By BARBARA RAAB | NYTimes.com
"One of the most coveted of workplace perks is the sabbatical or leave of absence — a way to stray from your job for a time and return with renewed vigor and enthusiasm. To those of us outside academia, however, leaves of absence are rare. Still, a leave can make good sense, even in dismal economic times like these. Today we have a guest column by Barbara Raab, who is currently on a leave of absence from her job at NBC News. She says that before she asked for the time off, she, too, thought that leaves of absence were more fantasy than reality. "
Bert Hansen
