Burnout is Stealing Your Life—Get Ready to Take It Back

A few weeks ago, one of my clients recounted how she’d finished work the night before, eager to start her week of vacation. But as she’d dragged her exhausted body across the parking lot to her car, she felt utterly demoralized. She’d busted her butt all week to get everything done so she could have a week free and clear, only to feel like she had accomplished only a sliver of it. And now, she planned to use the first few days of her “vacation” finishing up a big work project that she hadn’t been able to complete.

While her dedication to her job is admirable, it doesn’t have great long-term outcomes. She’s already exhausted all the time, her work brain never shuts off, and she’s neglecting the things that fill her cup—like hanging out with people who bring her joy, working out, and pursuing her artistic passion.

Can you relate? Are you also so committed to your professional responsibilities that you’re running on fumes too, waiting desperately for the break that never comes?

The problem with this is that this level of chronic stress and exhaustion leads to burnout. Burnout is defined as a state of mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion that can occur when the demands in your life consistently outweigh what you have to give. The World Health Organization describes it as “a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.”

While being exhausted all the time, feeling moody, and uninspired may seem like an inconvenience, burnout is so much more than that. Burnout is a thief that will creep in and steal everything from you when you’re too exhausted to notice. It will start by taking your enthusiasm. Then, your focus, creativity, and passion. Left unchecked, it can rob you of your career, your relationships, your health, your happiness—even your sense of identity and purpose.

And the worst thing is that once you start feeling like utter crap, you get so used to it that you don’t even realize how close to rock bottom you’ve sunk.

In the short-term, chronic stress and burnout can affect your mood, your energy, and your focus, but it can also affect your behaviour. For example, you might notice that you:

• Are extra snappy and impatient with the people you love

• Eat excessively to self-soothe feelings of anxiety, overwhelm, or exhaustion

• Can’t relax, despite being bone-weary

• Disengage from spending time with people you care about

• Stop exercising

• Numb yourself with excessive TV or social media consumption

• Procrastinate and have a hard time making decisions

• Work even more to avoid feeling overwhelmed

In the long-term, chronic stress and resulting burnout can have health implications too. They can increase your risk for heart disease, stroke, and Type II diabetes, while also impacting your sleep, mental health, and ability to maintain a healthy bodyweight.

There are four factors that set you up for burnout.

1. Burnout is a risk for you if you work in an environment where there’s a lot of pressure, meaning its fast paced, high stakes, you make a lot of decisions, and there are significant consequences for mistakes.

2. The second factor that makes you prone to burnout is if you also perceive that the demands of your work environment are high. For example, you feel busy, overwhelmed, or like everything is urgent. This is particularly wearing if you’re the kind of person who cares about doing a good job because you might not be able to give everything the attention you feel it deserves.

3. The third factor is if you’re also the kind of person who has high ideals. You have high standards of personal excellence AND you believe the work you do really matters. You might think of yourself as a high performer or high achiever.

4. While, all of these factors will set you up for burnout, the clincher is if resources are low in the face of this pressure. Insufficient resources might mean you don’t get adequate rest and recovery or feel supported in the ways you need to recharge.

Does this describe what you face at work and how you describe yourself as a person? Are you:

• A high performer who simply cannot leave work at the office?

• Always thinking about work and worrying about what needs to be done and what will happen if you don’t get it done?

• Consistently running on fumes because you can’t find the time or the ways to fuel your tank?

If so, it is with excitement, joy, and absolute relief that I can introduce you to what I’ve been working on for the last few months—my new online course, designed just for you: the high-performer who knows your drive for excellence is costing you! It’s called Mindset Strategies to Burnout Proof Your Life: The High Performer’s Ultimate Guide to Sustainable Excellence.

I created this course because I was that person who let burnout creep in and steal almost everything from me. When I left my career out of desperation and decided to start a coaching business, I became very aware that if I didn’t change my mindset, burnout would follow me wherever I went. I could change fields and work environments, but nothing would really change unless I changed. That’s because burnout isn’t just about working too much. It’s about the way you think about yourself and what you believe it takes to be a high performer.

And so, Mindset Strategies to Burnout Proof Your Life is the culmination of everything I have learned in the past three years through various certifications, reading dozens of books, listening to hundreds of podcasts, and my own real-world experience. Learn how you can shift your mindset from a burnout-prone high performer to someone who still does big things BUT in a sustainable way. Through 14 self-paced video modules, practical exercises, and guided strategies, I will teach you everything I have learned as I’ve gone from burned out to boss babe: in control of my mindset and happier, healthier, and more fulfilled than I ever thought possible!

For more details, click here or choose "Burnout Proof" from the menu.

And if you’re not sure if chronic stress and burnout are affecting you, why not take the quiz to find out?

Chronic Stress & Burnout Impact Assessment

This tool focuses on behavioral shifts associated with chronic stress—the precursor to burnout. Please answer the following questions by marking "True" or "False" for each statement based on your current experience:

1. True or False? I find myself becoming more irritable or easily frustrated with others.

2. True or False? I have noticed myself withdrawing from social activities or avoiding interactions with friends or family.

3. True or False? I procrastinate or delay important tasks more than I used to, even when I know they need to be done.

4. True or False? I’ve noticed a change in how often I tend to overeat or indulge in unhealthy foods when I feel stressed.

5. True or False? I have become more forgetful or have trouble remembering things that I would normally recall easily.

6. True or False? I have noticed that I have more trouble making decisions, even about simple matters.

7. True or False? I find myself working longer hours or pushing myself harder than usual to avoid dealing with stress.

8. True or False? I have noticed an increase in my use of stimulants (e.g., ca􀆯eine) or sedatives (e.g., alcohol, sleeping pills).

9. True or False? I find it more difficult to relax or unwind, even when I have time to myself.

10. True or False? I avoid tasks or responsibilities that I would normally handle confidently.

11. True or False? I’ve become more critical of myself and my performance, even for small mistakes.

12. True or False? I feel more overwhelmed by my responsibilities, causing me to become more disorganized or scattered than I used to be.

Interpretation of Results:

More than 4 "True" Responses: These behavior changes suggest that you are likely experiencing chronic stress. It's important to address these behaviors and develop strategies to cope with and reduce stress.

1–4 "True" Responses: Mild behavioral signs of stress are present. While not severe, you may benefit from some stress management techniques to prevent further impact.

0 "True" Responses: You are not showing significant behavioral signs of chronic stress at this time. However, regular stress management practices can help prevent potential future behavioral changes.