It takes real drive to turn our biggest dreams into reality, but sometimes the relentless passion that fuels our inevitable push for success becomes counterproductive. When personal expectations finally exceed what we can reasonably achieve on our own, we burn out. Unfortunately, burnout leads to wasted time, energy, and even poor health. The key to avoiding it lies in recognizing our limitations — physically and mentally — and achieving a healthy balance between work and play.
The bottom line: For most people, getting to the top takes an incredibly long time. Trying to hasten that process only serves to jeopardize the journey.
Photo Credit: Alexander Granholm
I have been here. I lost a job because I was trying to be too much to everyone, and worried about things that went on in my absence. I’ve since read a lot of Dale Carnegie on how to take care of oneself and not worry about things out of my control.
I had preexisting health issues as it was, and the burden that the job placed on me made it much worse. I’m much happier today!
Good for you, Jared!
I know it’s tough for a lot of folks to say “no” for fear of disappointing their boss — but if we want to be successful in the long term, it’s something we all have to learn how to do!
A good balance is key. I’ve passed up job opportunities that were higher paying because I knew that work would be my life, and the loss of enjoyment in life wouldn’t be worth the extra bucks. I think each person has their line in the sand as far as this goes.
And if you do burn out – close your windows!
Word. lol
I’ll make sure to forward this to @tfpHumorBlog. He was drawing a blank last night for writing topics and so was I. Luckily, Amy wrote a great piece on where we have too much debt! Gotta love friends and or guest posters hehe.
Len, is blogging burning you out? I hope not! Sometimes I have busy weeks but things get back to normal soon enough.
No, no. I’m not burning out by any stretch, Lance. 🙂
Thanks for the pep talk though!
As a teacher, there are days I feel as though I am burning out. My answer is being proactive and changing the environment that may be burning me out. It is up to me!
That was 101 words. I want the 0.29 seconds back I spent reading that extra word.
Sorry about that, Chief. I fixed it for ya. 🙂
I’ve burned out before and it did have negative health effects for me. I think a good rule of thumb is that you can’t work 90 hour weeks indefinitely. Eventiually, it will catch up with you. Figure out what a reasonable work limit is in terms of hosts and stick to it.