Defending against Burnout

Burnout (Burn-out): a special type of work-related stress — a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that also involves a sense of reduced accomplishment and loss of personal identity.

Burnout is a common problem for most people, especially those who do the same work or activity day in and day out. As a media specialist, I regularly experience this feeling. Some days, I love my work, feel creative, and successful. Other days, I dislike everything I produce, feel inadequate, and discouraged. These are feelings that come regularly, but after providing professional media services for the last few years, I have found some ways to push through stages where I feel burnt out. You may find the tools and solutions I use helpful during your future.

For myself, whenever I set my mind on a goal, I dedicate everything I have to achieve it. This means putting all my effort and energy into the process. While staying extremely focused is often helpful, I have found that it can lead to feeling burnt out, unmotivated and stuck. Therefore, I would like to highlight a few warning signs of burnout, such as cynicism, a reduced sense of accomplishment, and exhaustion. Being in tune with these warning signs is key to preemptively defending against burnout.

When I begin to see these warning signs in my day-to-day life, I try to enact my strategies to mitigate burnout. A few of these include seeking guidance from mentors and counselors, practicing self-care, and most importantly, setting boundaries. Setting boundaries was a part of my “2 Degree Shift” that I discussed in my previous blog, and it has helped me immensely.

As a creative individual, I tend to experience burnout much more often than I would like. Sometimes, I am unaware of it until it is too late. However, after enacting a few of these simple strategies, I have been able to reduce the amount of times I feel burnt out, which has undoubtedly increased my performance, happiness, and most importantly, my peace.

To prevent burnout, it is essential to pay attention to the warning signs and take action before it becomes overwhelming. What strategies do you plan to implement in your life to combat burnout? What advice would you give to someone experiencing burnout in their personal or professional life?

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The 2 degree shift

You may be wondering, what is The 2 Degree Shift? The 2 Degree Shift is a concept regarding the direction of your life. The beauty of the concept of The 2 Degree Shift is that it can be used by everyone to achieve their goals and realize their vision.

The saying "2 Degree Shift" was coined by author Bob Goff. The concept is described as making minor changes in your life now to cause greater change further down the road. Rather than completely remapping your life, consider making simple changes such as going to the gym, making intentional choices to be kind to others, or even reading 10 pages of a book a day. For the most part, changes like these often take discipline but after some time they can become a part of your everyday life. These are just examples, figuring out which changes will help guide you in the right direction is all up to you!

If a pilot flying out of San Diego Airport decided to change his heading by two degrees to the North while heading East or two degrees to the South while heading east, he would quite literally end up in two completely different states by the time his plane reached the East coast. The question I have for you is, what 2-degree shift are you going to make in your life now to affect your life’s state in the future?

I came upon this concept during my recent trip to San Diego, CA. Bob has workshops he does at a facility nearby called The Oaks. During my time at The Oaks, I decided to leverage this new concept I was taught and began to decide what minor changes I plan to make in my day-to-day life for my 2-degree shift. This will undoubtedly be of great benefit to me years down the road. I can’t wait to see what your 2 Degree Shift does for you.