CLASSIC: Battling Mental Burnout

It’s been months since I’ve written, and weeks of internal debate with myself to figure out how I wanted to write this post.

I always try to bring value and optimism to the table in some way. I’d tried to write this once before with the chipper, “Hey, I’ve been going through some things, but all is well now!” slant.

In the end, I scribbled this out on two sheets of white, legal paper.

It felt more real that way.

Being real is saying that I’ve felt guilty every day for not putting pen to paper, or fingers to keys to write something inspiring, engaging and thoughtful. Maybe it’s that typical Gen Y feeling of thinking we have to be super productive all of the time. Running, running, running so fast that we forget where we were headed in the first place.

For a good chunk of this year, that has been me. Running fast, trying to cram it all it, and feeling guilty when I can’t.

But at some point, I was too tired, and too burned out to really care.

I hit my wall a few months ago.

I was overwhelmed with projects, the effect of what happens when you say “yes” to too many things, trying to be everywhere at once while pushing myself to figure out how to stay relevant in a world that moves so, so fast these days.

And part of it is just the entrepreneurial grind. There is this quote that says something like “ If you want the life not many people live, you have to be willing to do what many people don’t do.”

But I got to a point where I wanted none of it. I wanted everything to just slow down, stop, pause.

I wanted to breathe.

I wanted to take a moment to figure out how to move forward on a path that has no rules, and that I’ve just gotten brave enough to claim as my own.

To write a cheerfully, and try to bathe all of that darkness in an artificial bright light would be dishonest. To dive right back in without acknowledging the brick wall that has stopped me from creating, thinking, and questioning would be fake.

Ultimately, I don’t roll that way.

It took me a moment to figure out what was happening. That all of the sea-sawing in my life was taking a toll. I never really realized it before, but  I crave structure in some capacity, and that hasn’t been something that I’ve had for awhile. There have been some days that I have felt so overwhelmed that I’ve just frozen.

So, where am I now?

On the upside of the battle to get back to a place where I feel energetic, happy, and purposeful. It hasn’t been easy. But I noticed that the fog started to clear when I made a promise to myself to live by these five rules:

• Keep your purpose front and center at all times so you don’t lose focus.
• Say “No” to the things that don’t serve the purpose and the vision you have for your life.
• Strive to listen more, talk less, and learn as much as possible.
• Ask for help when needed.
• And always ask for what you want.

It’s good to be back 🙂

Have you ever felt overwhelmed, and overextended? How did you get through it? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.