{"id":711,"date":"2025-04-01T07:43:08","date_gmt":"2025-04-01T07:43:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/?p=711"},"modified":"2025-04-02T16:47:23","modified_gmt":"2025-04-02T16:47:23","slug":"first-gary-neville-now-entrepreneurs-are-also-buying-into-mini-retirements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/01\/first-gary-neville-now-entrepreneurs-are-also-buying-into-mini-retirements\/","title":{"rendered":"First Gary Neville, now entrepreneurs are also buying into \u2018mini-retirements\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s been two years since Gary Neville was mocked for taking mini-retirements on a business podcast<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The football pundit attracted eyerolls when he spoke of the benefits of choosing many shorter two-day breaks over retirement. Many said he had simply “discovered holidays”.<\/p>\n

Now, though, mini-retirements seem to be gaining traction among SME owners. Is flexible working changing our attitudes to career breaks?<\/p>\n

What is a mini-retirement?<\/h2>\n

“You can never really retire if you love work and you are relentless, but what you can have is mini-retirements during the year,” Neville explained to Steven Bartlett on the Diary of a CEO podcast in 2023.<\/p>\n

“This weekend, I’m going to Spain, Friday ‘til Monday morning. I call that the mini-retirement,” he continued.<\/p>\n

“That’s a weekend.” Bartlett responded, likely echoing many of our own thoughts on the concept.<\/p>\n

In some ways, though, the idea has proved attractive to business owners. While Neville’s approach emphasises short, frequent breaks, one expert says that many entrepreneurs are using mini-retirements as intentional career pauses before their next venture. <\/strong><\/p>\n

“Micro-retirement offers a valuable opportunity for reflection and reinvention”, says Aman Parmar, Head of Marketing at BizSpace, a provider of flexible workspaces for SMEs. ““After selling a business or reaching a financial milestone, [entrepreneurs] use micro-retirement to travel, upskill or experiment with new projects before committing to their next big move.”<\/p>\n

After years of hard work, selling a business<\/a> can leave owners uncertain about their next move. A mid-career break offers the chance to step back, reassess goals, and return with renewed clarity.<\/p>\n

For those planning their next chapter, mini-retirement might simply be a new way to describe a smart exit strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Are ‘mini-retirements’ another Gen Z work trend?<\/h2>\n

While career breaks are not a new phenomenon, mini-retirements seem to be growing in popularity among the younger generation of entrepreneurs — known as the quarter-life gap year<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A shift has occurred from an old-school ‘work hard, retire later’ approach to the more ‘work smart, live now’ philosophy of Gen Z and Millennial business owners. It’s out with the grind, and in with work-life balance. Instead of delaying the gratification of retirement after decades of labour, younger entrepreneurs prefer to enjoy their life throughout by taking breaks.<\/p>\n

This change is fuelled by a growing awareness of burnout and the redefinition of success beyond just financial wealth.<\/p>\n

“Many Gen Z and millennial entrepreneurs see financial independence not as a final destination, but as a tool to design a career on their own terms,” adds Parmar.<\/p>\n

Luckily for the younger generations, they have the resources to make career breaks feasible with flexible working arrangements.<\/p>\n

Parmar continues, “Rather than disconnecting entirely during micro-retirement, many former business owners are choosing to stay engaged through coworking spaces.<\/p>\n

“[Flexible working is] a perfect fit for the exploration and experimentation that emerging entrepreneurs are wanting to take on during periods of micro-retirement.”<\/p>\n

Should career breaks be a beige flag?<\/h2>\n

Once considered a ‘red flag’ on your CV, it seems that both entrepreneurs and employees are now embracing the benefits of taking time off mid-career.<\/p>\n

As many as 28% of 18-24 year-olds have already taken a career break<\/a>. This reflects a broader shift in UK work culture towards flexibility. As the younger generation rethinks the traditional career path, a gap in the CV is becoming the norm.<\/p>\n

Employers may need to adapt by no longer viewing them as a ‘red flag’ but as opportunities for employees to recharge, gain new perspectives, and return with fresh energy.<\/p>\n

The post First Gary Neville, now entrepreneurs are also buying into \u2018mini-retirements\u2019<\/a> appeared first on Startups.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s been two years since Gary Neville was mocked for taking mini-retirements on a business podcast. The football pundit attracted eyerolls when he spoke of the benefits of choosing many shorter two-day breaks over retirement. Many said he had simply “discovered holidays”. Now, though, mini-retirements seem to be gaining traction among SME owners. Is flexible…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[14],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/711"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=711"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/711\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":712,"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/711\/revisions\/712"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/portraitsbylorie.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}