On Burnout: Do You Work to Live or Live to Work?

Burnout is not just an emotional response to long hours, a challenging job, toxic/stressful workplace, or juggling too many tasks. While less common, burnout is evident in other areas besides work.

Fucci. Falling Apart, 2016. (www.fucci.ca)

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I once heard a preacher say, “burnout is when you do something you were not called to do because when you do work that makes you happy, and/or work that matters you will get energized,” which is pretty savage considering that a recent study from Barna, a Christian research organization, showed that religious leaders are struggling with rampant burnout. In March 2022, 42% of clergy considered quitting full-time ministry. Religious leaders and workers are some of the most worked-out professionals with high rates of deaths from heart attacks.

Humans are mortal beings. Not machines made for working every day. They were created to do more than work and/or think about work. They are social beings, created to inhabit and enjoy all the beauties on earth, love family, gather in community, enjoy the outdoors, love, sing, dance, move, play, rest, and sleep. Yes, we live in a world where work is essential to survive and thrive. The days of trading a cow for a roof to live in are gone. Work can be super fun and rewarding if we have the opportunity to do it in a healthy way, or as the idiom says: work to live not live to work. 

For more than 25 years, I worked my ass off in so many projects and industries to prove to my dad and others that I was awesome and had the capacity to start businesses, make money, market anything, or manage other people’s businesses and projects. Basically to take on any challenge and obtain extraordinary results. It was not all entrepreneurship; I also took on jobs at companies, federal and local government agencies as well as nonprofits, either as director, project manager, and consultant. I worked so much. Long days and long weeks. And I burned out more than once. Most of the time, I would experience physical and mental exhaustion.

Enter the lockdown in 2020 and everything came to a sudden halt. I slowly came to the realization that this unhealthy rhythm would burn me out permanently. I was not going to last long. So, came my self-diagnosis that I was a workaholic that needed to learn to set work limits. Equally important was talking to others about work, marketing, ideas, business, entrepreneurship, tech, economy, etc. While I am not walking away altogether, I made some major changes and commitments that include: working for a few hours a day, quitting some projects, increasing my sleep time, exercising, and becoming a full-time dad. For the most part, work for me has been very fun, rewarding, and creative, and often to the benefit of others, but I was working myself well beyond my limits. I admit these life changes require discipline because I worked most days, nights, and weekends for nearly two decades.

The American Psychological Association (APA) dictionary defines burnout as the “physical, emotional, or mental exhaustion accompanied by decreased motivation, lowered performance, and negative attitudes toward oneself and others. It results from performing at a high level until stress and tension, especially from extreme and prolonged physical or mental exertion or an overburdening workload, take their toll.”

Christina Maslach, professor emerita at the University of California, Berkeley, and one of the foremost researchers on burnout began studying this phenomenon in the 1970s and in 1976 published the article “Burned-Out” in the magazine Human Behavior, popularizing the concept in the media and later leading to the Maslach Burnout Inventory that evaluates burnout on three key stress responses: an overwhelming sense of exhaustion, feelings of cynicism and detachment, and a sense of professional ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment.

Burnout is not just an emotional response to long hours, a challenging job, a toxic/stressful workplace, or juggling too many tasks. While less common, burnout is not only evident in work. It can also appear in other areas of life, such as parenting, care-taking, sports/workout, or romantic relationships. People in these roles experience exhaustion, are overwhelmed with responsibilities, and often believe that they have failed at their role.

Yes, we may be energized when we do work that matters and/or makes us happy, but working past our limits is unsustainable and will have repercussions in the future. Burnout leaves its mark on the brain as well as on the body. Friendships and relationships that go unattended for long periods of time also suffer and wither. 

At 22, I worked for the advertising agency J Walter Thompson and the marketing manager from Ford Motor Company, whom I interfaced with often, once said to me: “I am overly impressed at your ability to carry out your work so well without stressing and losing your bearings. Do you meditate? You are so spiritual. You are like a walking yogi.” For 20 years, I carried this so-called compliment as a badge of honor without recognizing how toxic it was. Way too early in my career, had I become an expert in hiding stress and just showing my happy and “let's get it done” face. The stress had been there all the time, doing all the harm stress does to our brains and bodies.

Burnout may not only cause health problems, but include recurring headaches, fatigue, heartburn, and other gastrointestinal symptoms. High stress can lead to overeating as well as alcohol and drug abuse. Maybe you are feeling physically and mentally exhausted and unable to do your job effectively. Watch out for feelings of cynicism, anger, or irritability. If you think you may be experiencing burnout, take this self-test for a quick assessment and learn more about how to manage it, like practicing self-care.

Self-care, in my opinion, has received more media airtime than ever during the pandemic and that’s a great thing. Taking care of your well-being to prevent burnout is vital. Self-care, as a broad and holistic concept, includes nurturing the physical, emotional, social, and psychological well-being. Self-care works when it becomes a conscious and intentional daily practice because the busyness of life and the demands of society will often attempt to retract us from it. Remember this is a personal decision and commitment, but it is not meant to become a social mandate. Not everyone disposes of the time, resources, possibilities, flexibility, and support to practice self-care. Maybe you are reading this and you can help a friend or family practice their own self-care. 

Maintaining optimal health and well-being is also possible by applying self-compassion. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Avoid unrealistic goals, over-achieving, and setting high expectations if that will increase your stress levels. Consider yoga, exercise, mindfulness meditation, or dietary changes to help. You may also start saying “NO” to others and/or to new tasks/projects as a life-changing habit to protect your time and peace. Don’t be afraid to set boundaries and seek professional help as needed.

Evaluate how you spend your time in social activities, exercise, sleep, nutrition, and play time. In which areas do you need to add more intentional time and effort? How would sleeping more, going on more dates with your partner, having friends over for dinner, traveling, or engaging in fun hobbies make you feel?

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Until next week!

Your fellow human,
-Jorge Fusaro