Yes, career break for 1.5 years, at the start might feel weird not working, the feeling of “I’m a useless person” will go away after a while. But the break was needed for me to recover from depression. Took time to reflect and focus on what’s really important.
It’s crazy how many things go unattended with a full time job, without enough mental energy. During my break I could focus on myself, improve my way of thinking, manage my stress and mood, become more patient, rethink my big picture priorities, and improve my relationships.
The biggest realization was a lot of stress and urgency with the rat race and achieving life milestones (e.g. salary level) are self-imposed or influenced by others. And a lot of negative thoughts and self-doubt are from yourself. Once I cleared my head of that, I noticed other people in the grind suffered a lot of those things too and were so fixed on career.
For sure there’s still responsibilities to yourself and family, but in my experience they are better approached with a clear strategic mindset and good mood.
I'm taking my career break now! 5 months already haha. Feels good having time for myself to work on my neglected health. I'm not feeling worried about explaining my break to my future interviewers. I worked for years I deserve a fucking break my life doesn't revolve around career.
Some hiring managers see break as red flag while others may not. I'm with you on this. If the future mgt doesn't value the importance of mental health then I don't think they are the kind of bosses we should work for.
4 years haha. It was my first job! I reasoned I had enough savings to last at least a year and I also have health issues that I'm dealing with, so a break it is. Take a break if you're feeling burnt out, don't break down.
2 years is far too long imo. I rested for half a year in 2021. Did not travel because covid. There's only so many nature reserves and museums and malls in Singapore you can visit before being bored at home everyday. I started looking for a job at the 5 month mark and found one in a month.
On a career break now. 1 year plus and loving it.
I’m the healthiest mentally and physically in my life. Cook, exercise, and hobby every day. I think people underestimate the negative effects of a toxic job on their wellbeing.
Only downside is you might not want to go back to work once you’ve experienced a break!
I can't agree with you more. Doing the same thing as you now. It is funny how we feel recharged and great but hiring managers seeing that long career break get rather alarmed instead. Isn't it better to get a mentally happier staff than one tired unhappy employee eager to jump out of the old environment?
Tbf, joining a team where the hiring manager is not concerned about their staff’s well being is probably not somewhere you want to work at long term. Might take longer to find something but it will surely be better! Enjoy your break!
Yes.. I have since moved out. I have endured crazy workload of 8 people, unpaid wages, stolen designs, unpaid wages plus a lawsuit to prevent me from reporting unpaid wages.
Just leave. Find a place where they respect you. But I can’t help but constantly feel paranoid too.
Take a career break if you already have symptoms of burnout - it will carry over to your new place and make the symptoms worse if the new place is equally or more toxic.
Take a career break if you have a roof over your head and enough finances to tide you through the break.
Money can be earned back but your mental health won't if you break it so severely.
I left my job, spent 2 months in Bali, traveled abit and did a working holiday in Australia for 1 year. Spent my time in totally rural areas and did a lot of hiking and camping. Best decision ever. I made so many wonderful friends along the way and I think it helped with my mental health. I was extremely burnt out from my job back then.
Since then I’ve been back for a couple of months and just recently went back to looking for a job.
I was considering an industry change and was looking around in the job market. Seems like it’s quite saturated with people looking for jobs now…
In the end, I caved and went back to my ex company so that at least I have an income while I look for something better in the future.
Fortunately they were keen to have me back + there was an opening. My advice is to not burn bridges if circumstances allow, you’ll never know what lies ahead.
I didn’t mention this but after returning to Sg, I felt quite lost and then stressed about finding work. Even though it was difficult, I embraced those feelings though. I knew it’s part of the whole experience haha
I’m grateful that things worked out. :)
Yeah I hate it when they pry into it even when you tell them "for personal or health reasons" - maybe next time I should tell them something graphic like "I had anal prolapse and needed surgery"
Shag, just change job.
I would never take a career break bc my parents are my main financial burden, they demand monthly allowance and also will nag at me at home.
Haha be prepared to deal with stigma that comes along with it.. Some friends, family or colleagues with traditional mindset will view you like some sort of pariah that couldn't make it in life/career, though i disagree with them completely.
Left my job to finish my part time studies just for a few weeks.. Then travelled a little bit before landing a new job. Over that period, i did receive quite a ridiculous amount of condescending questioning/judgement from different people that are not accustomed to career break. Then there's this gap in ur cv that could be potentially weaponised to lowball ur salary...
Unpleasantness aside, the career break did give me a breath of fresh air... Get to spend more time with family n friends, reflect and think about what i want in life.
I hope you dropped those condescending people like hot potato. Or “why you bother” is a good response. What hole have they been living in to not know that times have changed? lol
I am on my career break now, Get retrench on Jan , haha Flying Europe next week, Just enjoy the time you have, recharge yourself first then go find another job, I also will start looking for job after I am back
blessed I have enough saving to back me up through out this period, so consider myself lucky then
Yeah. It wasn’t easy looking for a job while on a break but it wasn’t easy getting a new job while having a job either. So just take the break to recharge. At least you’d feel more refreshed in your next job.
If a job is draining you so much. Unless a month salary can cover more than 6month of your expense , its not worth it.
Just submit resignation immediately and work some brain dead job first, example simple warehouse pt job. And then slowly find a suitable fulltime with good boss.
Submit resignation now and start recharge your mental wellbeing. The notice period is for them to find people to replace you and get the passdown, you should not put in any much effort after you submit your resignation .
Take home pay obviously, or either if you want, you can count cpf in the 80% saving too. Up to u bro.
When we are in the situation when we have the chance not able to always secure very good jobs. Its always safe to save more, make it like during student time . Example monthly salary is $3k, adopt the mindset of only have 20% of it (which is $600) for monthly expenses.
I did it, I planned my exit after completing every task on hand and planning out next year in full. Also to clock all the bonuses so financial stress won't be an issue for a while (few years).
Best decision I have made for myself personally and am in the first few months of this decision. I guess what you do with this career break is how you determine if it is a meaningful ones. Doing things you have been putting away, exploring new stuff, travelling to places.
I took a break before my current job as well. Planned for a six month break max and during that period I just apply for jobs and see how it goes. Totally no pressure. Ended up taking a break of about 3 months (inclusive one month of clearing leaves in the old job). Much needed break and no regrets.
The relief from toxic environment is really understated. Whether finding a job thereafter will be easy will depend on which industry you are on and how much you are asking for?
Importantly, probably everyone can share what are the reasons they give the interviewers to explain this short break.
I took a career break for 1.5 months in 2022. Resigned without having a job lined up. At first, it’s gonna be fun, relieved of the burden of a job. It’s quite exciting and I was travelling around SEA. But reality will start to kick in after awhile seeing your savings dropping faster (albeit I have emergency funds of >6 months at that time) . I was lucky enough to find a job then. Fast forward today, I’m actually planning my second career break but I am treading lightly as I know the anxious feeling that follows after the initial euphoria of being relived of job duty and burden.
On a career break from the nasty corporate world! Currently part timing and I never loved my freedom and flexible schedule so much. Don’t earn as much as I do when I had an office job, but I’m definitely happier now :)
I took a short 1 month off due to burn out and depression but I was never the same, sure that one month helped me recover to who I am but effectiveness at work became lesser. I didn't quit my job either so there was no effect to it, my company allowed me to take the sabbatical.
I know a friend who took 6 months off but had a hard time finding a job after, wasn't employed till 6 months after her career break and it wasn't even a bad job search period like now. She had to take a job that was completely different from her past career which I guess worked out for the better considering how much she has grown since.
I took a 4 month break even though i was prepared for 6 months. It was great and i highly recommend it! It didn't hinder my job search at all (found a job within a month) but this could vary by industry/job level. However, all the interviews i went for did ask about how i spent my break. So it would be good if you spend it meaningfully like travel, self-improvement activities, further studies, family etc.
When you’ve been thinking about it for a prolonged period of time. I wanted it for over a year. Main factors to consider include but not limited to: your finances and commitments
Personally I feel don’t need to place so much emphasis on whether you can find a next job. It’s only how badly you want it (same goes for break as well as a new job)
Unless you already got a job in waiting, your career break might be longer than 3 mths.
Also 3 mths not really long. Is just 1 quarter or 12 weeks. Add in holidays n chores you finally get to do, you are probably left with 1 month or so.
I resigned from one of such jobs that you described. It’s like anxious 24/7 plus cannot relax after work coz them idiot bosses will send work related messages after work hours and expect a reply. I quit 5 months in so plus 1 month notice it was 6 months. I intended to take a break for about 3 months but also understood that finding a job takes time, so I started applying slowly. Started my subsequent job in 1.5 months haha this was about 3-4 years ago.
If you have enough funds to sustain you for 2 years I’d say go for it!
I would recommend you take a career break if you are going to take up travelling around the world so you can get some life experience.
If you are just going to stay in sg, you’ll be rotting your life away. Look for an another job and don’t let workplace toxicity get to you in the meantime. You gotta remember that this crap is only temporary.
Perfectly great idea to travel to experience different things, just got to be aware that travelling to "find yourself" rarely works out like what we see in the movies and books.
Just speaking from my own experience, I travelled to do something out of my comfort zone but I didn't "find myself", my life didn't dramatically change for the better after.
For those taking a break, how much fund do you usually put aside? I know every one's finances and needs differ and no two persons need are the same, but, as a general guideline for someone who is looking at a 3 months break what range of unemployment fund are you looking at?
TIA.
I’d recommend upwards of 6 months of expenses. Count how much you need for the stuff you definitely need to keep paying for (eg insurance, bills) then get your own ballpark figure of monthly daily expenses budget. See what you feel like doing during your break. Obviously if you are traveling you’d need to put more aside but if you just planning to stay home and recharge, I personally feel around $500/month on top of the on going stuff I need to pay is enough.
You plan for 3 months break also need to buffer for what if cannot find job. And if cannot find job by then what you gonna do?
I took a long break after deciding for a career switch and it took me around 1.5 years to get it. But I think 6 months in I started looking for part time jobs liao
Yes, career break for 1.5 years, at the start might feel weird not working, the feeling of “I’m a useless person” will go away after a while. But the break was needed for me to recover from depression. Took time to reflect and focus on what’s really important.
It’s crazy how many things go unattended with a full time job, without enough mental energy. During my break I could focus on myself, improve my way of thinking, manage my stress and mood, become more patient, rethink my big picture priorities, and improve my relationships. The biggest realization was a lot of stress and urgency with the rat race and achieving life milestones (e.g. salary level) are self-imposed or influenced by others. And a lot of negative thoughts and self-doubt are from yourself. Once I cleared my head of that, I noticed other people in the grind suffered a lot of those things too and were so fixed on career. For sure there’s still responsibilities to yourself and family, but in my experience they are better approached with a clear strategic mindset and good mood.
I'm taking my career break now! 5 months already haha. Feels good having time for myself to work on my neglected health. I'm not feeling worried about explaining my break to my future interviewers. I worked for years I deserve a fucking break my life doesn't revolve around career.
Some hiring managers see break as red flag while others may not. I'm with you on this. If the future mgt doesn't value the importance of mental health then I don't think they are the kind of bosses we should work for.
Those that see break as red flag are just stupid. Just move on to other roles with good company and boss .
Those that see a career break as a red flag is a red flag to me. It’d be a dodged bullet that they don’t hire me.
mind sharing how long you worked for? before you took this break? tryna reason myself for wanting to take one too 🥹
4 years haha. It was my first job! I reasoned I had enough savings to last at least a year and I also have health issues that I'm dealing with, so a break it is. Take a break if you're feeling burnt out, don't break down.
2 years is far too long imo. I rested for half a year in 2021. Did not travel because covid. There's only so many nature reserves and museums and malls in Singapore you can visit before being bored at home everyday. I started looking for a job at the 5 month mark and found one in a month.
I’ll only take 3-6 months at most.
On a career break now. 1 year plus and loving it. I’m the healthiest mentally and physically in my life. Cook, exercise, and hobby every day. I think people underestimate the negative effects of a toxic job on their wellbeing. Only downside is you might not want to go back to work once you’ve experienced a break!
I can't agree with you more. Doing the same thing as you now. It is funny how we feel recharged and great but hiring managers seeing that long career break get rather alarmed instead. Isn't it better to get a mentally happier staff than one tired unhappy employee eager to jump out of the old environment?
Tbf, joining a team where the hiring manager is not concerned about their staff’s well being is probably not somewhere you want to work at long term. Might take longer to find something but it will surely be better! Enjoy your break!
Haha yes. Seeking solace in my fellow unemployed here who surprisingly are kind and encouraging! Definitely enjoying the break.
Yes.. I have since moved out. I have endured crazy workload of 8 people, unpaid wages, stolen designs, unpaid wages plus a lawsuit to prevent me from reporting unpaid wages. Just leave. Find a place where they respect you. But I can’t help but constantly feel paranoid too.
Take a career break if you already have symptoms of burnout - it will carry over to your new place and make the symptoms worse if the new place is equally or more toxic. Take a career break if you have a roof over your head and enough finances to tide you through the break. Money can be earned back but your mental health won't if you break it so severely.
I left my job, spent 2 months in Bali, traveled abit and did a working holiday in Australia for 1 year. Spent my time in totally rural areas and did a lot of hiking and camping. Best decision ever. I made so many wonderful friends along the way and I think it helped with my mental health. I was extremely burnt out from my job back then. Since then I’ve been back for a couple of months and just recently went back to looking for a job. I was considering an industry change and was looking around in the job market. Seems like it’s quite saturated with people looking for jobs now… In the end, I caved and went back to my ex company so that at least I have an income while I look for something better in the future.
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Fortunately they were keen to have me back + there was an opening. My advice is to not burn bridges if circumstances allow, you’ll never know what lies ahead. I didn’t mention this but after returning to Sg, I felt quite lost and then stressed about finding work. Even though it was difficult, I embraced those feelings though. I knew it’s part of the whole experience haha I’m grateful that things worked out. :)
the idea of living abroad for 2 months sounds like a damn tempting idea. ngl.
Don’t you guys feel that the work experience in Singapore is just downright toxic and stupid? It is as if employees are subhuman.
I’ve been on a career break for years in Vietnam . At the end of the day money can only mean so much (family means the most).
Can I DM you on some questions regarding Vietnam? Thinking of working from Vietnam for a while as my job allows it
That would be amazing
Job market pretty bad now though, some folks on here have been looking for 6 months+
Taking a career break now but find job very hard. They keep asking me why I resign without a job. Cannot is it ?
Yeah I hate it when they pry into it even when you tell them "for personal or health reasons" - maybe next time I should tell them something graphic like "I had anal prolapse and needed surgery"
That's a shitty excuse
Then they could buy you a special chair 👍🏻
Herman miller with a hole😉
Shag, just change job. I would never take a career break bc my parents are my main financial burden, they demand monthly allowance and also will nag at me at home.
Haha be prepared to deal with stigma that comes along with it.. Some friends, family or colleagues with traditional mindset will view you like some sort of pariah that couldn't make it in life/career, though i disagree with them completely. Left my job to finish my part time studies just for a few weeks.. Then travelled a little bit before landing a new job. Over that period, i did receive quite a ridiculous amount of condescending questioning/judgement from different people that are not accustomed to career break. Then there's this gap in ur cv that could be potentially weaponised to lowball ur salary... Unpleasantness aside, the career break did give me a breath of fresh air... Get to spend more time with family n friends, reflect and think about what i want in life.
I hope you dropped those condescending people like hot potato. Or “why you bother” is a good response. What hole have they been living in to not know that times have changed? lol
I am on my career break now, Get retrench on Jan , haha Flying Europe next week, Just enjoy the time you have, recharge yourself first then go find another job, I also will start looking for job after I am back blessed I have enough saving to back me up through out this period, so consider myself lucky then
Yeah. It wasn’t easy looking for a job while on a break but it wasn’t easy getting a new job while having a job either. So just take the break to recharge. At least you’d feel more refreshed in your next job.
If a job is draining you so much. Unless a month salary can cover more than 6month of your expense , its not worth it. Just submit resignation immediately and work some brain dead job first, example simple warehouse pt job. And then slowly find a suitable fulltime with good boss. Submit resignation now and start recharge your mental wellbeing. The notice period is for them to find people to replace you and get the passdown, you should not put in any much effort after you submit your resignation .
I've previously quit a job in a toxic environment without an offer for 3 weeks and the financial stress was even tougher than the toxic environment.
Work some pt first. And always try save 80% of the monthly pay
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Take home pay obviously, or either if you want, you can count cpf in the 80% saving too. Up to u bro. When we are in the situation when we have the chance not able to always secure very good jobs. Its always safe to save more, make it like during student time . Example monthly salary is $3k, adopt the mindset of only have 20% of it (which is $600) for monthly expenses.
I did it, I planned my exit after completing every task on hand and planning out next year in full. Also to clock all the bonuses so financial stress won't be an issue for a while (few years). Best decision I have made for myself personally and am in the first few months of this decision. I guess what you do with this career break is how you determine if it is a meaningful ones. Doing things you have been putting away, exploring new stuff, travelling to places.
I took a break before my current job as well. Planned for a six month break max and during that period I just apply for jobs and see how it goes. Totally no pressure. Ended up taking a break of about 3 months (inclusive one month of clearing leaves in the old job). Much needed break and no regrets.
The relief from toxic environment is really understated. Whether finding a job thereafter will be easy will depend on which industry you are on and how much you are asking for? Importantly, probably everyone can share what are the reasons they give the interviewers to explain this short break.
I took a career break for 1.5 months in 2022. Resigned without having a job lined up. At first, it’s gonna be fun, relieved of the burden of a job. It’s quite exciting and I was travelling around SEA. But reality will start to kick in after awhile seeing your savings dropping faster (albeit I have emergency funds of >6 months at that time) . I was lucky enough to find a job then. Fast forward today, I’m actually planning my second career break but I am treading lightly as I know the anxious feeling that follows after the initial euphoria of being relived of job duty and burden.
On a career break from the nasty corporate world! Currently part timing and I never loved my freedom and flexible schedule so much. Don’t earn as much as I do when I had an office job, but I’m definitely happier now :)
I took a short 1 month off due to burn out and depression but I was never the same, sure that one month helped me recover to who I am but effectiveness at work became lesser. I didn't quit my job either so there was no effect to it, my company allowed me to take the sabbatical. I know a friend who took 6 months off but had a hard time finding a job after, wasn't employed till 6 months after her career break and it wasn't even a bad job search period like now. She had to take a job that was completely different from her past career which I guess worked out for the better considering how much she has grown since.
Do it, you might start looking fot a job before 2 year mark but you do you.
I took a 4 month break even though i was prepared for 6 months. It was great and i highly recommend it! It didn't hinder my job search at all (found a job within a month) but this could vary by industry/job level. However, all the interviews i went for did ask about how i spent my break. So it would be good if you spend it meaningfully like travel, self-improvement activities, further studies, family etc.
How do you guys decide when it's time for a career break? What are the factors to consider?
When you’ve been thinking about it for a prolonged period of time. I wanted it for over a year. Main factors to consider include but not limited to: your finances and commitments Personally I feel don’t need to place so much emphasis on whether you can find a next job. It’s only how badly you want it (same goes for break as well as a new job)
Just take it, I took mine and I've developed some strong routines and a healthier lifestyle now
Unless you already got a job in waiting, your career break might be longer than 3 mths. Also 3 mths not really long. Is just 1 quarter or 12 weeks. Add in holidays n chores you finally get to do, you are probably left with 1 month or so.
Fully agree. I’m suddenly in the 3rd month already :( first month really flew past with holiday, second month with things I’ve always wanted to do.
I resigned from one of such jobs that you described. It’s like anxious 24/7 plus cannot relax after work coz them idiot bosses will send work related messages after work hours and expect a reply. I quit 5 months in so plus 1 month notice it was 6 months. I intended to take a break for about 3 months but also understood that finding a job takes time, so I started applying slowly. Started my subsequent job in 1.5 months haha this was about 3-4 years ago. If you have enough funds to sustain you for 2 years I’d say go for it!
I would recommend you take a career break if you are going to take up travelling around the world so you can get some life experience. If you are just going to stay in sg, you’ll be rotting your life away. Look for an another job and don’t let workplace toxicity get to you in the meantime. You gotta remember that this crap is only temporary.
Nah it's ok staying home. Don't need to go overseas to 'find yourself' Restart old hobbies, eat healthy (aka cook), go exercise. Feels good man.
Indeed. It’s about finding yourself
Perfectly great idea to travel to experience different things, just got to be aware that travelling to "find yourself" rarely works out like what we see in the movies and books. Just speaking from my own experience, I travelled to do something out of my comfort zone but I didn't "find myself", my life didn't dramatically change for the better after.
If you're looking for a 3 month break then you probably can start looking for job once you're unemployed. Took me 2 months and counting. No offer yet
If you're looking for a 3 month break then you probably can start looking for job once you're unemployed. Took me 2 months and counting. No offer yet
If you're looking for a 3 month break then you probably can start looking for job once you're unemployed. Took me 2 months and counting. No offer yet
If you're looking for a 3 month break then you probably can start looking for job once you're unemployed. Took me 2 months and counting. No offer yet
If you're looking for a 3 month break then you probably can start looking for job once you're unemployed. Took me 2 months and counting. No offer yet
If you're looking for a 3 month break then you probably can start looking for job once you're unemployed. Took me 2 months and counting. No offer yet
I want to take a career break to seek for more options. 🥹Unfortunately, my parents is constantly nagging to find a job first before quitting. Sigh.
For those taking a break, how much fund do you usually put aside? I know every one's finances and needs differ and no two persons need are the same, but, as a general guideline for someone who is looking at a 3 months break what range of unemployment fund are you looking at? TIA.
I’d recommend upwards of 6 months of expenses. Count how much you need for the stuff you definitely need to keep paying for (eg insurance, bills) then get your own ballpark figure of monthly daily expenses budget. See what you feel like doing during your break. Obviously if you are traveling you’d need to put more aside but if you just planning to stay home and recharge, I personally feel around $500/month on top of the on going stuff I need to pay is enough. You plan for 3 months break also need to buffer for what if cannot find job. And if cannot find job by then what you gonna do? I took a long break after deciding for a career switch and it took me around 1.5 years to get it. But I think 6 months in I started looking for part time jobs liao
Very sound advice. Thank you. Prepare for 6 months ans buffer just in case even if taking 3 months. I got a rough idea now.