I'm experiencing burnout. What are some strategies which worked for you to combat it?
I'm experiencing burnout. Looking at this list of symptoms was like looking in a mirror. I won't go into it in too much detail... Suffice it to say that I feel disappointed, disillusioned, angry, cynical, constantly taken advantage of, and just depressed by the prospect of a life that will be spent toiling in various meaningless paper-pushing jobs under the thumb of despots who don't care about their workforce or anything other than how busy you look.
Things I am doing (or rather, trying to do) to combat burnout:
- Jobhunting: Tricky in a pandemic. Have gotten to the final round of interviews in a few cases and then got told I didn't have the right experience... frustrating, but it is what it is. I find it very draining, but I am still actively looking.
- Trying not to work overtime: I end up logging out on time but checking my email late into the night. My (dysfunctional, hypercritical, micromanagerial) boss and grandboss send me emails late into the night. I know that if I didn't read them till morning, the upshot would be no different, but I find it extremely difficult to resist checking. I don't take time off - I haven't had a break from work for months now because I am so anxious about everything falling apart in my absence. The few days here and there I have taken as vacation, I have spent regularly checking my emails. There's always something terrible lurking in my inbox.
- Trying not to take things personally: This is where I fail the hardest. On the one hand, I know I am doing a good job. I mean, I've been working here for years, I am intelligent and conscientious, I know how to do my job. On the other hand, I work with very nitpicky, negative people. I struggle badly with feeling useless and inadequate and desperately need validation from bosses to feel okay about the quality of my work. It makes a huge difference to my mood if my boss tells me I've done a good job. But this doesn't come often and I feel it's problematic that an external variable has such an impact on me.
- Trying to take care of myself: This is challenging given that I live alone and work from home, and that the pandemic in the UK is at such a stage that socialising is difficult to do. I am in close touch with friends and family. I'm looking into getting a cat, if possible. I get much, much less exercise than before simply because I'm at home all the time - I feel very bad about the changes in my body. But I am doing 3 zoom exercise classes a week and I know I am getting stronger because I can do things I couldn't before. I am trying to remember to eat, even if it's just a Huel shake at mealtimes. (Those things are life-savers, by the way.) I am trying to get a minimum of 6 hours sleep a night.
What else can I do to help myself? What worked for you? |
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