Burned Out on Burnout?
It’s a hot topic right now. So many messages on how to tackle burnout.
Do more self-care! Take a vacation! Stop working 60+ hours a week!
We get it, burnout is something on all our minds as we reflect on 2020 as the year comes to a close. Yes, the pandemic is making us all feel burnout to a greater degree. It’s to be expected when we hear about the collective stress of the unknown, feelings of being overworked, and the overall uncertainty of what the future brings.
Exhaustion. Withdrawal. Numbness.
High demands and low rewards.
As someone who has already experienced burnout in my professional career, I can agree that I don’t like the familiar signs creeping back into my life either. Fortunately, I have worked hard to recognize the signs and know what to do to get myself back to wellness.
So why do we keep getting fed the 30,000 foot level of burnout prevention? Do we really think it’s as simple as taking time off or upping our self-care? I can tell you from experience that it isn’t this simple or easy for driven entrepreneurs.
Labeled workaholics, this breed of entrepreneurs feels distress when we tell them to work less. Their work defines their value in the world and telling them to shelve it for self-care can cause them unbearable mental distress. Maybe even paving the way for an existential crisis or suicidal thoughts in thinking they aren’t worth much without their work. It’s the way they contribute to the world and make an impact. For some, it’s their legacy.
I feel similarly. I cannot stop working, creating, planning. Just ask my spouse, who is sitting next to me as I write this on a holiday weekend. It’s part of my personality. It’s part of my drive. It’s why conversations of self-care didn’t work for me and why I developed a medical condition before making some much needed changes. I had to learn how to address my burnout differently. I had to learn how to address it at the 300 foot level instead of the 30,000 foot level.
So what does the 300 foot level of burnout prevention look like? It’s embracing concrete strategies that work for busy, driven entrepreneurs. It’s not talking at them about self-care as if it’s easy, as if we just have to decide to do it. Deciding to get out of our own way.
It’s not asking them to plan a vacation two months in advance. It’s not asking them to take a whole week off if they don’t want to. It’s giving people ideas and practices that can make a difference in 5–10 minute chunks. After all, one of burnout’s primary symptoms is exhaustion. So we need something easy to embrace and implement, not the big picture that feels unattainable and overwhelming.
I want you to succeed. I want you to find that sweet spot of productivity and passion. I want you to enjoy greater work-life balance.
I want to give you strategies that feel doable right now, not a week or a month from now. As a mental health therapist, I’ve seen what works for busy, driven professionals that I serve in my practice. I’ve discovered the strategies that work for me as a driven entrepreneur. It isn’t just about time off. It’s being intentional in what we do.
So join me in a lifestyle change that feels streamlined and satisfying. Embrace succinct strategies that work on a personal level. Because self-care and reduced work hours isn’t the full picture of burnout prevention or recovery. We need something more approachable to successfully find balance over burnout.
Khara is author of Perfectioneur: From Workaholic to Well-Balanced, outlining 20 streamlined strategies to discover work-life balance, available in English and Spanish on Amazon.
