Greetings,
I know it’s been a minute since I’ve written a CEO Chatter blog but as I mentioned in my last Fancy’s Thoughts blog, I have been dealing with a lot. I think I was experiencing burnout. It had been a worry of mine for some time but I kept telling myself it would not come to that. I had experienced depression before and normally, I could still work through it. In this situation, I could not. That is one of the reasons why I know it was burnout on top of depression. The line is thin between the two, but with burnout one tends to focus more on work-related issues. I was worried about both personal and business/work-related stuff, which was causing me to wake up in the middle of the night and morning with panic attacks. So today I wanted to discuss the signs of burnout and ways to combat it.
What is burnout?
The National Library of Medicine describes burnout as “a form of exhaustion caused by constantly feeling swamped. It’s a result of excessive and prolonged emotional, physical, and mental stress. In many cases, burnout is related to one’s job. Burnout happens when you’re overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to keep up with life’s incessant demands.”
8 Signs of Burnout
- Exhaustion and overwhelm
You are tired all the time and lack the energy to do your work. Things you once loved doing, you now dread.
- Frustration and skepticism
You began to lose hope not just in yourself but in your situation and the others you work with. You doubt anything will ever change.
- Inability to think clearly
You become forgetful and struggle with making decisions.
- Work performance is horrible
Your work performance drops. You may not be meeting deadlines or the expectations of others.
- Irritability
Everyone gets on your nerves. Your patience and temperament are short.
- Distancing yourself from others
You begin to pull away from others, including friends and loved ones.
- Lack of sleep
You may experience difficulty sleeping or falling asleep.
- Health issues
You may also begin to experience health problems. They can come in all kinds of forms.
I experienced over half of these symptoms. Does any of this sound familiar? If so, here are some ways to avoid burnout.
5 Ways to Avoid Burnout
- Quit overworking yourself.
We have got to get out of this hustle mindset. We can’t be everything to everyone all of the time. Quit the 24-hour shifts, set office hours, and abide by them. When you are not supposed to be working, don’t work and get comfortable with that decision. Remember over time burnout can and will affect your health.
- Avoid getting overwhelmed.
If you are constantly feeling swamped, it is time to ask for help or seek assistance. If you have a team or partners, delegate. Though you may feel alone, you do have support or at least you have options. Utilize them.
- Take frequent breaks.
Now I am not suggesting that you procrastinate, but take short breaks throughout your work day to ensure you are operating on your highest level.
- Identify your priorities.
Prioritize! We talked about delegation earlier but there are some things that we as CEOs have to handle ourselves. In those instances, be sure you are focused on the tasks that really matter; often times these are the money-making tasks.
- Reward yourself.
In the same way you set goals for your business or brand, also set goals for yourself, and when you hit those goals take time to treat yourself. It does not have to be something extravagant each time, but it should help entice you to see things through.
