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Take some time off. You should sit down and work out what you really value. The definition of burnout is when you force yourself to work on something that you
by brad0 9y ago
Take some time off. You should sit down and work out what you really value.
The definition of burnout is when you force yourself to work on something that you don’t see the value in.
When you know what you really value then make steps toward experiencing those values in your every day life. This doesn’t just go for work but every part of your life.
- ChristianGeek 9y agoThat’s not the definition of burnout, that’s just being uninspired. Burnout is a combination of cynicism, depression, and lethargy that can come from failing to maintain a healthy life/work balance. (I’ve experienced burnout at a job I loved.)
- brad0 9y agoCan you go into more detail on your experience with burnout? I’d like to understand how it came about for you.
- funfunfunction 9y agoI don't have time right now but I've been thinking about writing it all down once I've had a chance to reset. I'll post it in here if you're interested.
- brad0 9y agoSounds good.
- jacknews 9y ago"force yourself to work on something that you don’t see the value in." Not really, that sounds more like the definition of being an employee (without equity etc). Although I guess many employees find reward in the job itself and in the "progression" up the career ladder that business owners put in place. I don't think it's merely a case of work-life balance. It's possible to sustain a nominally very skewed work-life balance if you enjoy the work and the people you work with, and you have a real stake in it (either equity, really building your own skills, saving the world, whatever). But if you lose joy in the day to day work itself, and especially start to see through the "career-ladder" or "office-perks" BS then you will feel burnt out, whether you've been putting in 12+ hour days or not.
- brad0 9y agoI know I previously enjoyed working at a games company as an employee because I valued the process of making something people would enjoy. Even though I was working 12 hour days 6 days a week I still enjoyed most of it. I suppose my example mostly reinforces your point. To prevent burnout you really need to derive joy in the day to day rather than some external situation you can’t control.