Burnout is a bone-tired, soul-tired, heart-tired kind of exhaustion. Burnout is real, and even though I teach schools, businesses, and organizations all across the country how to overcome it, I can tell you that I, too, have been experiencing it lately.  For me, it looks like this. 

• The inability to shut work off
• An incessant need to keep checking my emails
• The feeling of obsessively thinking about “all that needs to get done.”
• Tiredness, Irritability, and Frustration with others around me

I recently asked the teachers and administrators in my Facebook Group what burnout out looks like to them. Here are a few of their responses.

• Knots in my stomach the closer I get to work, despite LOVING my job.
• Never having satisfaction with your job and never feeling like you are doing enough. 
• Letting down all of the teachers you are supposed to be leading, and you feel hopeless.
• Dreading going to work every day and counting the days until break.
• Never feeling like you’re meeting the expectations that you and others put on yourself.
• Being so overwhelmed with tasks and asks that I don’t even know where to start
• Lost desire, unable to focus on anything & no amount of time off or other activities. I find joy in alleviating the stress or rejuvenating my desire to return to work.
• Investing in my own business so I can leave the profession
• Overworked (worked daily my entire sick leave), underpaid (completely revamped teaching during covid/no overtime, no bonuses), and not thought of as real people.

You are allowed to have heavy emotions. It’s been a tough year in a profession that was already tough, to begin with. Sometimes, we just have to give ourselves the grace to feel the way we do and practice some self-compassion with ourselves. 

Even though I sometimes enter the burnout stage, I recognize the signs of when it’s coming on, and I have a set of habits that get me out of the gutter quicker. You are not alone in the struggle. I am there too. 

What if you explored what life after burnout could look like?  Spend some time imagining what that would feel like. 

• Would it feel like making yourself a priority in your schedule?
• Would it feel like waking up each day with emotional resilience to handle the things you need to handle?
• Would it feel like relief rather than dread?

Imagine you were someone who wasn’t burnt out. What would your habits be? What would your life be like? Are there pieces that you can adopt now? Spend time talking to people who have bounced back from burnout and find out what helped them get through.

Listen, I get it. 

When you’re distracted and overworked in your job, your well-being can sloooowly fall further down your priority list. And learning how to overcome the overwhelm feels impossible, almost like an unattainable goal, never-gonna-happen kinda dream.

Unfortunately, this always leads to burnout. But you can come out of it and step into recovery. It takes time and the willingness to work on yourself. And here’s the deal, we may never change the education system, but we have the power to change ourselves and what we allow it to take from us. 

You don’t have to feel stuck forever. You aren’t alone, and you don’t have to do this alone. Look to others, look within, and create a plan that includes your well-being at the top of the list.  These are challenging times, and we have to reflect, change, and make a move in the direction that somehow brings us relief. 

I know a thing or two about burnout and sacrificing yourself for everyone else’s needs, all the while feeling like you’re walking around on fire and no one even knows. I can help you stop the people-pleasing perfectionism that is driving your life.  Get on the waitlist for our Happy Academy, 10 month program that begins in August.