norm,” he writes, “The fact is, we mature and develop at different rates.”

Mr. Karlgaard uses neurology and numbers to make his case, and asserts that creativity (among other talents) actually increase with age. And that idea that young people can perform most tasks and challenges better than folks with more maturity? Balderdash! So Gatsby was wrong, not Great, when he stated, “There are no second acts in American lives.”

Economist, author, and radio star Chris Farrell has been also touting these ideas. Stay tuned to BreakAway for a look at his uplifting POV and his breakthrough book, Purpose and a Paycheck: Finding Meaning, Money, and Happiness in the Second Half of Life.