7 Ways to Avoid Burn Out

Many of us experience burnout when we pour everything we have into our writing. We spend hours a day, everyday, on our works in progress, on our blog posts, on our comments, on Facebook, on Twitter, all in the name of our writing career.

It can often be an uphill battle. We may not be getting the feedback we want. We may be losing too many hours of the day and our houses are turning into breeding grounds for dust bunnies. We may be beginning to listen again to that voice of doubt that niggles in the background of our minds.

These are sure signs of burn out, so how do we avoid this?

1. Take a break. You don’t have to spend thousands on a trip to a tropical island, but a break – any break – will do you wonders. I try to take a blogging break every weekend. I’m currently taking a break from my WIP before I start to edit. Sometimes I need to take a week off from everything. We are allowed.

2. Be kind to yourself. Remember you aren’t a superhero. You aren’t impervious to criticism, you aren’t immune to the pressures of deadlines, but you can learn to deal with these things by being kind to yourself. Pamper yourself with not only the occasional indulgences (chocolate is my favourite indulgence), but pamper yourself with kind thoughts as well. Tell yourself you will reach your goals.

3. Exercise. Blow away the cobwebs of the mind, step away from the keyboard or pen and breathe in some fresh air. Get the heart pumping.

4. Visit friends. I don’t know about you, but I tend to immerse myself in my work and forget the importance of friendship, relaxation and a great girly chat over lunch. (For the guys who read this blog change ‘girly chat’ with manly beer and grunts over lunch).

5. Reschedule. If you are burning out then it may be time to reassess how much time you have devoted to your career. Because our jobs aren’t the typical eight hour day it’s harder to regulate so we need to stay on top of it. You may need to cut back for a while.

6. Prioritise. This is one of my favourites. When drawing close to a deadline our writing becomes more important so we will have to cut back on other things such as social media until that deadline is met. But know there is an end in sight and make it as easy as possible for yourself.

7. Remember the highs. It’s good to remember why you love to write and why you put yourself under so much pressure. Remembering will help to sustain you.

Have you experienced burn out? What are some things you do to avoid burn out?