Burnout Isn’t Failure, It’s a Systems Problem.
Last newsletter, I asked you to reflect on your "why" to understand what keeps you going when life turns sideways. But sometimes, even the deepest ‘why’ can lose its shine and won’t cut it anymore. This often happens during transitional periods in life, when the energy around us slows, shifts, or feels out of alignment. Yet the systems we operate in rarely account for that natural ebb.
In my research, I came across a 2024 article from Massey Business School’s Professor Jarrod Haar on burnout: “The most recent data from April 2024 reveals that one in two employees, or 57 per cent of the workforce, fall within the high burnout risk category. This indicates a doubling since December 2023, when the rate was 25 per cent, and exceeds the previous highest score of 43 per cent reported in November 2021.”
I’ve experienced burnout twice in the last decade. Once during my master’s in 2017/2018, which ended with four months of bed rest when several health issues emerged. Ironically, that time off led me to discover blockchain, and the rest is history. The second time was this time last year. And like most burnouts, it didn’t appear overnight. A catalyst event occurred a year prior, and through my “been through worse” mentality, the burnout crept in slowly, built tension across all areas of my life, and eroded my joy until my body, once again, forced me to listen.
The truth is, burnout is not a natural state but is weirdly accepted as a fact of corporate life. It’s a systemic failure disguised as personal weakness. In my experience, most workplace support is about protecting the system, not the human.
If you feel burnout creeping in, it’s probably not because you don’t love what you do. It’s a sign that something about how you’re doing it, or the environment you’re doing it in, isn’t sustainable anymore. Passion doesn’t burn you out, but the structures around it can. For example, I loved being at the forefront of emerging tech. I loved throwing events, talking with start-up founders, writing newsletters, and doing government relations work. I still love those things now, but on my own terms and at my own pace. It wasn’t the work itself that wore me down. It was the system I was working within; the pace, the pressure, the expectations that were never really mine.
There’s always an alternative to doing what you love, but it can take time to figure out the ‘how’. And if you’re already in burnout, the best thing you can do is keep it simple. Don’t wait for your body to force you into a system reboot. Constant maintenance is needed, so burnout or not, it’s time to review how you’re doing.
Here are the 7 survival needs I return to time and time again when I start to feel out of alignment:
Breathe. Put on a five-minute breathing video. If you have time to scroll, you have time to do this. Recenter the nervous system and get oxygen to the brain.
Hydrate. I know, boring. But you’re probably dehydrated, so drink some water.
Food. Do you need a snack? Have you had enough proper nutrients?
Rest. Take a nap if you need to. Most of our processing happens when we’re asleep. Let your mind take a break and let your subconscious process what it needs to.
Once the basics are taken care of, move to the next level:
Environment. Does your environment make you feel good? Do you feel safe? Are you warm enough? Put on some calming music. Is the lighting okay? Do you need to tidy a few things up or get some airflow?
Connection. Have I connected with anything today? Have I had a real conversation, something deeper than surface-level chitchat? Have I connected with myself, with the Earth, or with a higher purpose?
Creativity. Have I expressed myself today and exercised my imagination? This is where you give yourself permission to be fully yourself. Use your imagination and create or do something that feels like you.
You don’t have to overhaul your whole life overnight if the systems around you feel overwhelming. But you do have to start paying attention to the basics that keep you alive, creative, and connected. And if you feel a deeper need for purpose, we’ll get to that in the next edition.
For two months, I had been hunting for a very specific journal, the Princeton Architectural Press, Grids and Guides. It’s a blank notebook filled with architectural and engineering-style pages to exercise left and right brain thinking. I first checked at a local store, only to find it stocked at a different location. A few days later, I finally held it in my hands, and I loved it.
As a reward, I stopped for a coffee and a sweet treat at one of my favourite cafes. And there, at the only free table, sat a flyer for the Architecture and Design Film Festival. So now you know what will be consuming my time for the next two weeks.
Since I left corporate life, my days have been full of synchronicities like this. A journal of grids and guides. The Architecture and Design Film Festival. Moments that all speak the same language: structure, beauty, value, design. All the things I love found together in one delicious moment that wouldn’t have happened without a small delay and redirection.
So while timing may not always align perfectly, the message remains:
What are you building? Not just in the world, but within your inner life.
What kind of temple are you creating inside yourself?
Are your daily rituals feeding your values, your creativity, your joy?
True sustainability, in work and in life, isn’t about rushing or doing more. It’s about refining what already matters. Return to your seven basic needs and get the foundation right. From there, you can begin creating and expressing your passion every single day. Even if it’s just for five minutes, and who knows where that could lead you.