Every now and then, we experience burnout at home and work. Often, people mistake it to be fatigue, which it is not. With many people, the thought of the tasks you need to handle tires you even before you consider attending to them. Long glares on your laptop with no tasks done at all. So much is coming to you, but the brain is not processing any of it.
In most cases, the thought of doing the work is there, but there’s no physical and mental strength to do it at all. That is what we call burnout. A form of exhaustion caused by constantly feeling swamped is mainly a result of excessive and prolonged emotional, physical, and mental stress.
So many tasks require us to multitask; in the process, we deny ourselves rest. Burnout can have such negative impacts on our focus. In this case, people experiencing burnout portray symptoms of exhaustion, depletion, and emotional and mental distancing; some may even be tired of seeing their loved ones around, ineffectiveness and negativity.
If you are not careful, this may take you down very quickly.
Our lives have become loud, fast, and busy. Even when nothing is happening, something is always happening. We have made our lives so busy that we think the only way to make progress in our lives is by working tirelessly and doing everything at once. Yet sometimes, the only way to make significant progress is by practicing stillness.
Stillness is also a form of action. To stay sane in a world that is crazy as this, then we must be still and utilize the benefits of quiet moments because, in those moments, you are in control of what gets to you. This can help boost your productivity, reduce stress, and enable you to make better decisions. Take time out to meditate, observe and organize your thoughts.
Rest is an essential factor in one’s life. This automatically qualifies as the first antidote to burnout. Please take note of the things that tire you and disconnect from them for a minute to achieve maximum rest. Switch off your mobile or close yourself up in that room if you need to, if that means some time of uninterrupted rest. You may not have the entire time to do so but believe me, that will make a meaningful difference.
How often have we patted ourselves for what we have accomplished so far? Do we do that often? We all need to cultivate the habit of feeling good about our efforts, whether events lead to outcomes we expect or not.
Sometimes, you may realize you are chasing a job that doesn’t give you much fulfillment. It is tough to develop a sense of accomplishment at work if you are doing the wrong job or doing things that don’t satisfy you. You’d rather spend sleepless nights worrying about things that satisfy your heart than things that don’t.
Assess the causes of your burnout. It may be that you are working in a toxic environment. This may frustrate your efforts and, in turn, lead to unproductivity. To some people, they may even opt out of their jobs. If you find yourself in such situations, it might be best to find ways to help you manage these challenges without necessarily having to exit – Methods such as learning to handle emotional difficulty.
You may also want to learn how to safely emotionally distance yourself while you still remain productive. A long-term plan may be needed if worse comes to worst, which may mean you find a less toxic environment.
Remember those moments when you were peaceful and productive because you didn’t have your thoughts roaming around? These moments help you assess the situation, get a more objective view of your problems, and finally get you into the right space to take action on them. Think about it. When you are calm and collected, you have fresh and fabulous ideas or better solutions to your problems. You are always very sober when making decisions.
On the contrary, when not in these good moments, our heads are disorganized, ranting all over the place, probably angry at something or someone, or giving negative vibes to the people around us. Once we practice stillness, we will be able to deal with such things that could mainly be caused by burnout. Remember, stillness is still action.
