On Blooming
Books remain among the most meaningful and memorable gifts I’ve ever received. Maybe this is why I’ve turned into the auntie who shows up at kids’ birthday parties with a canvas bag full of books rather than toys or a bottle of wine for the grown-ups in my life. The first book I ever received as a gift was Paulo Coelho’s masterpiece The Alchemist — one of my all-time favorite reads. My friend and brilliant musician Stefon Harris gifted me this classic in 1999 during my first summer in New York, interning for Nickelodeon between the first and second year of business school. Like Anna Quindlen’s Being Perfect (gifted by my dear friend and former Nickelodeon colleague Nancy Rachman), I make it a point to reread this classic at least once a year.
In one of the most famous quotes from The Alchemist, author Paulo Coehlo reminds us, “(w)hen you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” This week, the universe seemed intent on reminding me that Project Lotus is an integral part of my story and maybe even the key to my personal legend.
First, I read an article by Christina Wallace, author of The Portfolio Life: How to Future-Proof Your Career, Avoid Burnout, and Build a Life Bigger than Your Business Card. In her Harvard Business Review article “Everyone Deserves a Season to Step Back,” Wallace advocates for a model of work that bucks the binary model of “Giving it 110%…or taking a full leave of absence to manage an illness, for example, or to take a sabbatical.” She encourages employees and employers to embrace a season of stepping back as being “both possible and beneficial for all parties, aiding in everything from burnout prevention to learning and development.” While cautiously optimistic about the potential of this new approach, Wallace admits that it “will require reframing the larger conversation around how both individuals and companies view successful careers.”
I was most struck by the closing of her article. It encapsulates both my fears and ambition for Project Lotus:
I am, and remain, incredibly ambitious, but my ambition is not reserved for my career. I am ambitious for my young family, for my marriage, my health, my community. I am ambitious for meeting the demands of my life and thriving because I can rebalance my portfolio as my priorities change. A season of stepping back is not leaning out.
Wallace notes that her work is inspired by her mentor, the late Harvard Business School professor Clayton M. Christensen. In the Harvard Business Review article “How Will You Measure Your Life?”, Christensen summarized his talk to the HBS graduating Class of 2010 — who entered b-school with unfettered optimism, only to face a U.S. economy in a tailspin as they prepared for graduation. Christensen framed the article around the three questions he asked each of his students on the last day of class:
- How can I be sure that I’ll be happy in my career?
- How can I be sure that my relationships with my spouse and family become an enduring source of happiness?
- How can I be sure I’ll stay out of jail?
(Side note: When I worked in the blockchain industry, I would joke to my team that rule number one was “Keep Sherice out of jail.” It was all fun and games until SBF did a perp walk for the massive FTX fraud in November 2022).
Christensen’s closing paragraph best summarizes his work:
Don’t worry about the level of individual prominence you have achieved; worry about the individuals you have helped become better people. This is my final recommendation: Think about the metric by which your life will be judged, and make a resolution to live every day so that in the end, your life will be judged a success.
In the trifecta of rest-related articles in HBR this week, the last spoke most directly to my ambitions for Project Lotus. In his article “The Case for Sabbaticals — and How to Take a Successful One,” founder of The Sabbatical Project and senior lecturer in entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School, DJ DiDonna, writes about the transformational power of a sabbatical for both your life and career. Through research and interviews with 250+ sabbatical-takers, DiDonna outlines the key attributes that define a sabbatical, three distinct sabbatical types, and “the hurdles one must overcome to persuade bosses, colleagues, and yourself that it’s a good idea.”
DiDonna explains:
We shouldn’t have to wait for something to break to give ourselves permission to explore, for a little while, what makes life worth living. So allow yourself to briefly turn down the volume around boardroom logistics, quarterly goals, or team dynamics, and let your quieter voice emerge: What are things that light up your curiosity, either now or when you were younger? Thus far in life, what do you most regret not having done? Your answers can point you in a new direction. My research suggests that a sabbatical is more than just a long vacation; it’s an investment for a better life.
My last soul tap of the week came from a conversation with the badass leader whose book gave me the final push I needed to embark on Project Lotus: Shelley Paxton, former CMO of Harley Davidson and author of Soulbbatical: A Corporate Rebe’s Guide to Finding Your Best Life. I discovered Paxton’s brilliant manifesto in the Modern Elder Academy’s Rising Circle Ranch library during a Navigating Transitions retreat in early January of this year. I devoured it over the course of 36 hours. I am forever grateful to MEA co-founder and Chief Experience Officer Christine Sperber for making a personal introduction to Shelley.
Paxton’s energy and presence are electric. During our Zoom, Shelley was humble and open, confiding that even eight years after embarking on this journey, her approach to Soulbbatical as a business and a lifestyle is still evolving. During this chapter, she advised me to expect a rollercoaster of emotions and variable motivation levels. Most importantly, Shelley reminded me to be kind to myself as I settle into new rhythms — that one month in, I’m still very early on in my radical sabbatical adventure.
Echoing Coelho’s notion that the universe conspires to help you achieve your goals, Paxton ended our call with her belief that her book “finds people when they most need it.” Shelley told me that success to her is not so much about how many copies of Soulbbatical she sells (although both Shelley and her publisher want it to be a lot!); it’s about how many people she is able to touch with her message of personal transformation and a redefinition of professional success.
As my conversations this week reminded me, nothing in nature blooms year-round. Farmers let their fields lie fallow for a season to promote healthy crops, replenish nutrients, improve soil health, and reduce erosion. Master gardeners trim their rose bushes to encourage healthy new growth. Fruit trees are typically pruned in the winter, allowing you to shape the tree, improve its health, and increase fruit production while in its natural resting phase. Similarly, I believe that persistent productivity is a myth. Whether through an intentional pause or being laid out from illness, the human body requires rest and regeneration to do our best work — much less live our best lives. You may not need (or even be able to) take a full-on sabbatical. But regular, intentional periods of rest, play, and reflection are critical tools in your leadership playbook.
In addition to the gift of The Alchemist, Stefon Harris gave me (ok, the world) the gift of a reframing failure in his incredible TED Talk “There Are No Mistakes on the Bandstand.” Using improvisational jazz as a metaphor, Harris explains that many actions are perceived as mistakes only because we don’t react to them appropriately. One of my biggest fears in embarking on my radical sabbatical was that taking myself “out of the game” for any period of time would negatively impact future job prospects, leaving an indelible dark mark on my career. But to quote the inimitable Mel Robbins, if any person or institution thinks my sabbatical is a mistake or makes me less of a leader — Let Them.
My mission with Project Lotus is not to seek external validation; it’s to radically reclaim joy and regain the perspective I need to thrive in the third act of my career. I hope that by sharing my journey openly, I can help others to reshape their definition of success and create a unique career path that works for them.
p.s. This week, I learned that the Bay Area’s oldest independent bookstore chain has filed Chapter 11. Books Inc. has served the Bay Area for over 174 years, and I believe in the power of supporting local small businesses. So, I’ve transitioned from linking to Amazon to Books Inc. in my posts. Support your local independent bookstores, folks. They matter.
