What would you do with a year off?
I read this very interesting article yesterday where one law firm was offering its lawyers the opportunity to take the year off for 1/3 their annual base salary. Now obviously that 1/3 was probably more than most of us make on a full salary, but I still thought the article was very interesting.
Only in a financial world turned upside down would an arrangement like this one make sense. Looking to cut costs like everyone else, but not prepared to lay off employees, Skadden has chosen instead to offer all of its associates — about 1,300 worldwide — the option of accepting a third of their base pay to not show up for work for a year. (So far, the partners have no equivalent arrangement.)
The company is helping associates find pro bono work, and is encouraging them to do so. But the lawyers could also spend the year catching up on every episode of “Top Chef” that they missed during the boom years, or traveling around the world, “all of which is O.K. by us,” said Matthew Mallow, a partner at the firm. Other firms have adopted similar strategies, but Skadden’s program is unusual in that it has no pro bono requirements..
As of Friday, about 125 associates had expressed interest. “I think it’s fair to say that the numbers are in excess of our expectations,” Mr. Mallow said.
Only at a corporate law firm would the managers underestimate employees’ interest in taking a year off from the grind for what most of America would consider a small fortune.
So let’s pretend. If your place of employment offered a similar deal and you could afford to do it with some minor cut backs, would you?
More importantly what would you do if you had one year off work?
Me? I really don’t think I would take the deal. I love what I do too much. I truly feel I get to live out my calling. Now, would I like a little more flexibility? Sure.
I would probably speak less and play with my kids more.
I would lead less and love more.
I would get out of my office and do more international missions.
I would attend less meetings and invest in friendships more.
Your turn!!
I resonate with you in the fact that I love what I do. I get to work with some of the most creative, sold-out Christians in the country and share in the joy of watching people come to Christ, get connected in a life-changing groups and grow in their spiritual walk partially because of what I do.
However, I would love to spend a year doing what I do for free. Spending time with people who have a lot of potential and are embarking in building their God-inspired vision but who cannot afford to pay for my services.
That and work on my golf game that sucks really bad right now.
Maurilio
Maurilio Amorim’s last blog post..Innovators Don’t Ask
I would definitely travel….more than I already do, but keep on doing what I currently do too!
Maureen’s last blog post..Mediterranean Monday: Jewish Boy Band
@maurilio, I think you need to spend a lot of time on your golf game. You probably need me to help you with that as well. I’m here for you bro.
I would finish all the things that I have started around the house and not finished. I have been so bad at that! Then, spend the rest of the time ministering and serving.
Joey’s last blog post..The Power of Touch
My 8-5 job is for the Government, its a good job and I am thankful, but pick me and I would spend much more time with people. I would do mission work in my hometown and aboard, I would sing a little more, spend ton o time with the kids and family, I would slow down and read more, spend more time just “being” and less time running. I would enjoy my 2nd life at my store investing in the kingdom and inspiring those that walk thru the door to create. Right now I am thankful to be employed, to have insurance and a place to belong, but give me a chance to fly and try something else and I am so there!
Kristi Ottmar’s last blog post..this day…EASTER
Easy. Another year of service, maybe international this time, or on a reservation. I almost went to Alaska to continue long term service, so it’s still fresh in my mind.
Sarah’s last blog post..From New England, With Love
Considering I am a full time student along with a part time Ups employee, I would never be able to afford it. However, given the opportunity when I could afford it and I did indeed take part, many things cross my mind. Of course my spring would be spent in the Midwest, chasing tornadoes and such… I would definitely experience a few mission trips, I have always wanted to go. many concerts and music festivals would be attended as well. A year off would come as a ‘super recharge’ of my inner self. I seem to get worn down with the week in-week out routine of Class-Work-Sleep. This opportunity would be greeted by me with open arms
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I would do it in a heartbeat!!! Especially if I had children. When we were growing up, my dad sold 2 businesses and took a year off to go to school but he was home with us all the time and it was amazing — we did some of the coolest things during that year. Traveled, camped out in front of the fireplace all night long, just chilled, escaped the rat race of life and enjoyed each other’s company.
I would do it in a heartbeat today to do more hands on mission work. Even though I love what I do, I have so many deadlines at work that I don’t get to love or serve as much as I want and I would travel the world, love on people, serve, build into the college ministry at cross point — plan events for fellowship and pour into God’s people. Sounds like I’ve got the whole year planned out already and I won’t even have that option
If my husband and I could work it out financially, I’d do it! I’d spend the year just being a mommy. I really miss my kids while I am working.
@Landon, I’ll go chase some storms with you!
Okay… Since I am not in the paid ministry, I would love to have a year off of my job.
I think that I would spend the first week just sleeping in… that would be a pure joy – not to have an alarm clock start my day.
I would have to spend some time on the lake because there is something relaxing about bobbing on the water out away from civilization. Norris Lake in Tennessee is awesome.
I would probably play some golf.
I would read until the top of my head puked.
I would go on a few domestic mission trips either for World Changers (going to New York this summer!!) or just head down to the Appalachia or Katrina hit areas.
I would do all of the above with my family!!
The last thing that I think that I would like to try and do is connect more to my neighborhood. Get to know the people more and spend time being the church where I live instead of just where I attend.
Tony York’s last blog post..Old vs New
My first, immediate thought was “missions.”
India or back to Russia.
Find someways to serve here in the US.
I would do a lot more dancing.
Jonnelle’s last blog post..Find Your Way Home
@Tony, getting more involved with my neighborhood is something that has been on my heart lately.
I’d ride a scooter to all 50 states. And then, if that takes less than a year, I’d visit England, because I’ve always wanted to go there.
nigel’s last blog post..Obscure sex laws
I’d probably convince the wife to go spend a year in Tennessee. maybe see if George needed a volunteer or two
ryan guard’s last blog post..my old man hip
I’d do it in a heartbeat. I’d do missions both internationally and here at home. I’d try to get in the habit of writing every day. I’d try to flesh out some of the ideas I’ve had over the years. Hopefully at the end of the year, something would have really taken hold, become my passion. That could then become my job and I wouldn’t need to go back.
aaron’s last blog post..THANK YOU
ABSOLUTELY!!! I would love to know what it is like to drop my son off at school and pick him up everyday. I would love to eat dinner before 8 p.m. every evening. I think I would be the first one in line if this was offered at my place of work.
Mindy May’s last blog post..Happy Easter!
i would spend more time getting to know my extended family. This is something i would love to do but just have a heard time FINDING time in addition to spending time with my immediate fam. I would also want to learn to speak another language and put it to use on the mission field somewhere
@Pete,
Here is the struggle that I have with the neighborhood aspect.
What do I have left to give them when I am already used up by work, family, and ‘church’ commitments? One of them would have to take a hit in order to properly reach my community. Sometimes I think I ‘subsist’ in my neighborhood… I don’t really ‘live’ there.
I am convicted by this because when I read Acts chapter 2 there is something alive about being church where you live.
Tony York’s last blog post..Old vs New
I took a year “off” (granted my law firm didn’t pay me to do it) recently….and I traveled in Europe for six weeks, kept my nieces for two months during their summer break from school, and did 11 months of mission work in Nashville at Preston Taylor Ministries. I LOVED it. Quitting my job was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
Now I have a job that allows me to work less throughout the year (and which of course pays a lot less too), which makes my upcoming two week mission trip to Nicaragua possible. I think sometimes we fail to think outside of the box when it comes to our profession….you can’t know if something is possible until you try.
ally’s last blog post..I Am Defiantly Splitting Infinitives
i would do it in a heartbeat!!! no worries, i wouldn’t abandon you for a year, i’d want us to travel as a family. see the world!!
brandiandboys’s last blog post..One Of Those Mommas…
I’d take the deal, hop on the back of Big Al’s Harley (he’s my husband-not a wild Harley gang member) and travel across the beautiful U.S.!
sherri’s last blog post..The week BIG AL was left alone in charge
I’d hike the App trail and learn to box.
I would definitely take the deal. I would probably spend time with the family and volunteering at our local Ronald McDonald House.
I’d definately do this. First up I’d love to travel a bit. First stop Scotland to see my family, second stop Nashville to see my old friends, then who knows. I’d also love to have the time to cook properly, eat properly, excercise properly, invest time in my friends.
Funny you should blog this today actully. I’m off work for a couple of weeks (or until I get a resolution) on unpaid leave due to a difficult situation at work. I was thinking earlier how I really wanted to use the time to ‘become a better me’ but kept failing miserably at it. Thanks for the prompt.
Carolyn’s last blog post..Travel Tuesday
A year off from WHAT? I’m a mom! And because of this stinky economy, I’m not getting too many painting gigs, either.
I would (and probably will soon) go back to Japan to see where my mom grew up.
katdish’s last blog post..Oh, prosperity gospel rant, it’s been too long!
Yes
move to NOLA for a year and see what there is left to do….what I could really help do for a year.
becky’s last blog post..1 Samuel 15 – 16; 1 Chronicles 5; Matthew 1
Are you kidding? I took 2 months off for my maternity leave and the books were totally screwed up! I can’t imagine the damage that co-workers would do to my work if I was off for a whole year! LOL! (I love my job too!)
If I could, I would love to do some volunteer work. I would spend lots of time with friends and family in Kentucky that I don’t get to see on a regular basis.
Ladybird’s last blog post..Happy Birthday Birddog!!!
@Brandon, I’ve always wanted to hike the App. trail as well.
I would move to the Dominican for the first 6 months to work with Children of the Nations and then I’m not sure. Oh wait, that is my real plan for the next year. Can’t wait!
Chris Sullivan’s last blog post..Gabe Gross
Go to every baseball and football stadium
in the country and watch a game
Travel
Foreign Missions
(I guess that would provide me the travel part)
Nick’s last blog post..Meet My Mom
It would be so cool to travel all around the world, and incorporate missions into that. I would definitely start in Italy and work my way around Europe.. that would be amazing!
Linnae Hoppe’s last blog post..Puzzles
I know I’m always a downer with these kinds of questions, but it’s not until they come up that I realize I’ve lost the potential to dream about the future. All the money in the world couldn’t change the reality of my existence, which puts a limit on daydreaming. I miss the potential.
gitz’s last blog post..Going With The Flow
@Gitz,
Wow.. that is a tough place to be… to give up on God’s potential.
I’ll remember you in prayer today.
May God bless you in ways you couldn’t imagine!
Tony York’s last blog post..Old vs New
Pete: First, like you I love what I do so it would be really hard to take a year off. But if money was no object…I would take that long desired cross country bicycle ride I have always wanted to do. I didn’t make 50 so I would want to do that. I would also want to take my wife on the honeymoon we never had…a cruise to Alaska. (Maybe I will meet Sarah)
I would definitely visit my daughter in Knoxville more often and my grandson in Ohio more. My spare time would be doing I don’t know what. Thanks for the dream.
bill (cycleguy)’s last blog post..Hang in There!
@gitz, stopping to pray for you right now.
My family would go to Africa (Zimbabwe, Sudan or Uganda….or Kenya, or Ethiopia, or Malawi, or Namibia,) and we’d serve in an Orphanage for a year, and then…forever.
Melissa Irwin’s last blog post..birth
I would definitely golf. I would travel and visit our church-supported missionaries. I would catch up on some classes for my next degree. I would write more. I would teach more. And I would definitely play with my family A LOT!!! (Would I have enough time for all of that?)
Daniel Goepfrich’s last blog post..Jonah 2 (Part 2)
This sounds like an amazing opportunity! I am a grade 7/8 teacher and I love my job and the children that I work with, but to travel… I would LOVE to travel the world on mission trips. Although I would miss “my kids” a year of helping others while bringing in 1/3 of my salary would be truly incredible!
As a third grade teacher, I do believe I’m doing what God has called me to. Naturally, my husband (a 7th grade math teacher) and I certainly don’t think we get paid enough to do what we do, but we remind our kids every day that we are so much better off than 97% of the world’s population, so we need to be very grateful and use our resources wisely. A cutback of a third of our salary would certainly make life tough, so I’m not sure the change would be worth it. I really can’t imagine a better job or life. My kids have been with me, at my school since they were in pre-school and I have all of their vacations with them. We get to be together so much.
If money weren’t an issue, I’d love to take my kids all over the U.S., then all over the world and show them how lucky we are here at home in good ol’ Washington State.
I’d love to spend time volunteering in my kids’ classrooms (since I’m always in mine) and I’d volunteer in a lot of other places too–wherever God wants me.
I’d also spend time getting my yard in order. It seems to be the place around my house that gets neglected most.
Well, this little exercise has just shown me what I really care about and what I’d do if I had time and money. Now, I wonder how much of it I CAN do without time and money? Hmmm? I think a lot of it is doable.
I would do a lot of fly-fishing, bow-hunting and hiking in several different states.
I have spent the last decade doing my surgical training, which entails long, unpredictable hours. I do, however, love what I do. However, what I miss most is the quiet mornings on the stream, or in the woods, watching the mist lift as the morning sun comes up.
I also want my two daughters to understand why I love God’s creation as much as I do. I look forward to spending more time with them in the wilderness…away from the concrete tangle of civilization.
I’d take 4 months and bicycle coast to coast.
Oh.my.word.I would *so* travel!!! If I could get my husband to let me go, that is!
ginger’s last blog post..True Randomness
We have a family friend whose small business could not handle he and his partner’s incomes. So, he decided to go with out pay for a while, moving to Mexico to help missionaries.
roxx’s last blog post..Spring Break & Easter 2009
I wish my first thought would have been missions, Relay For Life or something unselfish but….my thoughts were travel such as a Christmas in Colorado, horseback riding, attend the Kentucky Derby, take the family on their dream vacations like Rome and Australia, etc.
@Rick Herrin, You can go coast to coast in 4 months? Impressive.
Spend a year being a nomad in Ireland…backpacking, camping, hostels, odd jobs, meet people, with raingear on….
Hey Pete, great post, fun things to think about. My wife and I did pastor training in South America a couple of times last year…If I had a year off I would pour into those guys who are the front line of the battle, and enjoy the SA beaches as well! Thanks for all you do.
Mac
Mac Lake’s last blog post..There’s Got to be a Better Way
For me, it would have to be a year off of school:
Missions (but I probably wouldn’t come back).
Play soccer again–I miss it.
Read and write like crazy.
Savor every moment that I could because it is a moment given to me by God and for His glory.
Visit friends who I haven’t seen in years.
Keep serving.
susan’s last blog post..Exuma 2009
I would do it in a heartbeat. Like you, I love and feel called to what I do. However, I only get my girls at this age once…so I’d take it. Of course I’d travel to new places, but I think I’d just spend chunks of time in some of my favorite places. Ex: Spring in Sedona, AZ; Fall in the mountains; Summer at the beach; Winter in my hometown. I’d make as many memories as I could.
I would definitely be involved in more humanitarian efforts including efforts to alleviate poverty, better education and afford civil rights where injustices exist.
I would also like to see more of the world and to learn more about this beautiful planet we live in and appreciate it even more deeply.
Jon-paul’s last blog post..Oh Happy Day – San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus
I’m already at home and love my roll here but oh how I’d love for Mike to take a year off…I’m sure he’d throw himself into something else but it would be something he loved and after 30 somthing years doing the same thing I think he’d welcome the break. I’m going to pose this question to him later today! Fun to think about.
Robin Rane’’s last blog post..Living My Legacy~6~Home…a place to touch base
Winter 3 monnths in Italy, on a train.
Spring 3 months in Argentina, in a Jeep.
Summer 3 months in the Rockies, on a motorcycle.
Fall 3 months in the US Northeast, in a convertible.
Dear CEO, I’ll be back in a year!
See you around Pete.
I would take it and I would head to the D.R. to help our friends with G.O. Ministries. Wow….that would be a dream come true!
I love my job designing our service too much to take time off too! But…if I had to…I would set up a writing schedule and write a book. My boss and friends have been trying to talk me into writing forever!
NOT going to happen without time off that’s for sure! ha ha
Lori Biddle’s last blog post..what I learned today
Well, this is funny you asked this, because starting April 30 I am off full-time! Unfortunately it is because I’m going on disability, but I am being taken care of for 60% of my salary. So my plan is to spend more time taking care of myself–going to pulmonary rehab and exercise, eat better and cook more, get enough rest so I don’t spend days in bed. I’m going to spend time with my husband and my little nieces and the rest of my family. I’m going to volunteer in as many ways as I can, at the church, for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, for Vanderbilt. I am excited about being able to take care of myself and do whatever I feel like doing every day!
I took Monday off to recover from a busy Easter weekend. As I drove to pick up my daughter that afternoon, I called my husband and told him that I’d very much like to be a stay at home mom who sends her kids to the babysitter for at least half the day! He was not amused when I asked him if he could work on making that happen.
Seriously, though…if I could afford to do something like that…OH, the time I would enjoy with my little girl! And the books I’d read! And the writing I’d…write! My house would finally be organized, my scrapbooking would be caught up, and I’d get rid of the throbbing in my right shoulder (thank you, desk job). And once I got tired of not working, I’d use that time to figure out exactly how to change careers, so I could do what God has made me to do (instead of what just pays the bills).
Mary’s last blog post..One is silver, and the other is gold.
With a year off I would travel the world with my family…if I had the money of course.
joseph’s last blog post..dumb laws
I’d do my ‘Brunettekoala in real life’ tour – I would visit all the people whose blogs I read, and I’d visit pregnancy crisis centres all over the world to encourage and be inspired.
Brunettekoala’s last blog post..Acceptance after the storm
As a law student, I have a lot of friends facing this very question (although their firms are requiring some kind of pro bono work…and it’s often as an incentive to push back their START date rather than take time from the job they currently hold).
I’m a full time student so I’m not sure what I’d take time off FROM!
However, looking forward, I think I’d be sorely tempted but turn it down in the end. The market is so volatile that I don’t like the idea of having gaps in my resume at all. If I did take time from my job, it would be to do something equally related to the law that it flushed out some other skill set I had or my interests…but that wouldn’t be a year long vacation it’d just be working somewhere else.
Maybe it would be different if I weren’t just starting out and had already established myself in a career…maybe then I’d feel comfortable just staying home or traveling or something else…
Chere’s last blog post..I is for International Justice Mission
@Mary, we’ve had those conversations before!
If I had a year off I’d just take more classes in school and focus on getting done sooner.
Amy’s last blog post..I don’t get it
Love seeing people praying for each other on here
Chris Sullivan’s last blog post..Nothing Too Big, Nothing Too Small
I would take more day trips, stay up really late cause I know I could sleep in, read more, craft more, take naps, go to mass during the week, and do what I do now, just enjoy the time I have.
Annie’s last blog post..Foreverness of Love