Let’s talk about burnout.
Not the kind you read about in an HR newsletter or hear mentioned in passing during a wellness webinar.
I mean real burnout.
The kind that makes you dread the sound of your alarm clock, zaps your creativity, and leaves you questioning whether you’re even cut out for your role anymore.
I’ve been there. And I want to share how I recovered, because if you’re feeling burned out, you’re not alone, and it does get better.
My Burnout Story
I’ve been in leadership for a while, and let me tell you, it’s a different kind of pressure. Especially in operations or manufacturing, where the pace never slows down, expectations run high, and the margin for error feels microscopic.
There was a stretch in my current role where everything seemed to hit at once.
Staffing shortages. Equipment failures. Budget cuts. High expectations. Constant changes in direction. I was juggling late-night texts, early-morning meetings, and the endless mental load of keeping things running without falling behind.
At first, I thought I could outwork it. Just push through. “It’s just a season,” I told myself.
But the season kept dragging on. I started feeling numb. I’d sit in meetings and feel like I was watching myself from a distance, barely able to focus. My motivation tanked. I wasn’t sleeping well. I snapped more easily at work and at home.
That’s when I realized I wasn’t just tired; I was burned out.
Recognizing Burnout
Burnout isn’t always loud. Sometimes it’s subtle.
It creeps in gradually, until one day you realize the spark is gone.
Here are some signs I personally experienced:
- Constant fatigue, even after a full night’s sleep
- Dreading work every day
- Feeling detached or cynical
- Struggling to concentrate
- Zero excitement or satisfaction from wins
- Withdrawing from coworkers
- Getting sick more often
If that sounds familiar, I see you. You’re not weak. You’re human.
The Turning Point
I didn’t have a dramatic wake-up call. No breakdown in the parking lot. No intervention. What I had was a quiet moment during a long shift where I sat in my office, looked at the clock, and realized I had no gas left in the tank.
I had to make a decision. Either keep going like this and burn out completely, or make a change.
So, I started rebuilding. Slowly. Imperfectly. But intentionally.
Here’s what helped me recover, and what might help you, too.
1. Admit You’re Burned Out
This sounds simple, but it’s hard.
Especially for leaders. We’re supposed to be the steady ones, right? The reliable ones. The ones who can take a hit and keep going.
But burnout thrives in silence.
I had to get honest with myself first. I admitted I was exhausted, mentally and emotionally. That I wasn’t operating at my best. That something needed to change.
No more pretending.
Once I owned it, I could start doing something about it.
2. Reconnect With Why You Started
When I was in the thick of burnout, I forgot why I got into leadership in the first place.
I wasn’t drawn to the title or the responsibility. I wanted to make a difference. I wanted to create a culture where people enjoyed coming to work. I wanted to be the kind of leader I wished I’d had.
But burnout made me forget all that.
So I went back to my “why.” I wrote it down. I kept it visible.
And I started asking: “What can I do today, even just one small thing, that aligns with that purpose?”
Sometimes it was as simple as taking five minutes to check in with a team member. Or fixing a small process that had been driving people crazy. Or writing a quick thank-you note.
Those small wins started adding up.
3. Set Better Boundaries
Let me guess, you’re a “yes” person too?
Yeah. That was me. I thought saying yes to everything made me a good leader. But all it really did was make me overwhelmed and resentful.
Burnout forced me to get serious about boundaries.
I started leaving work on time more often. I silenced work notifications after hours. I stopped volunteering for every single initiative and learned how to delegate more.
Was it uncomfortable at first? Absolutely.
But setting boundaries didn’t make me a worse leader, it made me a healthier one.
And when I got better, my team benefited too.
4. Get Ruthless with Priorities
One of the hardest truths I learned was this:
Not everything is urgent. Not everything deserves my energy.
When I was burned out, everything felt heavy. Every email felt critical. Every meeting felt like a must-attend. But that’s not sustainable.
So I sat down with my calendar and to-do list and started cutting.
I asked myself:
- What actually moves the needle?
- What am I doing just because I’ve always done it?
- What can someone else handle?
- What can wait?
I trimmed the fat. I gave myself permission to focus on what matters most.
And the funny thing? The world didn’t fall apart. In fact, things got better.
5. Build Back Rest
Rest is not laziness.
Let me say that again for the people in the back: Rest is not laziness.
Burnout taught me that I can’t lead well if I’m constantly running on fumes.
So I started rebuilding rest into my life.
That meant actually using my vacation time. Taking real lunch breaks. Turning off my brain in the evenings. Going on walks without my phone. Reading something not leadership-related for once.
Rest doesn’t always mean a beach vacation (though that helps, too). Sometimes it’s just quiet. Breathing room. Space to think.
The more I honored rest, the more capacity I had to lead again.
6. Talk to Someone
I’m not ashamed to say this, I talked to a counselor during my recovery.
You don’t have to go through burnout alone. Whether it’s a coach, a mentor, a friend, or a therapist, having someone to talk to made a world of difference for me.
They helped me process the mental weight I was carrying. Helped me sort through what was in my control and what wasn’t. Helped me rebuild confidence.
Burnout can make you feel isolated. Connection is part of the cure.
Positive Psychology highlights that receiving counseling provides positive supportive relationship that help people in their recovery process.
7. Recommit, Or Reevaluate
This might be the hardest part.
Once I started feeling like myself again, I had to ask:
Do I still want to do this?
Is this role still right for me?
Or do I need to pivot?
For me, the answer was “yes”; I still felt called to lead. I just needed to lead differently.
I stopped trying to be everything to everyone. I leaned into the parts of leadership I loved; developing people, solving problems, creating culture, and let go of the parts I’d taken on out of obligation or insecurity.
But for some people, burnout reveals a deeper truth: it’s time to move on.
And that’s okay, too.
Sometimes recovery leads to recommitment. Sometimes it leads to redirection. Both are valid.
Bonus: Rediscovering the Power of Weekend Getaways
One of the biggest game-changers for me?
I’m not talking about expensive, over-the-top vacations. I mean quick escapes, a couple of days away from the noise, the routine, the stress.
Sometimes I’d go hiking. Sometimes I’d rent a cabin or book a cheap hotel in a small town. Sometimes I’d just drive a few hours to a new city and unplug completely.
The goal was simple: change the scenery and recharge.
No work talk. No company phone. Just time to reset, reflect, and breathe. Those weekends gave me room to remember who I was outside of work. They reminded me that my identity wasn’t tied to my title, my inbox, or my productivity.
I’d come back with more clarity and energy than any amount of caffeine or Monday morning pep talks could offer.
What Burnout Taught Me
Coming out the other side of burnout, I didn’t feel like a failure.
I felt wiser.
I learned that capacity isn’t just about time, it’s about energy, attention, and purpose.
I learned that saying no doesn’t make me less of a leader. It makes me a better one.
I learned that being human isn’t a liability in leadership, it’s a strength.
And maybe most importantly, I learned that I’m not alone.
Wrapping Up: Your Recovery Is Possible
If you’re burned out right now, I want to encourage you.
You are not broken. You are not weak. You are not a bad leader.
You are tired. And you deserve rest. You deserve support. You deserve to find joy in your work again.
Start small. Be honest with yourself. Make space to breathe. Ask for help. Rediscover what matters.
Burnout doesn’t have to be the end of your story.
It can be the turning point.
