How to Work Through Burnout — Royal Rose University
Let’s be real, burnout is a bitch. And it seems like everyone is on the verge of burnout any time you look on social media. Someone is taking a business break or just coming back from one.
Running a business in a global pandemic (it’s not over by the way) is a recipe for burnout. There’s so much going on and so much has changed during these last two years, so it’s easy to get overwhelmed.
But how do you avoid burnout when you never have any free time or what do you do when burnout is already here and doesn’t seem like you will get out of this hole?
As a busy entrepreneur that has dealt with burnout, I’m here to give you a few tips that have helped me navigate burnout.
Determine the root of the burnout
Why are you feeling burnt out? Is it because you’re doing too many things at once? Is it because you’re pouring into something that isn’t giving you anything in return. Get to what is making you feel drained.
Now, I know you’re thinking “I don’t know what the problem is, I just know there is a problem!” That means you really need to sit down with yourself and figure out what is going on with you. You have to do some self-reflection and tell what’s going on with you.
When you figure out the problem, you figure out what you need to do to fix the problem.
But you also don’t want to wait until you are at wit’s end to do something. What you need to do is learn the signs of when you’re getting to burn out. I notice that burn out happens for me when I find it harder to focus on work, I’m not as passionate about my work, and I don’t care if the work gets done or not.
When I start to get these feelings, I stop what I’m doing and figure out what I’m doing that’s gotten me to this point. We all know burnout doesn’t happen overnight, it happens overtime, so these signs are important to know and to pay attention to.
Find some time to breathe
You need to take some time to yourself. I tell my clients that they need to dedicate at least one hour a week, especially if you have a family. Sometimes it can be impossible to find that time to just not do anything and not worry about anything, but you need to find that time for your own mental health.
A lot of people think because they aren’t working, they’re relaxing and that’s not true. Truly relaxing and having time to yourself means that your mind is at rest. It’ll be even better for you if your body is at rest too. Sometimes we go out and have fun and think that it is helping us because we’re distracted, but your mind can still be going 80 miles an hour while you’re out having fun
I want you to sit, relax, and enjoy your solitude because that will help you refresh and revamp and get back to what you do best.
So what do with my “breathe-time”? I pray, I meditate, I lay in bed and just listen to music and dance. I do things that I know will calm me down and also allow me to relax my mind.
I tell my clients to always have a tool-box of relaxation methods because entrepreneurship is hard, life is hard, and you need to know how to calm down in a healthy way. Your homework is to think of things that make you feel good. Make a list of 2–3 things that you know you can do that will make you feel amazing and get your mind back on track.
Do the work
Once you have figured out what is causing the burn out, do what you need to do to make sure you don’t get to that point anymore because it’s not a healthy place to be. Set boundaries and have systems in place so that your burn outs are very few and in-between.
You know the signs of when things are starting to get bad for you and you have figured out why things are starting to get bad for you, so now it’s time for you to do what you need to do to get back on track.
If the reason for your burnout is that you’re not creating enough time for yourself, you need to get better with time management and create a realistic schedule for you to follow.
If you are burnt out because you’re comparing yourself to other people and feel like you’re behind, I want you to unfollow or remove these people from your life. You may think it’s serving as inspiration, but it is actually hurting you more than you realize.
Whatever the reason is, it’s important to remove anything or person that is making you feel bad about yourself or your business. There are people that are ahead of you in life that can serve as an inspiration and there are also other people that can make you feel bad. Make sure you know the difference between the two.
Hey, I’m Avery and I’m a content coach and strategist for small business owners. If you’re interested in my work, check out my website here: www.royalroseuniversity.com
Originally published at https://www.royalroseuniversity.com on October 5, 2022.
