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"I don't think "Burnout is caused by working hard at something for a long time and not having it pay off." applies for them in at all. They are constantly savin
by spaetzleesser 5y ago
"I don't think "Burnout is caused by working hard at something for a long time and not having it pay off." applies for them in at all. They are constantly saving lives and constantly seeing the positive results of their actions.
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That's not really a payoff after a while. I work at a medical device company. When I started I got a kick out of all the great patient stories. Even my girlfriend's life changed from suicidal to pretty good because of our device. But after a while never-ending the deadline pressure got to me and no amount of patient success was motivating anymore. I think it's the same in the ICU. After a while you get numb. Only off time and less pressure can reset your emotional gas tank.
- sul_tasto 5y agoYour comment leads me to think that the “wins” need to vary in type over time -that it’s not possible to recycle the same win indefinitely.
- dougmwne 5y agoFrom working in the nonprofit space, the mission is motivating, but it's also the thing you are sacrificing for. You are not working towards your personal benefit, but towards an abstract benefit received elsewhere. The pay is low and the opportunities for advancement are often limited. Burnout is very common. You must also work for your own benefit, otherwise you will eventually feel like a sucker, no matter how many lives you are saving. You end up thinking these bigger questions like, "why is this only my responsibility to sacrifice? I don't see anyone else making sacrifices!" And "Why is it my responsibility to clean up this mess? Those other people are creating the mess for their own profit but somehow I'm the one that has to fix it?" It's basically inevitable to recoil at being the one always stuck with the bill while everyone else stops even noticing you paid for them.