Four Unspoken Truths About Burnout and How to Navigate Repair from It
Aug 29, 2022
Let's get real about burnout. These are some truths that many of us either are unaware of or we avoid confronting them:
1. We tend to overestimate our capacity
Which means we underestimate our actual degree of burnout. The more we normalize burnout, and deny our sensing and body signals, the more we drive ourselves into deeper levels more rapidly.
2. Our instinct is to "do" something
Navigating recovery from burnout can be a tricky line. There is a difference between designing for retreat & recovery versus redesigning the patterns of your life to get healthier. When you're at the point where you can barely find the energy to talk about how tired you are, you need to do less and retreat inward—not take on more to-do's to your already full list.
3. Confronting burnout means confronting our beliefs about the rest we all need
We have been socialized in work and life to be skeptical of our needs to rest. These limiting beliefs send us into continuous crash & burn cycles. Deeper down, avoiding our need for rest is avoiding our power (our ability to move energy through systems). Notice if you run any of the following beliefs:
- Rest is for the weak, lazy, or selfish
- Rest is something I do alone
- When I’m resting, I’m falling behind
- Rest is not something we have time for while in crisis
- If you’re not working, you’re parenting
- I’ll rest when the work is done (but the work is never done)
- Work is never-ending. If you come to the end of your to-dos, then you aren’t taking on enough
4. Being burned out is not all on you
Yes. Your wellbeing is your responsibility. However, when you operate in a system that reinforces patterns not conducive to your own aliveness, no amount of 15m breaks or PTO days is going to change the fact you work in a system designed for your fatigue.
If you are burned out, we invite you to resist the temptation to push through how you're feeling and reclaim your vitality today.
- If you feel motivated to see how you're getting in your own way — and how to pivot, take your Power Assessment today.
- If you're ready to get out of the eddies you know have been holding you back asap, join the latest cohort of Regenerative Power Embodiment Accelerator.
- If you're curious to learn about my new initiative helping teams learn power literacy together, message me here and I'm happy to share more.
