Recognising Burnout: When Too Much Is TOO MUCH

As neurodivergent business owners, we are likely to feel a huge responsibility to continue under pressure. We may even take a level of pride in doing so. Particularly in professions which include the provision of care or support for others, there is a feeling that the person doing the caring must be stable and unshakeable, or as Ashford and Simpson might put it — ‘solid as a rock’ (niche 80s music reference which I will not apologise for). 

Our work can become our identity, our raison d’être. And so sometimes, we ignore the growing signs that something just isn’t right.

These are different for everybody, but you may experience:

• A feeling of dread as you open your laptop or dial a client’s phone number
• Making more small mistakes or forgetting appointments and deadlines
• Increased heart rate even at rest
• Overthinking client-related issues when you aren’t working
• Difficulty sleeping
• Low appetite or overeating for comfort
• A sense of irritability with co-workers or clients (even the really nice ones)
• Deterioration of physical health, such as a low immune system or muscle tension
• A new cynicism around the effectiveness or ‘the point’ of your work.

It’s worth noting that burnout is not a formal medical or mental health diagnosis. However, the World Health Organization does classify it as an “occupational phenomenon” which occurs when chronic workplace stress has not been managed well. For those of us who are self-employed, the responsibility for the management of that stress lies with us, and is therefore even harder to spot and to respond to. If you are noticing any of the signs or symptoms above, don’t assume that you can simply push through it or ‘pull yourself together’ (one of my least favourite phrases). You have not failed, and you are not weak. Burnout is the result of living in a world which pushes us to earn more, to work harder and faster, and never to admit that we’ve reached our limit.

There is no one-size-fits-all treatment or approach to handling burnout, but the following may help you reach a decision on how to proceed:

Take a break.

If possible, give yourself a week completely away from your role. Turn off your email notifications and set an out of office reply. This will help you assess how you feel about your life without the pressure of work. If, when you return to work, the feelings above haven’t improved at all then you may be dealing with burnout, rather than just the very human need for a holiday. That means something needs to change.

Speak to someone.

It is likely you will have a friend, family member, therapist or medical professional who will listen. This isn’t necessarily about their response, or expecting them to solve anything. But by hearing yourself describe what you are feeling, you may develop a better understanding of which aspects are contributing to your stress. Even a very short course of counselling can help put things in perspective.

Remember that you are not your work.

The world will keep spinning even if you aren’t part of that machine for a little while. And a well-timed break when burnout is just beginning can prevent a much longer episode, which could take months or even years from which to fully recover.

Look at how you work, not just how much you work.

Sometimes burnout isn’t about having too much to do. It can come from spending your days working in ways that constantly drain you. Think about how you structure your days, when you do your most demanding tasks, how often you’re switching between activities, how you communicate with clients, and whether your working environment is the right fit.

• Could you group similar tasks together? 
• Build in more recovery time between meetings? 
• Work at different times of day? 
• Break large projects into smaller tasks? 
• Reduce the amount of task ot topic switching? 

There may be ways of restructuring your work that make the same workload more manageable. Workplace neurodiversity coaching can be particularly helpful here, especially when you are supported by someone who understands neurodiversity and can help you explore what works for your brain, rather than simply suggesting that you become better at coping with the way things are.

Take some of the pressure off.

If you find face-to-face meetings difficult, ask whether communication can be carried out via email for a while. Or vice versa, if you hate typing. Change your working hours so that you have one full day off each week to completely decompress. Make informed decisions about whether taking on an extra client is going to be too much for you. Consider whether one particular client has become a weight so heavy that you are crumbling beneath it. It may be time for someone else to carry that burden for a while.

As with so many things in life, there is privilege in being able to reduce your workload and manage with less income. Sadly, this won’t always be possible. But a small sacrifice early on really can prevent a much longer period of inability to earn. And if you do find yourself truly unable to work, explain to your GP that you need to be signed off, apply for Employment Support Allowance and/or Universal Credit, and allow yourself to be held for a while. 

Burnout is real. And even if you think it could never happen to you, keep an eye out for the signs, just in case. If nothing else, you might be the person who helps someone else stop it in its tracks. 

And if you feel you are nearly at burnout point, or are already there, you don’t have to work your way back on your own.

Sometimes, what we need most is someone outside the business who can help us untangle what is actually going on. Someone who understands that the answer isn’t always to become more organised, more productive or better at managing our time. Sometimes the answer is to change the way we’re working altogether.

That’s one of the things our neurodivergent coaches at Sycamore can help with. Our coaching is designed around you, your business and the way you work best, rather than trying to squeeze you into somebody else’s idea of what a successful business owner should look like.

Because looking after yourself isn’t something you earn once the work is done. It needs to be part of the way you run your business.