I drifted into a trance, my eyes fixed on a pigeon outside the window
I’d been completely unproductive all day.
I had that sinking feeling that I was ‘burned out’ again.
I looked at what I’d been doing the last few days.
I’d been going through the motions.
I’d been writing about things that didn’t really grab me.
I’d lost touch with what I was doing all this for.
That’s when it hit me (as it always does when I’m stuck)…
There’s always a couple of things at play when I feel I’ve lost my spark:
- I’ve disconnected from what I really, really want to create.
- I’ve reduced my output.
Most people believe working too much causes burnout.
This isn’t strictly true.
Burnout happens when we’re not developing our self-expression.
If we pretend to be someone we’re not, we feel stifled.
If we block our juicy creative potential out of insecurity or doubt, we feel heavy.
If we work on projects that we don’t believe in…
We get burned out.