You’re overwhelmed, tired, cranky, want to be left alone and you just don’t care. Sound familiar? Those shitty feelings are attributed to burnout, and it sucks. All the dogs, shoes, or wine in the world – won’t make it go away. I mean, it will help…wine always helps.
Before we give you sage advice on beating burnout, you should know it is completely normal. In fact, it is your body and brain telling you to take a break. Some days or weeks are just going to be more productive than others. Other weeks, you want to hermit and be left alone…cut yourself some slack.
Below are a few things, we as a team do to beat the burnout.
Take 5 Minutes
When the panic and anxiety is starting to seep in, step away from your desk, set your phone aside and head outside. Fresh air does a body good; close your eyes, take several deep breaths and clear your mind (we may have learned this from our resident yogi). Then, time permitting, walk around your building, continuing to breath in and out, in and out. When you get back to your desk, you’ll be ready to crush it.
Gratitude Break
Burnout’s best friend is negativity. Stress leads to hating everything and everyone. What does negativity hate? You got it, positivity. Grab a piece of paper and write down 3 things you are grateful for, this can be work-related or personal. Forced gratitude is a great way to chase the Debbie Downer thoughts away. If you really want to knock gratitude out of the park, tell a co-worker why you appreciate them. Also, bosses like to hear that too (we really do).
Eat All The Food
Food makes everything better. EVERYTHING. If you work during the day, you probably have time blocked out for lunch. If you’re a salaried employee, you’re probably also familiar with work cultures that make lunch breaks seem unnecessary. Why waste an hour when you can use it to get through projects? Because it helps your brain, and it lets you recharge. If you can, get up from your desk and take your lunchbreak somewhere else, whether it’s the office lounge or a restaurant. That change of scenery can really help your mind relax. It’s not work time. It’s resetting time.
Ask for Help
Use your words; ask for help. No one else knows your limits, but you. If you are overwhelmed, talk to your team, see if they can assist or if the deadline can be extended. Don’t be a martyr, the burnout isn’t worth it. At the end of the day, you’re one person, so you need to advocate for moments when you’re in over your head. When you take a second to recharge, you work better, faster, and more efficiently than when you’re forcing yourself to keep going.
If you’re stressed about your company’s marketing goals, do yourself a favor. Reach out to us. We’ll help you shoulder the burden, and we’ll even buy you a drink.
