Are You Exhausted?
We all have bad days.
There are often times when I am tired and I don’t feel like doing something.
It’s when I start to feel exhausted and apathetic most of the time, that’s a clear sign that I need to take steps to reduce my risk of burnout.
The formal definition of burnout is
“a persistent state of mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion caused by an excessive and prolonged stress response.”
What this definition misses is that people experiencing burnout also feel powerless to make any changes.
They believe that the demands on their time and attention exceed their ability to manage and fulfill those demands.
They feel like they are trying to drink from a fire hose.
This can lead to feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, cynicism, and resentment.
A persistent state of burnout can take a toll on your productivity, your relationships, and your physical health, so it is important to notice the symptoms early.
If you pay attention and take steps to actively reduce your stress, you can better manage the risk of burnout.
What are the signs of burnout?
Recognizing the warning signs will enable you to take steps early to prevent it from becoming something more serious.
Some signs include increasing:
- Physical and mental exhaustion
- Illnesses, headaches, or muscle pain
- Changes in eating or sleep habits
- Feelings of apathy, isolation, helplessness, defeat
- Loss of motivation
- Negative outlook and dissatisfaction
- Impatience or a shorter fuse
- Procrastination
- Need to relax/distract self with food, alcohol, social media
- Absences and isolating self
Emotions are an excellent messaging system that can alert you to symptoms of burnout.
What were your top 3 feelings over the past 2 weeks?
What was your most pervasive emotion over that time period?
What was your level of powerlessness?
Pay attention to how you are feeling.
If you suspect burnout, or have any questions about your symptoms, please contact your health care provider for more information.
Prevention Tips
If you are feeling overwhelmed and stressed, treat yourself to a SSPA.
SSPA is an acronym that stands for space, simplicity, presence, and attitude of intention. These 4 principles of effective time management can help you feel more in control of your schedule and help prevent burnout.
Ask yourself:
- How can I create more space for myself to think and be creative?
- How can I simplify so that I can focus on what is important?
- How can I be more present in the moment?
- How can I cultivate an attitude of intention?
Set Yourself Up For Success
One of the best ways I know to create an environment that optimizes all of these SSPA principles is to set up personal productivity systems.
Join me at our next Time Management Fundamentals Workshop where you will learn how to design and implement the 3 most important personal productivity systems to get organized and help prevent burnout.
