I’ve moved all my most important work to those hours when I’m at my best. Doing what you’re best at when you’re at your best unlocks a world of potential many leaders miss.
I write more on how to manage your energy here.
9. SLEEP IS A LEADER’S SECRET WEAPON
Exhaustion was a major reason I burned out. Not the only reason, but a major reason.
Now, I guard my sleep zealously, when I’m at home or on the road. I’ve embraced naps. And I watch my fatigue levels like a hawk.
I’ve come to realize that most of us are like our phones. You start off in the morning with 100 percent charge and at various points in the day, you need to be plugged back in.
A quick nap at lunch can recharge me for a few hours. Getting seven to eight hours of sleep every night has become essential for me to perform at my best at work and at home.
10. YOUR BEST DAYS MAY ACTUALLY BE AHEAD OF YOU, NOT BEHIND YOU
Here’s some hope for anyone struggling with burnout.
When I was burning out, I was mostly convinced my best days were behind me. With a decade’s distance from my burnout, I can see that wasn’t true in the least.
I came back from burnout, and I’ve accomplished more in the last 10 years than I ever imagined was possible.
I planted a church that has grown into the largest church I’ve ever been a part of.
People told me all through my 30s that I should write a book. I never did. In the last nine years, I’ve written four.
My blog has grown to millions of readers a year, I launched a weekly leadership podcast, and I’ve had the chance to speak all over the world.
If you had told me God would open up doors like this when I was in the depth of my burnout, I would never have believed it.
I’m not sure I could have handled what God brought my way before I burned out. There were things he needed to do inside me before he did things through me. I see that clearly now.
The point is simply this: if you’re burning out, keep moving through it. Maybe your best days are ahead of you, not behind you.
ARE YOU BURNING OUT?
Sometimes it’s hard to tell whether you’re burning out.
Here’s a short, free quiz you can take to see whether you’re showing the signs.
This isn’t a medical quiz, but it can give you an idea of whether you’re healthy or need to seek some professional help.
BURNING OUT [AND COMING BACK]…
If you want practical help overcoming some of the biggest challenges leaders face, my new book Didn’t See It Coming: Overcoming the 7 Greatest Challenges That Nobody Expects and Everyone Experiences tackles the seven core issues that take people out: cynicism, compromise, disconnectedness, irrelevance, pride, burnout and the emptiness of success, and provides strategies on how to combat each.
I wrote the book because no 18-year-old sets out to be cynical, jaded and disconnected by age 35. Yet it happens all the time.
You can learn more and get your copy of Didn’t See It Coming here.
WHAT’S HELPED YOU?
What’s helped you learn how to recover from burnout? What are your top insights on how to recover from burnout?
This article on how to recover from burnout originally appeared here.
