7 Productivity Mistakes That Lead to Burnout

Because burnout is a real thing!

Have you ever found yourself trying to juggle so many things at once? There was one time in 2020 (when we were slowly but carefully getting out of lockdown) when I was studying, working, volunteering, working on side projects, my blog, and still needing to make time for church, and my physical and mental health. Despite this, because I was afraid to disappoint people, I over-committed to so many things and eventually burnt out.

This blog post will go through some productivity mistakes that can lead to burnout. It’s easy to want to hustle and work 24/7 so we can be as productive as possible. However, sometimes we can push ourselves too far to the point of burnout. You’ll learn of common mistakes that can lead to burnout, how they impact your productivity, and how to make sure that you don’t do them.

If you’ve ever experienced burnout and had overcome it, I would love to hear some of your strategies! Only I see the comments at the moment so you can be as open as you’d like.

In the meantime, let’s dive in.

1 – Scheduling no breaks

This is self-explanatory, but scheduling no breaks means leaving no time for rest or pausing when you’re working. Scheduling no breaks can lead to burnout because it doesn’t give you time to recharge, rest, and refocus.

For example, if you had planned an entire study session without taking any breaks in between, it can lower the quality of your study and decrease your motivation. That’s why, it’s also important to schedule those breaks as well.

You can do this through the Pomodoro technique, where you work in 25-minute intervals, followed by a 5-minute break. You can also schedule your work/study day like a typical school day. For instance, you can work/study for 2 hours, take a “recess” for 20 minutes, do another 2 hours, have a lunch break for 1 hour, then do another 2 hours.

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RELATED: How to Be Unproductive

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2 – Overworking Schedule

Having an overworking schedule means that you planned your work/study in a way that requires you to work longer hours and days with no rest. Without having a workday and routine that is sustainable and healthy for you, it can lead to not just burnout, but also stress and negative impacts on your mental and physical health.

For example, it can be tempting for some to work excessively long hours, do work while it’s supposed to be your holidays, or take on more work than required. However, without giving yourself the opportunity to properly rest and recharge, it can also affect your work quality as well.

Like #1, you want to ensure that your scheduling breaks between your workdays and hours. After all, taking a break is one of the key productivity habits you need to be building. Make sure to include in your schedule your breaks and rest so that you can ensure that you’re recharging and refocusing every time.

3 – Not making time for things you love

Not making time for things you love means that you are not scheduling the activities that truly bring you joy. Without making time for things you love; you feel a sense of dissatisfaction and feel unfulfilled. Those are also factors that contribute to burnout.

For example, one person may have really enjoyed a hobby before they started a new job. Once they started a new job, they never made time for the hobby they love. Over time, they begin to feel dissatisfied and unfulfilled because they find themselves never having time to do the hobby that brings them joy and relaxation.

That’s why it’s important to not neglect your favorite hobbies and activities that you enjoy. By scheduling in at least once a week to do a hobby that you love, it can help you feel more satisfied, happy, and prevent burnout.

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RELATED: 8 Things To Make Life More Interesting

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4 – Always saying yes when you want to say no

I’m guilty of this too. I’ve said yes, many times when deep down I wanted to say no. A few reasons why I wanted to say no in the first place is because I simply don’t have the capacity to handle any other commitments. However, the people-pleaser in me hated disappointing people and said yes anyway.

However, it led to burnout. When I constantly took on too much, I struggled to meet deadlines, sacrificed self-care, and felt overwhelmed. I felt tired, exhausted, and not even motivated anymore.

A key way that can help you not overcommit and burnout, is setting boundaries. Setting boundaries is an underrated form of self-care but can be extremely helpful. You can do the following things:

1. List down all your priorities and commitments (e.g. family, work, friends, self-care)
2. Any time something comes up, or someone asks you to do something, if it doesn’t align with your goals and priorities, it can be an easy no.
3. BUT if you already know deep down that you have no other capacity to take on anything new, it can be an easy no as well.

5 – Lacking boundaries

This is where you do not have clear limits in place regarding what you’ll do and not do. Similar to #4, if you keep on overcommitting knowing that you don’t have the capacity, it may be time to set some clearer boundaries.

When you lack boundaries, it can be hard to say no to requests from others and take on more things that are beyond your capacity. Just like how we’ve emphasized multiple times in this blog post, overworking yourself can lead to burnout.

Another thing to keep in mind as well is that it gives a message to others that your time and energy can be freely given. You want to make it clear to people that you’re being selective with how you spend your time and energy. When that is clear to people, it can prevent burnout on your end from overcommitting too much.

You can follow the exercise from #4 on when to know to say no to help create your boundaries. You can also use the following prompts to help you establish some boundaries:

• What do you have time and energy for?
• What don’t you have time and energy for?
• What are things you can take on IF you have the capacity for it?

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RELATED: Busting These Four Productivity Myths

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6 – Not listening to your body

Not listening to your body includes a few things. These include:

• When you keep working even though your body is giving you cues that it’s time to rest.
• When you keep doing activities even though your body is giving you cues that it wants to sleep.
• When you avoid food even though your body is giving your cues to eat something.

This can lead to burnout because without taking care of your physical needs (e.g. exercise, eating a healthy diet, getting rest), it affects your productivity anyway.

Think about this – is it rude to not listen to someone while they are talking to you? Is it rude to ignore them? It’s the same thing you’re doing when your ignoring the cues that your body is giving you.

Your productivity is not just about the work tasks, there are so many other things that count as being productive as well!

7 – Lack of self-care

When you lack self-care, it means that you don’t have a regular routine or schedule to take care of your needs for rest and recharge. This can lead to burnout because without taking care of your physical and emotional well-being, it also affects your productivity.

For example, if self-care is nowhere to be found in your schedule, you don’t give yourself the opportunity to rest and recharge as needed.

That’s why, schedule in self-care time (even if it’s just for 15 minutes) and do activities that you enjoy, help you feel relaxed, and let you have fun in general. You can also do activities that can help you manage stress if you have a lot on your plate.

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RELATED: Quick Guide of Self-Care Activities and Resources

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TAKE a SMALL STEP
Here are some small steps you can take so you’re not making any of these productivity mistakes:

1. When making your daily schedule, don’t forget to schedule in your breaks such as your:

– Short breaks in between your work session – 5-10 minute breaks

– Longer breaks such as your lunch and snack breaks – 20-30 minutes

– Time blocks for activities you enjoy doing

2. List down 3 activities that you love doing, and will schedule in.

3. Do the following steps that can help you figure out if you should say no:

– List down your priorities and commitments.

– Whenever a request, event, or something else comes up, check if it aligns with any of your priorities.

– If it doesn’t align with your priorities, or you simply have no capacity to take it on, it can be an easy no

4. Create your boundaries – you can use the following prompts:

– What do you have time and energy for?

– What don’t you have time and energy for?

– What are things you can take on IF you have the capacity for it?

5. Remember to schedule the other things that count as being productive such as your:

– Physical health

– Mental health

– Relationships

– Self-Care

– Other commitments that you value

6. List down 5 self-care activities that you can implement in your routine

To Wrap Up

It’s easy to think that being productive is the key to achieving our goals and being happy in life. However, when you push yourself too hard, don’t take breaks, and practice self-care, it can lead to burnout. It’s clear that overworking, neglecting your own needs, and lacking boundaries can contribute to burnout. That’s why to prevent burnout it’s important to prioritize self-care, listen to your body, and set clear boundaries.

If you need more help with your productivity, I wrote a free mini e-book called Small Steps to Productivity that you can download in the Free Resources Library. You’ll also find my other book Small Steps to Progression which you can also download for free as well.

In the meantime, just remember to always take care of yourself, because that is key to living a more happier and productive life.

-Lauren 🙂

P.S I recommend you read these blog posts next:

• Productivity Reminders For When You Want to Improve Your Productivity
• Mistakes People Make When Trying to Be Productive
• Build a Successful Foundation for Productivity in Easy Steps

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