Since I already gave you a nice long intro on part 1 of Defy Burnout I will just jump right in! I will say that if you didn’t read part 1 you should probably do that…because it’s the right thing to do.
Now that you’re not working 7 days a week and you have a schedule where you focus on each task and don’t jump around from one thing to the next (wink wink) Let’s talk about some other ways to help you fight burnout. Before we start I want you to know that the next few thoughts are hard, at least they are for me, and they are things that I work on ALL THE TIME. I am not writing any of this from a place of perfection, I would never be able to write this blog if I waited until I had perfected everything before I told you!
Take Care of Yourself - This is the main (and sort of the only) point in this post. Now, this will look different for many of you but I think there are a few things that can certainly help and I will list them as bullet points then I will chat about what they mean to me:
Get regular exercise of some sort
Try to get some sleep!
Find a way to rejuvenate
Have someone you can talk to
Create ways to WIN!
Look at those victories
Exercise - I know a lot of you feel like me, you hate the gym (I really hate the gym), but I don’t go because I love it and I don’t expect it to grow on me. I also don’t post about going to the gym anywhere, because I don’t care if you see me go and I don’t really want anyone watching me! The point is not about if you love it, it’s about taking care of yourself so you can have the stamina and health to keep doing what you love. It doesn’t have to be the gym either, go for a run, a walk, walk up and down the stairs at your house. Something to get your blood pumping!
Sleep - Here’s something about me, I actually don’t like sleeping. It’s not something I look forward to. I’ve spent many years trying to figure out a way around it, but alas it is much like exercise, your body needs it to function. Here’s where I am right now; I stopped working late, I used to work until 1 or 2 am regularly, now I try to go to bed around 10 and get up around 5. I am MUCH more productive, and I feel a lot better.
If you’re wondering what my routine is…it looks roughly like this:
4:30 or 5 am - Get up
5:30-6:30 am - Gym
6:45- 7:00 am - Quiet Time
7:00 am - 6:00 pm - Work
I also don’t go to the gym every day and I let myself sleep until around 6 on those days! It’s been really great so far, I mean I still hate the Gym, but I have definitely seen a jump in productivity.
Rejuvenation - If there is any place where I am lackluster it’s in rejuvenation. I do not allow much time for this, even though it’s critical. I was reminded of this yesterday as I was driving out to a location to scout for an upcoming shoot and I had to stop to pee (it was a rural location). I got out of the car and walked into the woods, there was a creek there I hadn’t seen, and all I could hear was the silence of the woods and creek. I just stood there. I took some deep breaths. It was great. In our world silence is taboo, if you are quiet you aren’t consuming, so it’s frowned upon. I am challenging myself to take more time to rejuvenate, to take a breath, and find some quiet in our crazy world. I am challenging you to do the same.
Talk - If there is a culprit to losing sleep it’s my wife. We love to talk. We still stay up super late and chat about everything and anything, it’s always worth losing sleep over to me. I have other friends and I go to coffee regularly with people who challenge me and can just sit and talk, but she’s the one I go to with everything…especially the hard things. When I first started my freelance career we had to have many talks about when and if we needed to sell the house, these are hard conversations, but they are better had than held inside. None of us should try to handle heavy things alone, we need outside wisdom and guidance. Don’t get so caught up in your work that you don’t have time to let people that you love speak into your life.
WIN - If you’re anything like me, which hopefully you aren’t, then you really struggle to actually see when things go well. I think the statistic is something like for every negative thing said to you you’ll need 10 positive to counteract it. Now think about the amount of negative stuff we see on social media, a lot of it about our work or something we’ve done. You may not be shooting for Nike yet, but certainly you’ve accomplished something! CELEBRATE! Go get that coffee drink you love but don’t get because it’s expensive, hit up Red Lobster and get them cheesy biscuits, DO SOMETHING! When I finish a job, or hit a goal of some kind, we go out as a fam and have fun. My goal is not to work my life away, it’s to work so I can have a life!
Look - This might seem like the same thing as celebrating a Win, but it isn’t. I often need to look at the list of people I’ve worked with, the images I’ve created, the places we’ve traveled because of photography and I just need to let it sink it. I’m here, I’m in it, I’m doing what I love with the people I love, for companies that I have always wanted to work with. Sometimes there won’t be as many victories, but it’s still important to look at them and acknowledge how hard it is to do this.
That’s my bullet point break down, but I want to conclude with what I think is one of the most important ideas in Defying Burnout and that Defining Success. We are all chasing a white horse by the name of success, we’re constantly bombarded with new ways to be successful. What does that mean? More specifically, what does it mean to you? Before you go working 100 hrs a week trying to become successful do you even know what you’re working towards? Here’s my definition in a nutshell:
Success is being able to be with my family, not lose my house, pay my bills and have fun experiences with the people I love. It’s also having a career that I think is incredibly fun (I even struggle with feeling guilty about how much fun I have) and working with brands that I believe in to help people enjoy life and achieve their goals.
One think I’ve never had as a part of my definition is money. I don’t think of numbers as the success. I think there are a lot of people with a lot of numbers next to their name who would agree with me. I like money, or rather I like spending money, but being able to do that isn’t success…it’s just fun! Whatever your definition is, just make sure you have one. There’s no worse feeling than getting to the end of your journey only to find you weren’t really going anywhere. At least, that’s what I’ve heard, and I believe it.
That’s it. I truly hope this helps you Defy Burnout. I want to see you reach your goals and be alive to watch it happen! If you have questions or comments make sure you post them below and until next time…
DEFY MEDIOCRACY
