In recent years, sabbaticals have increasingly emerged as an option not only for rest, but also for personal transformation. Mr. DiDonna, a senior lecturer at Harvard Business School who teaches MBA courses on entrepreneurship, has been collecting stories of sabbaticals from around the world.

He points out that the prevailing narrative about work assumes people begin their careers immediately after school and stay on that path until retirement. In cultures where this norm doesn’t hold—such as Australia, Israel, and Sweden—individuals tend to have more autonomy to take breaks during their professional lives.

As the pace of modern work continues to accelerate, fueling burnout and sparking deeper questions about the meaning of work, sabbaticals are taking on new relevance.

“What we have discovered is that sabbaticals are not long vacations. They are rites of passage. They are moments of rebuilding identity, purpose, and humanity,” says Mr. DiDonna.

The idea of a sabbatical as part of the business playbook is gaining traction, particularly among younger companies founded by leaders whose views shifted during their own time away.

That’s what happened with Impossible Foods. Its founder, biochemist Patrick O. Brown, took a sabbatical to reflect on how to address major global problems. He went on to start the company, which focuses on developing sustainable, plant-based alternatives to meat with the same taste, texture, and nutritional value as animal products.

Many leaders return from sabbaticals with a renewed focus on “the things that really matter”—such as family—and are better able to set clear boundaries between work and personal life. This often influences the kind of company they go on to build or lead. According to Mr. DiDonna, while the number of companies offering sabbatical programs remains relatively small—around 5%—it is on the rise.

A survey by employmenthero.com shows that 28% of companies in the United Kingdom currently offer unpaid sabbaticals, and 16% already grant short-term paid leave. Among employees, 47% cited sabbaticals as the “most exciting” non-financial benefit.

Some companies, including Intel, Adobe, Buffer, Deloitte, and Bank of America, already offer sabbaticals in various formats. The outdoor gear company Patagonia, for instance, runs a volunteer program that allows employees to take up to two months off—with full pay—to work with environmental organizations.

Mercado Livre launched the “Recharge Your Batteries” program, giving senior managers up to 12 weeks of sabbatical leave. Universities and NGOs like Amnesty International also offer unpaid sabbaticals, typically after a set number of years of continuous service.

Kate Phillips, senior vice president and global chief benefits officer at Bank of America, shared in a recent article in Fast Company what the institution has learned since launching its sabbatical program in 2023 for employees with more than 15 years of service. According to her, more than 15,000 employees have already taken advantage of the four-to-six-week paid leave.

She noted that sabbaticals were a highly requested benefit, with most participants opting to stay home with family—returning more relaxed, recharged, and grateful for the opportunity.

“Not working can indeed result in better work. And we are already seeing this happen,” she said.

Ingrid Brum, CEO of Rhon, an HR consulting firm, says the concept is still in its early stages in Brazil compared to countries like the U.S. and the U.K. She points out that unpaid sabbaticals depend heavily on the organization’s structure, culture, and legal framework. The biggest cost, Ms. Brum argues, isn’t just financial—it’s also cultural and legal.

“Here, discussions about working hours, labor rights, and mental health still dominate most corporate agendas. However, some Brazilian companies are beginning to adopt sabbatical policies to retain and develop talent,” says Ms. Brum.

In most cases, these are subsidiaries of multinational corporations. “These examples show that some companies [in Brazil] recognize the value of sabbaticals as a tool for talent development and retention. However, for this practice to become more common, there needs to be progress in organizational culture and labor legislation,” she adds.

Sabbaticals generally do not fall under traditional forms of leave, such as vacation, medical, or maternity/paternity leave. Regulatory Standard 1, which addresses General Provisions and Occupational Risk Management in Brazil, makes no mention of sabbaticals. Likewise, the country’s labor code—the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT)—does not recognize sabbaticals as a formal right or benefit.

Eberson Terra, an education specialist and scholar on the topic, co-authored the book “Sabático: o poder da pausa” (Alta Books, 2023) with his wife, journalist Iara Vilela. He explains that companies offering sabbaticals in Brazil tend to do so on a case-by-case basis, often without a formal structure. Typically, global corporations introduce the practice voluntarily, drawing from their experience abroad, and generally choose not to discuss the matter publicly.

While researching the book, the authors approached several companies that were open to or already offering some form of sabbatical benefit. They found that apart from public institutions—which treat it as a form of unpaid “bonus leave” for up to two years—private companies with sabbatical policies were mostly multinational firms that extended existing global practices to their Brazilian operations, such as IBM and Bosch.

“Brazilian companies have not yet realized that losing a professional for an agreed-upon period is better than losing them for good,” says Mr. Terra. “When denied the opportunity to take a longer sabbatical, employees often leave the company—and when they return to the job market, they’re more likely to join a new employer than return to the one that refused their leave.”

The most essential difference between a vacation and a sabbatical is that during a sabbatical, it becomes easier to detach from one’s professional identity, as responsibilities must be fully transferred to others in the employee’s absence.

According to the Pew Research Center, nearly half of American workers entitled to paid leave do not use their full benefit—often due to fears of overburdening colleagues or falling behind. During a typical vacation, most tasks simply accumulate, waiting to be tackled upon return.

“This is stressful and doesn’t allow the employee to learn anything about what happens when you’re out of the office,” says Mr. DiDonna. “I would say that unless the company is giving its employees more than a few months off with a complete break, it’s not offering the kind of recovery and other benefits that a sabbatical can provide.”

He speaks from experience. Before he even began studying the topic, Mr. DiDonna took a self-initiated sabbatical and discovered just how unhealthy his relationship with work had become—and how entirely feasible it was to step away. “Everything went perfectly well,” he recalls.

“This may seem like a simple observation, but for anyone who places a lot of meaning in their work, especially in mission-driven companies, it’s very common and complicated,” he adds.

Marina Roale, behavior and trends expert, partner, and head of insights at Grupo Consumoteca, says a recent study on adult life in Brazil revealed two overlapping phenomena. On one hand, there is widespread exhaustion—particularly among millennials and Generation Z—who report constant fatigue and fear of being overwhelmed. On the other, there is growing awareness that work should not consume every aspect of life.

“The sabbatical arises at this crossroads between collapse and the search for meaning. But it’s essential not to romanticize it: taking time off remains a privilege. Most people cannot afford that right—and that says a lot about the inequalities embedded in our relationship with time,” she says.

The study shows that productivity is the feeling most closely associated with happiness across all generations. In this context, the sabbatical serves as a powerful disruption—it challenges the norm of acceleration and the culture of performance. At the same time, says Ms. Roale, it revives something ancestral: the idea that time does not always have to be useful, and that emptiness can be fertile.

“The study shows how much we lack symbolic rituals in adult life. Sabbaticals fill this void,” she says.

Another finding from the Consumoteca survey is that most Brazilians report feeling happier when they feel productive—a symptom of a society that has exchanged rest for performance and free time for usefulness. In this light, taking a break is not just difficult—it’s transgressive.

“The break pulls us out of the rat race and brings us back to the question: who am I when I’m not producing? An extended pause disrupts that cycle and gives people a chance to observe themselves outside the script. It’s a symbolic moment of reconnection,” says Ms. Roale.

Reinvention requires courage, time, resources, and a strong support network. Research from the Sabbatical Project reveals that 62% of sabbaticals begin in response to personal crises, and only 13% are taken as part of a fully intentional and planned “life project.”

Mr. Terra, for instance, author of a book on sabbaticals, says he took a year off in 2018 to care for his mental health. “Mental health is often at stake, and the only way to recover is to leave that environment,” he says. “I chose to leave my position as director at a company where I had worked for over 12 years and had 2,500 employees under my management.”

After his sabbatical, he did not return to his previous company and says the experience taught him important lessons about freedom in the workplace.

Sabbatical programs can also be seen as a valuable tool for attracting and retaining talent. According to Employmenthero.com, companies that offer sabbaticals report increases in employee engagement, creativity, and loyalty upon their return.

Neuroscientist Ana Carolina Souza, partner and consultant at Nemesis Neurociência Organizacional, says disconnecting has scientifically proven benefits. By experiencing moments of abstraction and engaging in leisure activities, we activate a brain network known as the “Default Mode Network” (DMN).

The activation of this network is directly linked to brain regions responsible for processes such as self-awareness, introspection, mental flexibility, and openness to dialogue. Combined with new experiences and reflection on the past and future, it enables individuals to mature by developing aspects of emotional intelligence.

“This development leads to a more assertive decision-making process, increasing the chances of a more successful life—one built on a deeper understanding of who we are, what we want, and what opportunities lie ahead,” explains Ms. Souza.

She envisions sabbaticals becoming professional differentiators in the near future, especially when used in ways that contribute meaningfully to personal and professional growth. “At some point, this could become a competitive advantage and a desirable ‘rite of passage’ for the professional of the future,” she says.

According to her, once we acknowledge that value creation today is rooted in creative, logical, and relational skills—and recognize that rest is essential to maintaining the brain functions that support those abilities—we begin to view breaks and rest as critical to sustaining both performance and well-being. “This shift is slow and gradual, as with all cultural changes, but it is essential,” she says.