3 Steps to Fight Burnout in Pursuit of Long Term Goals (Hint: “Take A Break” Isn’t One)

One hundred and ten thousand.

That is the number of words I have published on this site.

I did the math earlier—or rather, I had a plugin do the math for me—and my jaw dropped when I saw the total. It shouldn’t have surprised me though, because my mind’s felt the effects of that number for quite some time.

I haven’t directly addressed all the issues here, but most of my recent posts have exposed the fact that I’ve been fighting burnout. It’s been an issue for pretty much the whole year.

The hours of research, countless revisions, and creativity writing demands can leave even the most ambitious people exhausted. And it doesn’t help that I have a love-hate relationship with the craft either.

I’m part of the, “I hate writing, but I love having written” crowd.

Developing ideas is fun. Planning outlines is a blast. Sculpting a canvas into a work of art is a top 5 feeling ever. But getting that canvas out, in its rough, raw, and unoriginal state, is nothing short of agony.

If I had your favorite rapper’s ghostwriter who could turn my outlines into drafts, I’d be set. But writing isn’t that easy. And life isn’t either…

So I’ve had to fight back.

There are 3 simple steps that have helped me breathe life back into my work. And no, taking a break isn’t one.

So if you’re stuck somewhere between zestful beginner and accomplished expert, use these 3 methods to fight burnout, and get back on track.

#1 Open Your Eyes

It’s easy to lose sight of the big picture after months and years go by.

Human nature demands that we focus on the here and now. Most of us only care about what we can see or what’s right in front of us. And this makes us downplay the importance of what we’ve already done:

We become blind to the ways we’ve helped others in the past.
We neglect the memory of our “impossible” achievements.
And we convince ourselves that nothing’s changed since we first began.

All we can see is the struggle of the day-to-day—the details that, while still important, are minute compared to the reasons behind them.

That’s why you have to step back, and open your eyes.

Stop comparing yourself to a schedule or a routine. See if progress is made on the actual goal instead.

Writing for two hours every day isn’t your goal. Hitting the gym five times a week isn’t your goal. Giving weekly updates on a project at work isn’t your goal.

All of those are strategies used to accomplish a larger purpose.

Real goals are missions. They are not hamster wheels meant to restrict you.

Sure, discipline is a great thing and I’m not disputing that. But no one runs a marathon without a finish line.

There’s always an end goal behind the small things you do. You have to compare progress to that real goal instead.

One recent action that’s helped me do this is looking at how much has changed since I started here.

I’m my own worst critic and I demand more from myself than I ever will from others, but because of this, I lose sight of the good things I do in route to larger goals:

I’ve had to remember that a younger me hated writing assignments. And it’s incredible that I put my work out in public now.
Sometimes I take HFE’s traffic for granted, so I reminded myself that there are people behind those numbers.
I even checked Google to confirm that a few of my posts rank higher than the articles I used to read.

A lot of us creators hold ourselves to such impossible standards. We convince ourselves that we’re failing when we just don’t appreciate all the good we’ve done.

No, I’m not saying you should stop where you are now and live in the past, but if you want to stay sane on this journey, you need to appreciate the small stuff too.

#2 Fulfill the Prophecy

“What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?”

Yes, that’s a question you’d hear ten minutes into a networking event, but bear with me.

Be honest with yourself and think about how you would act if you knew your work would pay off:

Would you give that extra hour of practice each day?
Would you dedicate your lunch break to your personal project?
Would you write, sing, or draw with the same passion you had when you started?

Every artist has a fear that their work won’t be appreciated. And this fear of failure paralyzes some of the most talented people you know.

But what if…

What if you had a guarantee?

What if you knew you couldn’t fail?

You wouldn’t fear because fear would be irrational. You’d give your all because you’d know it would work out. You’d break through your creative wall because you’d know the goal is on the other side.

That’s what people with guarantees do.

fulfill the prophecy fight burnout — “…fear would be irrational.”

“What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?”

Got an answer?

Good. Now do that.

It sounds reckless but this question leads to you telling yourself what you know you need to do. Your answer may then turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy—you chose the best path to succeed and now you’re on track to actually do it.

But even if you somehow still manage to fail, you won’t have the regret of not giving your all.

#3 Raise the Bar

The absolute worst symptom of burnout is the apathy it creates towards your work.

In order to reverse this feeling of numbness, you need to reconnect your emotions to what you do.

One of the best ways to do this is to focus on a task that’s particularly challenging or ambitious—a.k.a. the stuff you set aside before because you “weren’t ready”.

This may sound daunting now since you probably think you need a break or vacation to fix the problem. But from my experience, neither of those will help.

Sure, there is a place for rest. And using breaks strategically can lead to some of your best work. But walking away from something you’ve disconnected from isn’t the answer.

Vacations are maintenance for energy levels. They keep things balanced while you still have more to give. But once your tank hits empty, no amount of maintenance can revive you. You need a spark plug for that.

You can’t wait on inspiration to return. You have to force yourself into a zone where work actually feels good again.

Apathy stems from a lack of achievement. So if you’re facing burnout, you need a challenge that requires enough skill to be rewarding, yet one that’s also feasible enough to not overwhelm you.

Then once you’ve come alive, you get back on routine and plan breaks to be consistent.

raise the bar fight burnout — Let’s go, Rocky.

Again, I know this strategy is counter-intuitive, but one of the best times to take a risk is when you don’t have much to lose.

So what if your boss denies your new proposal? You’re already numb anyway. And who cares if you upload some bad content? It’s better than the blank space that was there yesterday.

Sometimes you have to miss a bunch of shots before you make ‘em. Yes, quality is better than quantity but the latter often leads to the former.

So go ahead, get your shots up.

One make might be all you need.