Hi, I’m Sage! I’m a mindfulness coach, a blogger, and the author and creator of Tranquil You. I want to help you experience less burnout and stress in your life so you will have the confidence, energy, and time you need to pursue the things that really matter.
Do you feel like you have enough energy to accomplish everything you want to? Or does that sound like a fantasy?
Lots of people feel totally burned out from their jobs and from the responsibilities of day-to-day life. Even if you really enjoy your work or you’re happily self-employed, it’s still possible to burn yourself out.
Previous generations may scoff at millennials who say they feel burned out. Work-related exhaustion can affect people at different ages. What matters is the effect on your daily life, rather than whether you belong to a particular generation.
What’s causing them to feel that way? And more importantly, how can they prevent it from happening?
Burnout is chiefly a result of daily stress. This stress can come from having too much going on, or from feeling forced to pour your efforts into work that isn’t fulfilling you.
High expectations can also play a significant role in feeling burned out. Most employers set high expectations for their workers. This isn’t the case for every company. But many organizations require employees to be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This can make people resent not only their jobs, but also the people they work with.
Pressure can also come from expectations that are difficult to meet with the time, resources and support available. Rather than blaming a generation or an attitude, look at the actual demands and whether they can change.
Those high expectations can lead to burnout on so many levels—physical, emotional and mental. Burnout makes it harder to accomplish even simplest tasks, making everything start feeling like it’s a chore.
Many people don’t realize that they feel burned out until they’ve already sunk into the depths of it. I only recognize burnout in myself when I reach the point of feeling completely exhausted, physically, emotionally and mentally. By then it’s difficult to recover short of doing a reboot on their life.
Bringing awareness to the signals of burnout allows people to take positive and proactive action before things get worse. If you can recognize the signals before you completely burn out, you can give yourself the extra care you need.
Here are seven more common signs that you may be experiencing burnout, along with some helpful tips on how you can deal with them positively.
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You’re overwhelmed by the things you need to do.
If you’re overwhelmed by your daily to-do list, even if it’s filled with things that you enjoy doing, this may be a signal that you’re burning out. Trying to force too much into our daily lives causes us to overwork ourselves. Some of us will then feel guilty because we’re not getting it all done.
What to do: Simplify your workload. Set three or four priorities for each day, and solely focus just on those. Don’t be afraid to ask for help to successfully and effectively plan your days.
You’re exhausted.
Persistent exhaustion is worth taking seriously. Sleep, workload and health may all be relevant; it is not proof that you have failed to care for yourself.
What to do: It’s important for you to make sure you’re taking good care of your basic needs. Be sure to get enough sleep. Eat regular, healthy meals and drink enough water. Start a regular exercise routine. Sometimes it’s simple things like these have the most significant impact on our levels of energy.
You struggle to be motivated.
Maybe you press the snooze button on your phone or alarm clock so many times every morning that you have to hurry through your morning routine. You know what you should be working, but you just can’t find the motivation. Loss of motivation can have different causes; this sign alone cannot tell you that the problem is burnout.
What to do: It’s important for you to identify the things in your life that are out of alignment. Take some time to clarify your vision for your future, and think about where you’d like to be five or ten years from now. When you’ve identified several things you want to come about in your life, make a list and use it to keep you going and to fuel your actions.
Your mindset is negative.
Stress plays powerful tricks on our mindset. When we’re feeling exhausted or overwhelmed, this gravitates our thoughts towards negativity. If you notice you’re consistently hard on yourself or thinking in negative terms, you may not be giving yourself enough time to recharge and rest.
What to do: If you feel you’re weighed down by negative thoughts, give yourself some grace. Consider which expectations are yours and which are being placed on you. It’s okay to let yourself have a break. Repeat positive affirmations to yourself, write out your thoughts, and spend some time truly relaxing.
You snap at other people.
It’s a fact that people can be annoying. But if you feel more irritable than you usually do, it may be a signal that your overall mood is being affected by burnout. It’s easy to blame things on other people, but this won’t result in anything that’s positive.
What to do: Take responsibility over your energy and your time. Be certain that you’re not over-committing and agreeing to do things you know will drain you. Try setting boundaries around your energy and time.
Everything is feeling like a chore.
If you feel like nothing you do on a daily basis brings you joy or excites you, the monotony of daily life is starting to take a toll on you. Many of us follow the same routine each and every day, so it’s critical to schedule some excitement and fun in your life.
What to do: Schedule things into your days that you look forward to doing, and make a conscious effort to do them. Maybe it’s reading, yoga, writing, listening to music, going for a walk, or talking to a friend. Whatever it is, try to do something different every day. This will make your life feel more enjoyable.
You don’t practice self-care.
Taking time to recover can help, but ongoing demands may also need to change. The World Health Organization uses burnout specifically for chronic workplace stress, rather than as a medical diagnosis for every form of exhaustion. The difficult thing is to actually take time to care for yourself. If it seems impossible to make time for yourself, look at practical barriers and where support or a change in demands could help.
What to do: Allow yourself to rest and recharge. Whether it’s 10 minutes or a full hour, you can fit self-care into your daily routine. Rest and enjoyable activities may be part of support, but they cannot substitute for addressing an unreasonable workload or seeking healthcare when symptoms persist.
I encourage you to do a self-check to see if any of those signs of burnout are present your life. Note though that the list is not comprehensive. There are many other ways that burnout can manifest itself. The critical thing is to be tuned in to your physical, emotional, and mental well-being so you’ll notice when you need a break and to recharge.
What are your most effective tips for fighting burnout? Please share them in the comments section, or send me an email! I look forward to hearing from you!
If exhaustion, low mood or changes in sleep continue or affect daily life, consider a healthcare appointment rather than assuming the cause is burnout. Describe what has changed and how long it has been happening.