Why Burnout Goes Beyond The Physical (+10 Tips For Conserving Mental Energy)

Usually, when you hear the word BURNOUT you think of physically working too hard for too long. You’re physically drained, stressed, and maybe overwhelmed. But many times we overlook the mental element that’s also associated with burnout.

Yes, most people can accept the fact that we have a limited amount of physical energy. But not everyone agrees that we also have a limited amount of mental energy. 

For instance, we’ve heard the stories of people like Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, and even Albert Einstein wearing the same outfit (owning multiples of the same look) so they don’t have to use any of their mental resources making a decision about what to wear. There are reports that Einstein didn’t even memorize his own phone number for the same reason. Do you think he was onto something?

Check Your Human Design For Insight

When we look at the centers in human design, the head center and the ajna make up the mind. The head center is for asking questions, inspiration, and mental pressure. While the ajna is for answering questions, understanding processing, and conceptualizing. So when you have either of these centers undefined or open (not colored in), there are some recurring themes that may pop up:

• You may find yourself constantly searching for inspiration and answers outside of you

• You may be searching for the perfect plan to move forward with a task or project; lost in the planning stage

• You’re prone to overthinking

• You find yourself replaying past events in your head

• There’s a pressure to appear certain or have the answers

What Does Any Of This Have To Do With Burnout?

Using mental energy…overthinking…analysis paralysis…all of this uses energy. And when you try to tap into this type of energy consistently, energy you do not have consistent access to (undefined/open centers), you’re headed toward the pathway to burnout. Potentially.

It doesn’t have to happen.

Here are 10 simple suggestions for conserving your mental energy and reducing your chances of experiencing burnout:

1. Create routines if that’s your thing. If not, try creating “guidelines”. Although routines eliminate a lot of decision-making, some people simply hate the idea of structure. In fact, your human design sheds light on if you thrive with routines or not. Check out this post I created on IG if routines aren’t your thing. But what I can say is the more decisions you can eliminate, the more mental energy you’ll have for the things that really matter to you!

2. Get some good sleep. It doesn’t matter what your human design type is or what centers you have defined/undefined, you need rest. Sleep is the ultimate reset button and we have the opportunity to do it each night. Those who try to minimize the need for sleep will eventually feel it later! Nothing seems to recharge our brains, intellect, and emotions better than a good night’s sleep. A regular bedtime and wake up time can help to ensure you’re getting enough sleep. Everyone has an optimum amount of sleep. Try to get yours each night.

3. Try single-tasking instead of multi-tasking: Real talk, most people are not as good at multi-tasking as they’d like to believe. Study after study is showing that multi-tasking is simply inefficient. It takes time and energy to switch from one task to another. And from a human design standpoint, Manifesting Generators are the only type that is kinda good at it.

4. Don’t skip your breaks. Taking regular breaks results in getting more done. Even short breaks provide a mental and physical boost. A 15-minute break every 90 to 120 minutes works for a lot of people. But I think experimenting with different schedules is key. If you’re a Manifestor, Projector, or Reflector who does not have a defined sacral center, you may find yourself needing more or longer breaks when you’re working throughout the day. I personally need to take some kind of break every 30-45 minutes.

5. Move that body! Exercise clears the mind. The exertion coupled with an activity that doesn’t require a lot of thought seems to have a magical effect on our mental reserves. And working out is the perfect way to release the stressors we encounter daily.

6. Watch what you eat. Digesting food requires a lot of energy. Especially when you’re eating things that don’t agree with your body. Try to avoid hard-to-digest, heavily processed foods and those that spike your blood sugar. The choices you make in terms of food can significantly affect how you feel!

7. Learn to let go. You can go around trying to answer every question that pops up, trying to be certain, trying to create the perfect plan. But remember, this all takes a lot of energy. Sometimes you just have to let go and keep moving forward. If you have a limited amount of mental energy, it only makes sense to save it for things that truly matter. And honestly, most things in life aren’t really worth the fuss.

8. Planning for the day or week ahead. When you start your day, it’s much easier and more productive if you already know what you’d like to focus on for the day. If you like schedules and routines, before going to sleep, make a list of things to do the following day. When you wake up, you already know the plan for the day. And if a schedule isn’t your thing, at the beginning of the week, create a list of things you’d like to make progress on for the week and pull from your list each day.

9. Delegate to be great! Delegation can open up a lot of mental energy when you have clear expectations and the right people in place. In your business, this can look like hiring a virtual assistant. Or at home, it can be sharing and/or alternating responsibilities amongst your housemates (family or roomies).

10. Monitor your self-talk. It’s easy to wear ourselves out with negative thoughts. Keep your internal dialog positive and upbeat. This matters far more than most people realize.

Learning to conserve and build your mental energy can create more time and space in your life for the things that really matter, while also keeping you from burning out. As with everything, I do not believe there is a one size fits all method to anything. So I hope you’ll take some of the suggestions here and experiment to see what works for you. And if you’re ready to learn more about your human design, click here to learn about my Illuminate the Muse human design reading.