When was the last time you reconnected with your family and loved ones? Have you been in “work-mode” more than “play mode” for far too long? Are you exhausted, run down, and feel like there is no end in sight? Maybe you are burnt-out. There are lots of symptoms of burnout. Burnout affects up both physically and mentally/emotionally. There are some really common symptoms of burnout – these are things like:
Chronic Fatigue – Increased Illness – Anxiety – Depression – Insomnia – Brain Fog and Forgetfulness
No one wants to be dealing with these symptoms, and let’s be real. It is much easier to be proactive and get ahead of burnout than to come back from it. Here are 5 ways to prevent burnout and keep living your best life!
- Pace yourself. Make sure that you aren’t unrealistically chasing the completion of the project after project without checking in on yourself. Sometimes life requires us to sprint for a bit, especially in some season of life. But remember you can’t sprint forever.
- Take breaks as you need. That means everything from vacation time, to 5 min stretches during the workday. Your body and mind need a bit of recharge for time to time- You can’t serve from an empty vessel.
- Ask for help. When you feel like you are taking on too much for too long, send out a call for help! Get some quality time in with your loved ones, reconnect, and feed your soul.
- Get a spotter. Talk to the people in your life and ask them to be on the lookout for signs of burnout and to talk to you about it when they do. It’s okay to have help.
- Say “No”. Be intentional about the things you take on, and when you are reaching capacity give yourself permission to say “No”. There is a lot of power in “No”.
If you are like my clients, you are doing so much for so many people. You are just trying to keep it all together. For long term happiness and success think about these five small things can be the difference between the path to burnout and the path to longevity.
