How To Overcome Burnout

Do you want to learn how to overcome burnout so that you can achieve success in your business and personal life?

Do you lack the energy to stay productive at work?

Do you lack fulfillment and satisfaction in life generally?

Has the way you sleep changed?

If your answer is yes to any of these questions, you may be experiencing burnout.

However, there are ways you can overcome burnout.

This is so that you can successfully achieve your goals both in business and life in it’s entirety.

What is Burnout?

Burnout can simply be said to be a state of exhaustion.

This could either be emotional, physical, or mental exhaustion.

It is usually accompanied by a loss of energy and motivation to do work due to excessive stress or workload.

Anyone who has to deal with excessive workload or pressure from business, professional, or personal life is prone to burnout.

Having said so, burnout is inevitable when you overwork yourself without taking proper care of yourself.

Furthermore, burnout is a phenomenon that should be given serious consideration.

This is because it reduces your energy and productivity.

More so, burnout could lead to negative feelings of frustration, resentment, job dissatisfaction, low self-efficacy, lack of fulfillment in life among other things.

These negative feelings affect every area of life including work, home, and social life.

Burnout also affects your overall performance as an individual.

Thereby, hindering you from achieving success in whatever you do.

Interestingly, there are ways you can deal with burnout to avoid its consequences.

Get to know how you can effectively overcome burnout as you read on.

What Causes Burnout?

Apart from excessive workload or pressures from life challenges, several other factors can cause burnout.

These other factors that contribute to burnout could be due to your work, lifestyle, and personality traits and they are;

Work-related causes of burnout include;

Lack of recognition or reward for a job well done.
Feeling like you have no control over your work.
Working in a high-pressure or chaotic environment.
Carrying out a task that is dull or unchallenging.
Excessively demanding job expectations.
Setting unrealistic goals

Lifestyle causes of burnout.

Lack of close or supportive relationships.
Taking on too many responsibilities without help from anyone.
Being a workaholic without having a social life or taking a break from work
Not getting sufficient sleep.
Lack of exercise.
Unhealthy lifestyle habits such as excessive drinking, smoking, drug abuse, etc.

Personality traits can also contribute to burnout.

A negative view of yourself and the world in general.
Always thinking nothing is ever good enough.
The constant need to be in control.
Feeling detached from your ability to have control over your life.
Perfectionism.

Overall, these are some of the many causes of burnout.

If burnout is not handled timely and properly, it could lead to serious mental and physical health issues.

Some of these health issues include high blood pressure, depression, anxiety, etc.

Hence the need to know how to overcome burnout.

Let’s find out how you can avoid burnout, improve your health and well-being, and live a more productive life.

Useful Tips On How To Overcome Burnout

These are our effective tips on how to overcome burnout as an entrepreneur, a regular individual, or a business owner.

In other words, these tips will teach you how to better manage stress either in your business, personal or professional life, and prevent burnout.

Recognize The Warning Signs Of Burnout

The first thing you would want to do when trying to overcome burnout is to, first identify the signs of burnout.

This is so that your efforts towards overcoming burnout can be very effective.

Just like treating any other medical condition, there are signs and symptoms you need to look out for to effectively treat the condition.

The same process applies when trying to prevent burnout and exhaustion.

Although burnout is not a medical condition however, there are certain signs or symptoms that you need to be on the lookout for.

This is so that you can recognize what your problem is and how to go about solving the problem.

Hence, here are some of the warning signs of burnout that indicate that you might be experiencing burn out.

These signs could either be physical, emotional, or behavioral signs.

Physical signs include;

Loss of energy, weakness, and tiredness
Loss of appetite
Inability to sleep
Constant headaches
Muscle/body pains
Low immunity to sicknesses or illness etc.

Emotional Signs And Symptoms include;

Depression
Lack of satisfaction or fulfillment with life generally
Low self-efficacy and self-esteem
A feeling of helplessness and hopelessness
Lack of motivation or ambition to pursue goals
Low sense of accomplishment
Self-doubt and sense of failure
Feeling of loneliness
Negativity about life generally etc.

Behavioral signs and symptoms

Self withdrawal and isolation
Avoiding duties and responsibilities
Procrastination
Food, drugs, and substance abuse
Transfer of aggression
A negative or rebellious attitude
Low performance and productivity levels etc.

These are some of the signs that show that you are struggling or may be close to experiencing burnout.

Hence, be on the lookout for these signs.

This is so you can recognize and prevent burnout in your business, professional, or personal life.

Exercise

Another thing that could help you manage stress and avoid burning out is exercise.

There are numerous benefits of exercising.

Apart from being a strategy for weight loss and physical fitness, it is also good for improving mental health.

Likewise, exercise is also a good stress relief antidote.

When you exercise, your body releases endorphins in the brain which helps to ease stress.

Hence, developing a daily exercise routine will not only help you stay physically fit, but it would also help you better manage stress.

Thereby, helping you take care of your health and overcome burnout.

Exercise might be the last option you want to consider when you feel tired and stressed out.

However, if you can commit yourself to do a 10-30 minutes simple exercise daily such as taking a walk, cycling, light jogging, etc, you’ll feel better and relaxed at the end of the day.

Adopt Healthy Eating Habits

Another effective way to get rid of burnout is by your eating habits.

The kind of foods you eat could certainly harm your productivity by ruining your mood and energy which could eventually lead to burnout and exhaustion.

Certain foods are well known to improve energy and boost one’s mood overall.

Likewise, certain foods are known for ruining people’s moods and messing up your energy levels throughout the day.

Hence, you can improve your mood, energy, and avoid burnout by watching what you eat and maintaining a healthy eating lifestyle.

Here are a few tips on how to maintain healthy eating habits for preventing burnout and improved productivity.

Minimize your intake of refined carbohydrates and sugar

With the production and availability of so many fast foods such as noodles, pasta, fries, soda, etc. many people fall prey to the consumption of refined carbs and sugar.

Most people due to the busy nature of their profession and life generally are always looking for a quick fix meal to eat.

Due to this, they form the habit of always eating foods high in refined carbs and sugar.

These kinds of foods could quickly raise your blood sugar level.

When your blood sugar level is high you tend to feel weak and out of strength which eventually leads to low-energy levels, burnout, and exhaustion.

Avoid smoking and excessive intake of alcohol

This is another unhealthy diet or lifestyle habit that’s could ruin your energy levels and your overall health.

Firstly, cigarettes contain a chemical substance called nicotine which is very harmful to your overall health.

For most people, smoking is one way of coping with stress and clearing their heads from the pressures of life generally.

Sadly, this only makes things worse for them as it leads to higher levels of anxiety, frustration, and eventually burn out.

Avoid high intake of foods such as caffeinated drinks, fatty foods, and foods with chemical preservatives

Avoid things like coffee, fried foods, oily foods, and canned foods.

This is because while you might enjoy taking them at the moment, these kinds of foods and drinks can have adverse effects on your mood generally.

Eat healthy foods such as foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids, fruits, and vegetables

Foods such as salmon, mackerel, sardines, banana, spinach, cucumbers, etc, are good for improving moods and boosting energy.

Overall, make it a habit to eat healthy daily.

This is so you can improve your health and stay physically and mentally fit to overcome burnout.

Practice Yoga And Meditation

Yoga and meditation is another effective way you can adopt to deal with burnout.

Excessive work stress and pressures of life can lead to serious physical and mental health issues.

These could lead to feelings of frustration, anxiety, exhaustion, and eventually burnout.

One way you can handle these pressures and avoid burn out is through yoga and meditation.

Yoga and meditation is a great way to quieten your mind, relax, and achieve inner peace.

It is also a great way to relieve yourself of all negative emotions and feelings that may have been triggered due to workplace stress or life’s burdens.

When you meditate or do yoga poses, you take your mind off your present environment and focus on more positive thoughts such as the beauty of nature or life itself.

More so, you’re able to take deep breaths in and out.

Thereby, putting you in a state of mental, emotional, and physical calmness.

Consequently, helping you let go of stress, relax better, and lighten up your mood.

Hence, make it a habit to do some yoga or meditation daily to better cope with stress and improve your overall health.

10-15 minutes of yoga and meditation is enough to get you out of the negative feelings and put you in a better mood.

Consequently helping you deal with stress and overcome burnout.

Adopt A Healthy Sleep Routine

Another thing that could lead to burnout and exhaustion is lack of sleep.

Most busy people work tirelessly without getting adequate sleep.

They are in the habit of working late into the night and waking up very early.

When this happens too often, it gets to a point where due to deprivation of adequate sleep, the body breaks down and you experience mental and physical exhaustion.

Hence, it is recommended that you sleep for at least 8 hours every night.

This is so that you can give the body adequate time to rest and regain lost energy.

Endeavor to get enough sleep each night so you can wake up feeling strong and mentally fit to handle another stressful workday.

To do this, ensure that you got to bed early the night before.

More so, engage in a few relaxing activities before sleeping such as reading a book, listening to music, meditation, etc before bed.

This would help to calm your nerves down and prepare your mind for a peaceful sleep.

Also, consider sleeping in very comfortable clothes.

This is so that you can sleep soundly, and wake up feeling refreshed the next day.

Consequently, helping you overcome burnout.

Create Good Social Relationships

You might be experiencing burnout because you’re detached from the rest of the world.

There’s no emotional and moral support or attention from friends, family, loved ones, or even colleagues.

Having a group of positive friends or good social relationships with people can help you better handle stress and avoid burnout.

Personal relationships are most helpful when you feel emotionally down or the pressures of work and life are caving in on you.

These positive people around you could cheer you up and give you the motivation you need to scale through difficult times.

Focusing on work alone could drag you further into frustration and eventually burn out.

Hence, it’s better to have a good social life and learn to establish positive relationships with the people around you.

This is because they could be the ones to support you and hold your hands in your darkest moments i.e they could give you the emotional support you need to get through tough times.

Hence, build more good social relationships either in your business, work, or personal life.

Thereby, helping you overcome burnout.

Always Keep Your To-do list Practical

One way to overcome burnout either in business work or personal life is to reduce stress.

An effective way to do this by keeping a minimal and practical to-do list.

If you overwork yourself with so many tasks, duties, and responsibilities, you’re bound to get exhausted.

If you’re the type that usually has a lot of tasks, duties, and responsibilities, consider creating a to-do list and keep it minimal and practical.

When creating a to-do list ask yourself, does everything on your to-do list have to be accomplished immediately?

If no, then identify those tasks that are urgent and important from those that do not need urgent attention.

Don’t include more on your list than you can actually achieve in a day.

For instance, if you have ten items on your daily to-do list, try to break them down and focus on just on the three or five most important ones.

This way you can focus your energy and time on urgent tasks rather than overworking yourself with so many duties.

It will also make your work more manageable and less overwhelming either in your business, work, or personal life.

Thereby, helping you overcome burnout.

Learn To Manage And Delegate

Another practical way you can overcome burnout is by reducing your workload.

When you struggle with excessive workload either in your business, work, or personal life burnout is inevitable.

Hence, stop doing everything yourself.

Learn to delegate tasks or outsource tasks that can be handled by other people.

For instance, as a business owner or a regular individual, you have a lot of duties and responsibilities to ensure your business succeeds.

You acknowledge that you can’t possibly do everything yourself and still have time to run the business which is why you hired a team of capable hands.

Trust your team and learn to delegate some tasks to them.

Even if you run a one-person business, there are certain things that you can outsource to freelancers and other professionals.

Hence, take excessive workload off your hands by delegating or outsourcing some tasks.

Access the task if it’s something you need to do yourself, or if you can delegate or outsource it to someone else.

Hence, this will help reduce your workload and save you from burning out due to excessive workload.

Consequently, helping you overcome burnout.

Create A Balance Between Work And Life

Another effective tip on how to overcome burnout is to balance work and personal life.

As you show concern and put in so much effort towards work or business, the same measure of efforts and concern should be given to your personal life as well.

As easy as this might sound in theory, it’s not always easy for most business owners or people with tight work schedules.

They tend to focus so much on work that they neglect their personal relationships, health, and overall wellbeing.

Due to this kind of lifestyle or habit, they fall into mental and physical exhaustion.

Thereby, leading to burnout.

To avoid this you need to create a balance between work and your personal life.

All you need to do is to make certain work and lifestyle adjustments that would help you balance work and life.

For instance, you could set rules and enforce strict boundaries between your work and personal time.

In other words, try as much as possible not to allow work to interfere with your personal life by not attending to work-related issues while at home.

Even more, you could find a hobby that you can engage in after work such as golfing, playing soccer, tennis, painting, or playing scrabble.

The aim of this is to do something fun and relaxing after work.

You could also take a few days or weeks off work to go on a vacation or visit a new place to relax and have fun.

Consequently, helping you relieve stress and overcome burnout.

Practice Journaling

Journaling is one of the effective ways to deal with stressors and overcome burnout.

Journaling involves writing down your thoughts in your journal.

This could be a book, diary, electronic writing pad, or whatever writing devices you chose to use.

At the end of every workday, you could write down your thoughts on how your day went by, what happened, what did you do, how did you handle challenges, etc.

By writing down your thoughts and emotions you could easily identify some of your stressors and how best to tackle them.

It could help you get rid of all negative feelings that might be occupying your mind.

Thereby, relieving you of mental and physical stress and helping you overcome burnout.