A post about burnout should NOT be very long. Check. And should definitely be written last minute without much forethought. Check. Should end on a hopeful note. Check check.
I’m burned out. My book launch was last week. The paperback release is still on HOLD. And I’m on day 5 of feeling like doing not much. Day 5 of avoiding even looking at my ideas and ideals so as not to open myself up to the feeling I should be doing some thing.
The paperback release is on HOLD. You can pre-order the print edition of Write Without the Fight – Master Your Creative Process to Write with More Ease and Satisfaction here. I intend to be ready to release print books on June 1st. (And hopefully, Ingram Spark will cooperate this time.)
What can cure burnout? Only rest, followed by small overlooked tasks that don’t really need doing. I deleted almost 2000 emails one day this week. And a return to people you’ve neglected talking to, things you’ve been meaning to do – like put away those new socks, or using those wilted vegetables in a childhood casserole recipe.
Burnout is fixed by self-care. A bath. A fire. Mindfulness. Breathing and exercise. Good meals. Eventually, you can put the harness back on and work again, but it will be in better balance with your life, hopefully.
Was this good enough? I don’t feel like working any more today.
I hope you’re well. And if you’re headed into burnout – going 100 miles an hour all day every day – be kind to yourself about how much MUST get done each day, and how you might slow it all down, do less, relax more, feed yourself and move your body.
I’m building back up to healthier energy. But the first step to recognizing burnout and begin to turn it around is call it what it is, and succumb to it. Ahh… burnout… I give up. Gardening beckons, but it may just be a TV and nothing kind of day.