‘Burnout is what happens when you try to avoid being human for too long’ – Michael Gungor
The above may be a handy reminder in the intense run-up to Christmas..
There’s a very thin line between peak performance and burnout so it can hit you from behind and catch you quite off guard.
Subtle signs of burn-out that may mean you need to priorise rest include:
🫣 Even small requests make you feel overwhelmed
🫣 You have a ‘glass-half empty’ view about most things
🫣 You are snappy and impatient with others
🫣 You have fallen into old unhealthy patterns
🫣 You feel extra sensitive and take everything personally
🫣 You feel insecure about things you used to feel confident about
🫣 You find it hard to get excited about anything
🫣 Even something as small as what to have for lunch feels overwhelming
Here are a coupla questions to check-in with how you’re doing on the thriving to burnout scale and to minimise the risk of wipe-out:
🎅 What two things need to be prioritised today?
🎅 Can this work wait till tomorrow?
🎅 How will I feel about this in 6 months?
🎅 If my body could speak, what would it say it needs?
🎅 Who can help me with this?
🎅 What would I say to a best friend in my position?
I’m not advocating you sack off work that needs to be done, but working super hard at the cost of meaningful things in our lives isn’t something we generally regret on our death beds.. it’s usually missing out on the stuff working too hard brings.
And sadly being an employee makes you ultimately disposable.
So careful killing yourself in the process unless you love your work, feel valued and have goals that will truly fulfil you and that working super hard may expedite.
My brother once gave me good advice on a similar theme pre Uni. He said if getting a First means killing yourself, get a 2:1 and have fun.
And as someone staring a terminal diagnosis in the face, he was privy to intell most of us generally aren’t.
Life’s too short, health is wealth and ultimately nothing works if you don’t 🎄
