Keeping Burn Out at Bay

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Whether you are an entrepreneur or working within the traditional job market, burn out is a dangerous state to slide into.  I had a friend recently ask me what do I do when I feel myself approaching that edge, the cusp of feeling burned out.  I had a laundry list of things that I told him, and I thought I would share several:

Take a Break

Usually, when I’m starting to feel too tightly wound and on edge, it’s because I am insanely busy.  I feel that I cannot take a break because I have too much that needs to be done, but I know I need it.  The only way to force myself to take a break, is to schedule it. It may be a 1 hour break or 1 day, but I have to pencil it in.  When I put it on my calendar, I magically find a way to work around it because I treat it like any other appointment.  If I need a day or two, I schedule it at the end and/or beginning of a week so that it becomes a 3-4 day weekend.

Laugh

Laughter is great medicine and good for the soul.  As silly as it may sound, I will randomly start laughing.  At first it’s a bit forced, but after a while it becomes real as I realize how silly I must look. I even get a kick out of thinking how I would look and what the reaction would be if I did the same thing at a former job, or at a restaurant, or the grocery store…you get the picture.  If I cannot succeed at making myself laugh, I head over to good ‘ole YouTube and watch a video from one of my channel subscriptions. There are a ton of comedic channels and I’m subscribed to a few for this purpose.

Dance Like No One is Watching

I love music and I love to dance. I’m not a very good singer and I’m a terrible dancer (but I have rhythm).  I listen to music while I work, and sometimes I get up out of my seat and dance like crazy. The dance usually migrates throughout the house and occasionally I pick up a set of dumb bells for an exercise boost. The only person watching, is not actually a person, but my dog.  I think he enjoys these sporadic moments although I am sure he is convinced that I am nuts.  After all, on any given work day I am laughing like a crazy person by myself and and dancing aerobics-style all around the house.  I would think I was nuts too.

Exercise

I took up running a few years ago and while I am not the fastest or best runner; I find it a great way to take a break and clear my mind.  I run outdoors (which my chiropractor hates), because the treadmill bores me.  I like to see scenery passing by plus, I am not quite coordinated enough to stay square on the treadmill.  Running also does not take a lot of time from my workday.  I have distances mapped from my front door and back. I run, come back, check my email and then hop in the shower.  Sometimes the shower is delayed if there is something pressing I need to attend to.  Now that it has gotten a bit too cold for me to run, I have been doing some weight training with some dancing mixed in between sets at home.

There are a few more things that I told him, but these four are the main ones in my arsenal. What should be in my arsenal is to slow down in general, but I’m too much of a busy body and I have too many goals, ideas and plans to execute to do that!  What are some of the ways you stave off burn out?

One Size Does Not Always Fit All

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I’m tired of the one size fits all approach…to everything; marketing, life, relationships, business, networking, etc.  Maybe it is because I always seem to be that 1% that it does not fit or work for.  For instance, I apparently have a watermelon-sized head.  No one size fits all hat or adjustable ball cap ever fits me.  At least not without an accompanying headache from it being too small.  As it relates to business, I have fallen prey plenty of times to messages and strategies from marketing gurus that just did not work for me.

I was gullible.

I can admit that it was gullible of me to believe that there truly are universal blanket approaches that will work for everyone, including me.  Can you blame me?  We are bombarded with advertisements, blog posts, books and messages that tout ways to get more followers, traffic, brand recognition, business, customers, etc, everyday.  We see them online through social media and offline in television commercials.  For the brand or individual that originated the messaging, it works.  People like me say, “Yes, I want that and need to know that!”  Then, I am disappointed when I realize that while it was a great strategy, it was not a great strategy for me.

Moving forward.

I cannot knock the methods for not working for me because they will work for someone else and perhaps a whole bunch of someone else’s.  What I can do is try not to fall prey again.  When I feel myself getting excited about a new marketing strategy, I evaluate the why and how of it’s effectiveness.  Then, I check to see if I have the why’s and how’s within my business and self to apply that same principle.  If I don’t, I keep moving.  If I do, I will implement the strategy for a three-month period of time and then measure the results against what I was previously doing.  If the results are good, I continue; if the results are bad, I discontinue the approach.

While it is hard (for me) to resist trying a strategy when it is coming from someone that is a credible and authoritative individual on the subject, I have to remember that I too am an individual.  Evaluating the effectiveness and validity of the strategy as it relates to me and my brand keeps me from banging my head against the wall for falling prey, again.

Don’t Think Like You; Think Like Them

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You are not the customer.  The customer is the customer.  Even if you would be a user of your product or service, you are biased.  You think it is great, awesome, stupendous and the best thing since the invention of sliced bread.  The customer might like it and even love it, but maybe not with the same enthusiasm that you have.

When you market, where you market, and how you brand should not be based on what you think would be nice, look good or a good place and way to do so.  It should be what the customer would like, where they would be and how they would like for you to do so.

Turning Down Work :: Saying No

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Sometimes I have to say “no” and turn down work.  Sometimes it is because I know that with my current workload, I cannot realistically complete the job and give it the attention it deserves.  Sometimes it is because the work is outside the scope of services that I offer (even if I may be somewhat knowledgeable about it).  Sometimes it is because I do not feel that I am a good fit for the potential client, or them for me.  Almost all of these reasons seem crazy to some of my peers, both professional and personal.

“Why not just work longer hours?  Could you take on more then?”

I currently stick to a schedule and work 8 am – 5 pm, Monday through Friday.  I could take on more work when my workload is heavy, if I relaxed that schedule and worked longer hours and on the weekends.  However, doing so would increase my stress level and throw off the work/life balance that I so desperately need in order to stay sane.  The industry that I work in can be very stressful as it is with deadlines, rush jobs, and a general “I needed it yesterday” urgency.  Setting boundaries and giving myself a reprieve is a necessity for me.  If I am completely stressed out and fatigued, I’m really no good to anyone and I do not think it is fair to my clients if they cannot get my best.  If I cannot give my best, I need to turn the work down.

“If you know how to do it, why not take on the request?”  It’s more money!”

As the head of a company of one, I am responsible for all aspects of my business.  There are marketing strategies and services that I do on my own for my business that I have been asked at times to do for a client’s business.  I turn it down and refer them to someone else, because although I may know a little, I am not an expert.  I would be a wolf in sheep’s clothing parading as something I am not for the sake of money.  It’s just not me.

“Whaddaya mean you aren’t a good fit?  You can do the work, right?”

Sometimes, I am just not a good fit for a client.  I know that I am not the right freelancer for everyone, in the same way that Wal-Mart is not for everyone.  Some might prefer Target or another store.  Because of my introverted nature, I operate primarily, through digital channels.  This means most communication is via email, meetings are virtual and projects are managed through an online system.  For someone that prefers meeting in person and communicating via phone primarily, I am not a good fit.  While it is true that I can perform the work that they need done, my work and communication style contradicts the way they would like to work with someone.  I am not a good fit for them and the reverse is true as well; they are not a good fit for me.

Although it seems like I am turning down money, it creates space for projects and clients that are a good fit.  It also means that the work I do for them has my full attention and they are getting my best.  Instead of having a workload that consists of projects that I don’t like because it’s a service I don’t offer; projects that are extremely stressful for me because of my introverted nature; and fatigue inducing projects that have me burning the midnight oil; I have projects that actually make