Your Burnout Personality is the Workaholic

“If we want to live a Wholehearted life, we have to become intentional about cultivating sleep and play, and about letting go of exhaustion as a status symbol and productivity as self-worth.” – Brene Brown

Strengths

Wow, you’re a force to be reckoned with! Like the unstoppable women suffragettes, you’re prepared to take on anything and succeed. You’ve got amazing commitment and stamina, a powerful drive to see things through and you always do them to the best of your ability.

It means you are the person everyone else relies on – they can count on you to say Yes to whatever they ask, even if it’s picking up the slack for them and taking on what should be their responsibility.

You deliver again and again and again, and you’re rightly proud of your abilities. But often the price you pay, at some point, is likely to be very high – to your health and wellbeing, your relationships, and your sense of self. Because sometimes, deep down, you might wonder what your worth is if it isn’t measured in constant output …

Challenges

Our society has taught us that less than 100% is lazy, that anything less than your all isn’t good enough, and that needing rest or eat or take time for yourself is weak or selfish.

What you achieve seems super-human at times – but actually you’re a human being and you need to replenish yourself.

Self-care is not weak or selfish! When your car is getting low on fuel, you top it up. When your phone battery is getting low, you plug it in. You’re human so it’s normal and natural that your mind, body and emotions need recharging too. Pretending or wishing that you didn’t need to just isn’t realistic!

You may (or may not!) get recognition, thanks or praise for your heroic efforts. Worst case, people are so used to being able to count on you that they expect it. You become almost a part of the background that keeps things running – they hardly notice you or appreciate what you do.

It’s hard not to let resentment build up when you’re being taken for granted or when your contributions aren’t matched or reciprocated.

So here’s a question to consider – how much of the pressure you constantly live with, comes from outside (your boss, family, financial obligations) and how much of it are you doing to yourself?

What would your life be like if you could change that pressure and that pace? What other lovely things would you have time for, what would your life be like then? 

You Might Be Feeling

RESENTFUL

Looking Forward

You don’t need any more things on your To Do list! But there are lots of quick and effortless ways to top yourself up.

TRY THIS: Here’s one small, simple self-care tip that you can slip into your day, and it literally takes 7 seconds!

1. Put your favourite, fragrant hand cream on your desk or next to your phone charger or beside your bed – somewhere you’ll see it.

2. Squirt a blob into your palm, close your eyes and breathe in its fragrance. (You can take a couple of slow deep breaths here if you want).

3. Start to rub the cream over your hands and fingers, as you slowly count backwards from 5 to 1. You can have your eyes closed still, or open if you prefer.

4. When you get to 1, just notice how you feel now after just those few, short seconds – a bit calmer or more focused …

5. Go on with your day 🌺

Being the last man standing is a tough and lonely gig. Wellbeing Coaching can give you new ways of operating that will let you stay on top of your game without burning out.