Burnout: How I overcame it (so you can too)

We all want to make a positive difference in the lives of others. Doing so should bring meaning and fulfillment into our lives, as well as motivate and inspire us to do more. This is what we expect when we make purposeful work the focus of our career. Unfortunately, many of us in the social good and development sector experience the opposite instead — burnout. In my first post, I talked about my personal experience with burnout and identified some of the warning signs that can surface. Recognizing the red flags is just the first part of the equation, albeit a critical part which, admittedly, took me several years and a hospital visit or two to figure out. My hope is for you to learn from my experience and have your wake-up call and recovery more quickly. READ: Burnout: What I experienced (so you don't have to) If you’ve identified that you’re on the fast track to burnout, the sooner you course correct, the better. Here are the three steps I took to pull back from burnout, which I’ve since been sharing with those I now coach through the process of recovery. 1. Listen to your body, not your mind If you spot the warning signs of burnout, the first step is to listen. By manifesting these red flags, your body is telling you that something needs to change urgently. Experiencing warning signs is very different from listening; I experienced them for years before actually listening to what my body was telling me. More specifically: Listen to your body, not your mind, which will likely: Rationalize Tell you it’s not that bad or that it’s normal and demand that you quit complaining because you’re much better off than those facing real hardship. Make excuses Come up with a long list of reasons why you can’t change your circumstances, usually leading you to play the victim (I’m stuck and have no choice) or the martyr (sacrificing myself for others so it’s worth it). Invoke guilt Make you feel guilty for saying no to developing that game changing proposal, leading that critical program, or hitting that big “lives saved” target. Scare you Convince you that it would be wildly irresponsible to put your career, success, income, achievements and reputation at stake — and that without these you can’t make a difference. There are counterarguments for all of these thought patterns, but it’s hard to see the truth when we are burnt out. Our minds are biologically wired to favor the status quo and fear change, so they’ll keep coming up with excuses for us to keep doing what we’re doing, how we’re doing it. Sadly, they’ll do so even if we’re hurting ourselves in the process. It’s this kind of thinking that had me working on budget spreadsheets while laying in a hospital bed. It’s also this kind of thinking that drove a good friend of mine to go on a work trip into the Amazon when she was so sick she could barely walk. Our bodies never lie, so when in doubt, tune down your mind and listen to your body. 2. Make a choice and choose change Spotting the warning signs and listening to your body are important, but they won’t get you far if you’re not fully committed to pulling back from burnout. The second step is to acknowledge that you’re in control of your life, accept responsibility for your decisions and choose to prioritize yourself and your recovery. This is an important mindset shift if you want to change how you’re doing things so you can do them more sustainably. To help you move forward with this step, set aside dedicated time for self-reflection. Spend time revisiting your values, priorities, and why you’re doing what you’re doing in the first place. Are you living in alignment with these? I realized that I wasn’t. I also realized that a healthier, happier, and more motivated version of me would be more productive, creative, and better placed to succeed. So, after skirting this decision for several years, I came to a point where I made up my mind and finally chose change. 3. Take small, sweet action steps Once a decision is made, it’s all about taking action to change your course. This will look different for everyone so start by reflecting on the areas of your life you’ve been neglecting and need to devote more attention to. I have a Life Balance Assessment tool I used to get clear on this and you can get access it here if you’re interested. I took several actions, some of which included: ● Taking a break from my career and creating space to recover, reassess and re-engage ● Learning to be more productive and work smarter so I can save time and energy ● Assessing the damage I caused to myself and others, and taking steps to heal both ● Shedding “baggage” and clearing clutter weighing me down, including trauma ● Connecting with new communities and networks of like-minded, supportive people ● Investing time learning how to manage overwhelm and build stress resilience ● Taking a multi-pronged approach to boosting my chronically low energy ● Forming new habits to cultivate happiness, creativity, fulfillment and success ● Investing in personal and professional development and learning new leadership skills I tackled each of these gradually, and many of them are works in progress. I also sought a significant amount of external support to help me figure out what I needed as well as to keep me on track. This included family, friends, colleagues, mentors, coaches and a variety of other health professionals and teachers. To avoid getting stuck, the key piece of advice I share with those I coach is to take small, sweet steps a day at a time with kindness towards yourself. And, importantly, to learn to become as good at receiving support as you are at giving support. Do you have any tips for recovering from burnout? If you haven’t experienced it, what do you do to prevent burnout? Please share in the comments below! Whether you’re a seasoned expert or budding development professional — check out more news, analysis and advice online to guide your career and professional development, and subscribe to Doing Good to receive top international development career and recruitment news every week.