Nonprofit Adviser

Ikon Images via AP

Many nonprofit leaders struggle to take time for themselves, but self-care isn’t selfish. An extended leave can have wide-ranging benefits for you and your organization, according to five nonprofit chief executives who have taken sabbaticals recently.

Model for your staff that everyone deserves rest, advises Jennifer Ching, executive director of the North Star Fund.

She observes that leaders often feel uncomfortable about leaving work unfinished: “It comes up in so many ways: the way we martyr ourselves in conversation, or workload, or that we feign our indispensability.”

But a sabbatical gives you practice for a job transition or retirement, she says, whether that’s coming soon or a few decades away. “A lot of executive directors, many of us get into our roles because we just can’t handle it when things are not done our way.” A sabbatical “opens up those doors that things can be done a different way.”

Whether you’re an executive director yourself or you want to make the case with your boss for extended paid leave, read Sabbaticals Strengthen Leaders and Nonprofits: Here’s How to Recharge. (And if you’ve had a sabbatical experience you’d like to share, please write to me and tell me about it.)

Enjoy your week,

M.J. Prest
Senior Editor, Advice

How to raise money in a volatile economy. Our first-ever Advice Issue is live! In our August edition, we rounded up our best resources so far in 2025 to help nonprofit leaders raise more money, reach more donors, make powerful data visuals, and much more during a very disruptive year. Consider this your summer reading list before fall hits, and browse our newest issue today.

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