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I want them to eat better. I want to feel like I'm doing that part well. And during normal work weeks, it's always the first thing that gets squeezed.

Sometimes you don't know what's been weighing on you until you finally have the space to feel it. (3/3)

So many meals. Thinking about fibre and protein and how to hide vegetables in things. Trying new recipes. Retiring old ones because the kids are completely over them.

If I'm honest, I think this is where some of my mum guilt has been quietly living. (2/3)

When I imagined my sabbatical, I thought I'd dive straight in.
Daily workouts. Finance stuff I've been avoiding. Finally working on my AI projects. Becoming that optimised version of myself.

Instead… I've been cooking. (1/3)

If you love tinkering, building practical solutions, and bringing clarity to how teams collaborate across tools and time zones, this is for you!

This role will help improve how we work across a remote, global team by reducing friction in our day to day systems, strengthening how we share context and make decisions, and supporting thoughtful adoption of automation and AI.

We’re hiring an Operations and Automation Specialist on the People team at @Buffer! 🥳

🌎 Fully remote
🗓️ 4-day work week
💙 Values-led, transparency-first culture
💰 $108,584 - $139,952 USD + equity

Apply here: buffer.com/journey/6c89...

(more details below 👇 )

Now that it’s close, it feels like my body has exhaled.

Anyone else struggle to take a break unless there’s a big reason?

#BufferSabbatical

(8/8)

It's such a privilege, and I’m incredibly grateful. If not for this benefit at Buffer, I don’t think I would ever have taken one. I genuinely love my team and the company I get to be part of. A sabbatical is not something I ever felt I needed until I actually booked it.
(7/8)

A big part of my excitement now isn’t about having a “big plan”. It’s about having space. Space to sit with myself, follow those threads, and let some of that mental load finally loosen.
(6/8)

Once it was booked, I started noticing how full my brain actually was. I realised how much I’d been carrying in the background.

All those little thoughts that niggle at the edges - things I want to look into, pull at - but that usually get pushed to the back burner.
(5/8)

Part of it was practical: if I kept delaying, I’d gain additional weeks, but I’d also push out my next chance at a full sabbatical in five years. I wanted to be kind to future me. So I looked at the calendar, picked a window, and booked it.

That’s when something shifted.
(4/8)

Up until then, time off had always meant a holiday.

Then I hit six years… and I still hadn’t taken it. That's when I decided to just take it - with no concrete plans in place.
(3/8)

Not because I wasn’t excited, or because I didn’t appreciate the benefit. I just didn’t feel like I needed a break yet. I wasn’t burnt out, and I didn’t have a plan that felt worthy of seven weeks (it starts at six, and grows by a week each year you wait).
(2/8)

I spent five years looking forward to my sabbatical… then didn’t take it.

For most of my first five years at @Buffer.com, my sabbatical felt like this fun internal countdown. A little milestone on the horizon. Then I hit five years… and I didn’t book it.
(1/8)

Ages 5-10 are peak parenthood.

They are still young enough for cuddles and love hanging out with you, but are old enough to let you sleep in on weekends and get themselves sorted.

Here is a link to Buffer’s blog post about our sabbaticals for anyone curious about how it works: buffer.com/resources/sa...

Over the next few weeks, I’ll share a handful of reflections as I prepare to pause. What this break is bringing up, what I’m hoping to make space for, and what it means for me to really unplug after such a full chapter.

I’ll be sharing these posts under #buffersabbatical if you’d like to follow.

For the first time in six years, I’m about to step away from work… completely.

In 3 weeks, I'll be starting a 7-week (fully paid) sabbatical from my role at @buffer.com.

I know life throws curveballs. Things change. I don't always pause long enough to take it in.

But today, I'm just sitting with how grateful I feel. (5/5)

This also happens to be my last all-hands before sabbatical (more on that soon under #buffersabbatical). Maybe that's part of why it landed the way it did - stepping away knowing this is what I'm coming back to. (4/5)

During the all-hands, we announced a profit share and equity. 15% of our profits going back to the team, and we'll be getting equity in Buffer.

I was not prepared for how powerful it would feel.
(3/5)

Taking a step back and looking at our journey over the last few years - the tough seasons, the slow steady rebuilding, and then seeing 2025 become one of the strongest net income years in our history... it felt really big.
(2/5)

Just watched the @Buffer.com January 2026 All-hands and it has left me incredibly emotional (in a good way).
(1/5)

I’m very much a ‘this might be useful someday’ person. But our house is next level chaotic with the sheer volume of things, so I am trying to change my ways.

Yesterday we sold our plastic slide and mini coupes car - and I was lowkey sad and actually said goodbye to them. 😂

Anyone else?

If you’re in #brunei and have not yet tried the local Sembadah rice… here is your sign to give it a try. Such a delicious and fragrant rice. We officially switched our household to this last year - no regrets!

Would be super interested if they started selling brown #rice too!

Keep these coming!

My toxic trait is watching furniture restoration videos and believing I can now restore furniture (with 0 experience in woodworking).

Oooh! I can't wait to watch it!

One of my goals this year was to create more and put myself out there (on social media and beyond). Love this little end of year @Buffer.com surprise that was a small celebration of my progress as a creator (and less of a consumer).

The highlight of coming back to work after our company closure at @buffer.com, is connecting with everyone on the team about what they got up to during the break. Being on break at the same time, means we all have stories to share.

It really helps you feel closer as a fully remote team.❤️