Burnout is essentially misalignment.
You are doing the wrong things.
So what are the right things?
To know this, there are some questions that only you can answer.
What does the ideal day look like for you?
What does the ideal week look like for you?
What does your current day and week look like?
Find the things in your current day and week that aren’t in your ideal day and week and try your best to reduce and remove them as much as possible.
The Eisenhower Matrix (from the book ‘7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey) is a great tool which can help you categorise tasks and find ways to best manage them.
The Eisenhower Matrix splits up your to-do list into 1 of 4 sections.
URGENT and IMPORTANT = DO IT NOW!
Not URGENT and IMPORTANT = Schedule it. Put it in the Calendar
URGENT and Not IMPORTANT = It needs to be done soon but doesn’t need to be you doing it. Delegate it (Delegation is a skill = Learn/Improve it)
Not URGENT and Not IMPORTANT = Now you’re just Procrastinating. This is the stuff you probably want to do because you enjoy it but doesn’t add any value. STOP! This can also be the stuff that takes your time but doesn’t get you anywhere. Things like replying to emails and messages keep you busy, but not necessarily productive. Know the difference!
If you need help…
4 THINGS OUR BRAINS NEED
Burnout is your mind and body saying slow down.
Rest in the short-term is a great tool.
There are naturally periods in life where you have intensity sprints but you can’t sprint forever.
Sustainability should be the goal. Steady progress instead of massive effort only to burnout, crash, then get back up. Although that strategy can work and is used by many people…We are trying to avoid and reduce burnout here, not reach it then remediate.
It’s easier to prevent it, than it is to cure it.
Recognising the symptoms and signals before you get there.
If you have a lot on, having a deadline that is visibly in sight can help carry you until that point. Just be aware of after that point if the deadline moves, that can cause more pain. Also know that after that point you will likely still crash.
Burnout is mental exhaustion. Mindfulness and making regular time for yourself is what I’ve found works for me.
I add in short (5-10minutes) of Mindfuless practice, going for a walk whilst listening to music, exercising regularly and utilising the dead spaces in life (such as queuing) to avoid looking down at my phone and aiming to be present and aware of my surroundings to help me have a few mental breaks is sometimes all I need to reset and go again.
The Pomodoro technique is a good one.
Setting a timer, working for 25 minutes, having a break for 5.
This can be doubled to working for 50 minutes, having a break for 10.
Finally, recognise what type of activity you might need to help cater to YOUR needs.
PHYSICAL and MENTAL = Such as a SPORT, to help you completely forget about life for a while
PHYSICAL and NON MENTAL = Such as Walking, to help you think
NON PHYSICAL and MENTAL = Such as reading or Work, to mentally get away from thinking about other life challenges.
NON PHYSICAL and NON MENTAL = Such as watching a film, to completely immerse yourself in another World where you can passively ‘switch off’.
If you are suffering from BURNOUT (as I was) and want to talk more about it;