Do we really have to Ask HN this every few days?
It's almost as if the audience of this site participates in an incredibly toxic work culture and we're hearing regular cries for help from the victims of it.
Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
41–50 of 132 posts
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#42One word: perspective.
At 53, with ~30 years in the industry, I've been through this a few times. The key has always been to step back and look around me. Look at other things I could be doing, and maybe do some of them. Focus more attention to family and friends, hobbies, exercise and other forms of self-care. Look at what other people are doing, what I'd do for a living if I couldn't or didn't want to keep programming any more. Compare them to the things I enjoy about programming.
Each time I've concluded that I really do want to continue, but have to plan and negotiate how to keep doing it in a way that wouldn't burn me out again. One time that meant reduced hours (on top of the sabbatical I'd already taken) for a while, and working from home ever since. Some of the negotiation might be with family. Most of it will be with your employer, so having a good manager/culture helps and finding a good one should be a priority otherwise. Changing jobs sometimes helps, but it can also just add its own stress so it should be considered very carefully.
The important things to realize that things can't be the same going forward, or you'll just reach the same outcome. You'll have to change something about your projects, your role, your working conditions. You just need to step back for a bit and figure out what.
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#43I try (keyword try) to stick to my base routine that involves sleep, work, exercise, cook food/prep, washing/cleaning, meditation, duolingo practice, shopping for necessities and non-essentials that makes things a little nicer e.g. new high thread bedding and bed topper, coffee (for the times I give myself a reward for staving it off for several days), oil-infused humidifyer. Reading and writing is also thrown in whenever I can stop myself from procrastinating on youtube. All that fills up most of my daily time, I always find I have a list of things to do but either put them off or don't get around to it which is my struggle to have true "free time".
That's probably the crux of it, being able to forget about work and have your mind taken off it. Perhaps making a vacation plan that will ensure you are busy having a new experience or relaxing whatever it may be to take your mind off work. After all our employment does occupy most of minds on a daily basis.
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#44Do we really have to Ask HN this every few days?
If you’re posting to the hiring thread it’s probably not a good idea to make comments like these...
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#45Do we really have to Ask HN this every few days?
It appears to be a very common problem so I guess the answer is yes.
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#46I took six months off last year after spending six and a half years at a startup, from beginning through acquisition and eventual decline. I went from front-end developer to director of engineering, and completely burned out by the end. I read "Ego is the Enemy", which helped me a lot in identifying why I stayed so long in a position that was bad for me (I was addicted to the title). When I quit, I established all th…
> "My wife, through quitting coffee, inspired me to build an app that helped track my lesser addictions: coffee, chocolate, sugar, gaming."
Can you please share more details about your app? Thanks in advance!
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#47What I see a lot around me:
Kids work really hard to get into a good high school
High School kids work really hard to get into a good college
College kids work really hard to get into a great first job
Young Adults working really hard to progress their career
Adults working hard and burning out because that is all they really know.
If you've always been an A student, and had a good career, its hard to change mentality and not put everything into your job. But if you're burning out you have to. I dont think its necessary to quit your current job. But you should consider not trying so hard. Just doing your hours, dont volunteer to do extra, and figure out what you enjoy that makes you happy. It could be enjoying nature, or making new friends, reading history, volunteering or doing a creative hobby.
It doesn't mean you can't have a great career. It could be just a quiet few months or years before charging in again, or maybe you're actually more productive not working all hours, or maybe you could change your whole path on life. The important thing is to realize that working really hard is not the only option.
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#48Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's surprising to me that so many people recommend eating breakfast. There's no specific value add to eating early in the morning. There are tons of value adds to constraining the hours you eat during each day ("intermittent fasting"). Eat breakfast at your own risk: https://priceonomics.com/how-breakfast-became-a-thing/ https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/is-skipping-breakfast-b... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hi…
If you exercise first thing in the morning (like myself), I'd say breakfast is essential shortly afterward.
I exercise shortly after getting up 5 days a week. I don't eat food until hours later.
Depending on your exercise goals, you may want to eat before or after exercise but it certainly isn't essential.
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/eating-before-or-after-...
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#49I started seeing a therapist. They have helped me to learn more about myself and now I can better recognize my mental state.
Burnout is a complicated topic, but I think we can all agree that it has real mental health effects. Trying to solve for the symptoms is one approach, but it’s also important to understand why it happened in the first place. What motivated someone to work themselves to a state of burning out?
A therapist is one approach, and in my experience they will help uncover some of the inner workings to help you explore and understand maybe why it happened in the first place. They are like our rubber duck to help us debug ourselves. And with that information, we can start to make the necessary changes in our personal and professional lives so that we maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Re: Ask HN: How are you getting through (and back from) burning out?
#50I am focusing on one day at a time, one week at a time. Seeing a psychotherapist and attending various groups when I have the energy. Burnout for me is a deeply physical experience of contant tension and utter exhaustion, with mental overwhelm and low stress-tolerance. So I find that I have to take things on the moment-by-moment level to see what I'm good for, and give myself permission to cancel everything if need b…
You got this!