12 Months Without Burnout! (How To Avoid Autistic Burnout)

[@jermman10]

I’m going through burnout right now, in the process of quitting my job and moving back home.. I have recently over the last 4 years I’ve gone from apprentice to running the business that I’m at, working 60-70 hours a week, thinking I was handling it okay.. but my anxiety has gone through the roof. I didn’t ever see myself in the position I’m in now, but always was being told by my family that I’m doing what every person needs to do, and that being tired is normal and shows you work hard, but this isn’t a physical tired, it’s a crippling tired, the one that makes you avoid talking to people at all.

[@froodoftheforest]

HIya, I feel you. I had a very high-powered, public job 10 years ago and I was killing it. - but the decline started soon after that. Early 30s i was slipping and couldn't figure out why. 4 years ago I was working 2 days a week in a retail job as it's all I could handle. Now? Currently not working at all and grappling with such unrelenting exhaustion and loss of all skills that - like you said. It's just easier to be alone. I see you, and it's fucking hard.

[@WeWalkAI]

Try going to a professional first, before taking steps which might make things worse. Working with a psychologist and psychiatrist has helped me. Yes, you might need to take some pills, but it is not that bad, given the alternatives.

[@jermman10]

@@WeWalkAI I’ve been talking with a therapist, and there aren’t pills that will change the work that I do. What I’ve been learning though is that, I myself don’t handle the responsibilities of being a boss as well as someone who may be neurotypical. It can be exhausting running a crew, when I don’t have the capability of telling people they’re doing something wrong, or slowing us all down. The anxiety of that confrontation can be non beneficial for getting projects done on time. Also when there are multiple tasks I need to run at once, I cannot delegate work for multiple things. One project needs to be completed at a time for me, and with my job there are multiple times per year where numerous heavy tasks all bear down at once. I appreciate the concern though!

[@jermman10]

@@silentservant_ I’m not moving back in with family, just back closer to them. They were encouraging by telling me that I was doing well, and that it is normal, but that’s only because that’s how they were raised, they were all taught “work hard and you’ll go far”, which is what I’ve done, worked hard.. but after transitioning into management here, and now realizing more and more of my traits of ASD are holding me back I’m at a point where I have become burnt out completely. My love for the job has disappeared, I love working for my company, but running so much of it is wearing on me.

[@anhaicapitomaking8102]

@@jermman10 very similar situation. I am hoping to leave my business to my team. I am sure they will do well. I have put the initial effort and investment (it's an ethical company) but now it's time to go.

[@anlongyi]

Thank you for this. I started working four-day weeks recently and it definitely makes a difference. My problem is I don't notice my stress levels until they're already high, so I forget I need a break and push past my limits. Making it a routine works better for me than waiting until I feel like it (because by then it's already too late). Your plan to split the day is interesting. I can really relate to the 4+ hours hyperfocusing and then declining efficiency. I often feel guilty about doing "nothing". I need reminding that a sustainable system with fewer hours is more efficient in the long run than overworking until burn out.

[@jeremylozier7339]

I'm in a burnout now and have been for the last 5 years. I'm 50 and just found out that I'm autistic (undiagnosed) and so I've been attempting to understand my nature and what it takes to have a sustainable lifestyle. Up until this realization I thought it was diet/exercise/lifestyle related and so I've been trying different things to cope but I am steadily declining. Like you I'm an engineer and I'm realizing that I'm going to have to make some fairly serious lifestyle changes soon. I was managing my self more or less ok until I got married and then I really started to struggle because I didn't know how to reconcile my needs, which at the time I didn't fully understand, with the needs of the family in an intimate relationship. So now I need to figure out a lifestyle that will allow me to provide for the family and still be a person suitable for relationship with my wife and children. It is a difficult problem.

[@jyspenla]

😳 OMG…I’ve been cycling through being an intense “sprinter” and burnout for my whole life! I always just thought I must be a lazy person to need breaks from burning out. I thought if I couldn’t go 1000 mph with my hair on fire that I wasn’t “normal” or a “good worker”. I felt guilt and shame then when I’d fall apart and need mental health recovery time. My mind is blown…I recognized in my life so much of what you described of yours! Thank you for sharing your experiences.

[@froodoftheforest]

After nearing 4 years IN burnout - I'm so happy for you. But, sometimes it's hard to ever see a way out.

[@musicteacher5757]

I'm just breaking out of one. I'm praying for you - yes, you can't see out when you're locked in that prison. If you're not religious, think of this as me sending you "positive energy".

[@AnxiousCowboy]

how do you do it? mine has last long enough that my girlfriend has finally given up and left me. I dont blame her. feel so hopeless and desperate-- two qualities that were never part of my personality before.

[@hardtmannn8804]

I've always experienced burnouts, especially when I was in school. I'd put all my effort into homework and studying to keep my grades up the best I could, eventually I realized how much of a toll it took on me when trying to grapple school, work, and a relationship. I decided that Sundays i wouldn't work on anything and that during school I only work at my part time job on Friday Saturday. My friends would tease me about not working as much but I really couldn't take more than I was already doing at the time and didn't want to push myself even further. I noticed that only summer break ever seemed to rejuvenate me as enough time seemed to elapse to rest, other shorter breaks would end and I would feel like I just went through a normal weekend. I remember one of my last years in college sweating over my computer trying to get a project done, and I think I really did push my limits on it certainly affecting my productivity on other things going towards the end of the semester. I have realized I do need breaks, I have just had a hard time knowing when I'm going to burn out and when I'm back to full energy. Recently I've been feeling really tired but whenever I get any amount of energy I use it to work on things, maybe I should really let myself fully recharge, if I can

[@bubbiccino]

Relate to the short breaks vs summer break. This opens my eyes to so much! I always felt like an encroaching burnout was inevitable even though I didn’t have a word for it. I didn’t understand that masking was taking up most of my energy, and even if I was performing well/okay grade-wise, why did I always feel on the verge of breaking? Why was everyone else okay, and why did it feel like I WAS working really hard even though it didn’t look like it?

[@kitgenz1114]

I'm 50 and female and just found out that I'm autistic. I thought my issue was diet/exercise/hormonal/lifestyle related and tried practically everything to take care of myself to get some sort of relief from my affliction of being different. I'm an accountant and worked for a company for 10 years until I burned out completely at the end of 2014. I tried switching careers because I thought accounting was the problem and failed catastrophically. I then put myself in more situations that I thought would help which only exacerbated the burnout. I'm still trying to figure out how best to take care of myself, but feel overwhelmed most days.

[@DillysNZ]

Hi. Thanks for that, the comments also are helpful to know I am not alone. So often I have felt completely isolated. I have run an engineering manufacturing company for 12 years, and at the start, for about 5 years I worked up to 18 hour days, but my boss just let me go fishing whenever the sea was flat, maybe once a month. That with just letting me "work to myself" allowed me to flourish. I bought shares in the company, started another sister company in retail built them up and had a slow decline from there due to doing everything myself. I still kept on for 7 years by managing my energy. Saturdays were a no start until midday, just rest, and limited my working hours during the week, until the business sold and I stayed on to manage the business. The new owner has zero perception, just demands and deadlines and performance reviews that just don't fit with us. I am 47, and only recently put the pieces together that I am autistic. Currently in the process of leaving that job. In my spare time had started a design company, Concrete cutting and transport company to try and find a passion, but miss looking after the team I had. I am not sure what to do, but my wife and I have a mortgage, 2 beautiful girls and a lifestyle block which we love, but need the coin to maintain it. I write this so people understand we are at all levels of the social spectrum. I learnt how to mask from a very young age, how to ask questions and have others talk, conversations are 50/50, make subtle eye contact etc. I seem, kinda normal, and no one understands why I burn out, they think it is because of the multiple businesses. It is actually due to the negative emails, negative people and the additional layer of pressure bad managers and business owners place on us and not letting us manage our time/energy. We get the job done, just not in the way they think we should do it.

[@darcher7199]

A few years ago I started limiting my contracts to 4 months instead of 6. It definitely helped lower my level of burnout at the end. I also started finding ways of breaking away, even if there was no scheduled break, just to collect my thoughts. I've found I'm far more productive overall if I tend to my self in these ways.

[@LukeSumIpsePatremTe]

What is your work description?

[@cheesebread3]

You have changed my life. I can’t thank you enough 🙏

[@darcher7199]

Dude, it's like you're in my head. Thank you so much for what you do. I'm going to start contributing soon. It's been a rough few years.

[@bacchira1251]

Exactly, couldn't point it out better. Thanks Paul for speaking out the things as they are.

[@ycylchgames]

It's good to work in a place that understands, especially a charity that works with people on the spectrum.

[@katrianem2124]

I think this is why I like shift work so much. Sure we sometimes have long runs of shifts but the days off in the week and long weekends - 5 days long. Work so much better for me than the regular 9-5.

[@angelg2966]

I thrived with shift work, but I had a child so I'm working a traditional 8 to 5. I was able to switch to a 4 day 10 hr schedule. Super helpful.

[@katrianem2124]

@@angelg2966 I would love that! I now have a son too but my husband is also a shift worker so I’m having to move to a flexiworking job. I’m curious how it’ll be for me.

[@Belg6179]

I wish there were enough words and ways to thank you for your channel. My son just turned 18. He was diagnosed with Aspergers at age 5. It has been a roller coaster of learning, adaptation, acceptance, and forgiveness for mistakes made. Most of those mistakes on my part as his Dad and not knowing what to do. I love and admire my son. He is brilliant and a kind soul. Through your channel and insights, I have been able to better understand him. He is who he is and that is just fine. I have screwed up enough in life to recognize that to be more like me or "normal" is not the best road traveled. I thank you for your help to all of us who strive to love, understand, and support our loved ones with Aspergers. You are a treasure.

[@gmoni2456]

Ditto, ditto, ditto...from a mom of one Dx at 8 and now 15.

[@au9parsec]

I workout at the gym most weeks of the year, and I've been avoiding burnout by taking one week off from working out at the gym every month. And I also avoid burnout by only going to the gym 3 days per week instead of four or five days per week.

[@DevonExplorer]

I used to get burn out every couple of weeks or so and need bed rest for two or three days. Then I started having afternoon siestas and it completely changed my life. I'm always at my best in the morning, and usually get up really early, so I get a lot of things done, Then after lunch I take a cuppa to bed, read for an hour or so then sleep for about two hours (more if necessary), then I'm good to go, cook a meal for teatime and do odd jobs in the evening while watching something on Netflix. And for years I haven't had a burn out. However, late last year I had to change my desktop pc, which meant a couple of weeks work of humping stuff about, setting everything up, re-installing programmes and transferring a humungous amount of files, and I spent all day doing these jobs along with my usual stuff without having a siesta. I felt okay at first then got really quite ill and had to have a lot of bed rest and could hardly walk or do anything. Which was a good lesson in how important my siesta routine is. So I'm not going without again! :)

[@CanadianWinters]

I can relate to your experience a lot. A few years ago I got severe burnout at work and I quit. Then went travelling for 1 year. Then worked overseas for one year. Now I am back at one of my previous jobs. I can do it easily and efficiently in half the time compared to my colleagues. I still struggle with the occasional urgent and unexpected request, but I can manage. I learned to "pace" myself during the day to avoid burnout (e.g. I do everything in the AM and then take it slow the rest of the day) . I also know myself a bit better now and I know when I need a break/time off. So far I have been a year at this job and despite some tough moments, no burnout :). Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience!

[@margaretryuu4365]

I used to feel guilty for not working hard enough because I work fewer hours. I work intensely and seemed to be doing enough work, but I always doubted if I could be doing more. Thank you for sharing your perspective

[@theodorealenas3171]

I'm so glad I hear all this in my 20. I got to try them out with school work (University) so I can apply them when I get a job.

[@leokot7228]

Now I feel like in total burnout about all aspects of life. Changed several professions, striving to find a better for me. Started studying development in 2020, but still can't get a job - and my passion & energy flies away. Relocated to another country, reconstructed our house (all in 2021) - and here I am in total emotional burnout. Don't even know, when it ends, can't do anything apart from lying on a couch and watch youtube. I don't usually torture myself, so I kind of tried to prevent burnout, but it still has happened to me.

[@bubbiccino]

I’ve been working with inevitable burnout since young. (I suspect I’m autistic…feels like the last missing puzzle piece I’ve been searching for.) I’ve been stuck in a situation that doesn’t give me the chance to recharge fully/enough, so it really resonates with me when you mentioned getting back to work with 15%. I mask in public and burnout in private, but am always treated as an oversensitive drama queen or something. I began equating this to anxiety when I learned about it, but now it’s starting to fit in more with burnout and other things. I always felt like I just needed more TIME to recover, but it would not be given to me…so inevitable burnout. Anyways, I hope your plan succeeds! It sounds solid, so if you can maintain it, I believe results will be as predicted. Fighting!

[@s.b200]

Wow thank you Paul... this might be - the - solution for me! My brain works so similarly as you described - efficient and hyperfocused for about 4.5 hours, after which I just can't continue. Its been heartbreaking - I so much want to keep working! I recently graduated my master's and would LOVE to start on a PhD in science. But my burnout issues makes me believe that I dont have the capacity. I'm waiting in the autism diagnosis assessment queue, but I'm very sure I'm autistic... much thank to this channel. Now I work in a project together with senior scientists, and I've been struggling so much to work 8 hours/day, 5 days/week. I will try your tips! I have a feeling that this is how my brain needs to work. Especially now when the social (and draining) aspects of office work are back again. If this works I might perhaps have the capacity of a PhD after all=,)

[@silviasevilla239]

I relate to your experience on how to avoid burnout. I was recently diagnosed and could not tell when to stop having an intense activity besides studies and every day stuff. Burn out hit really hard, I started to loose strength on my limbs, exhausted of the most little effort. At that time, for two hours of focusing on visual task, I’d need hours laying flat in the dark listening to soft music. That’s how I manage, switching every few hours to close my eyes and rest. I am recovering slowly, avoiding social media. Resting as much as possible. I hope to recover sometime. Have a wonderful recovery year. Thank you for your videos, i always find new feedback to keep going. 🙏🏼 namaste

[@edgarspringall]

Its so true! I have also found out that when I have more time off I earn more money which goes against NT beliefs.

[@Neongoddess76]

I can totally resonate with this. Thank you for your videos.

[@kayjay-kreations]

This is why I work one day on one day off but I didn't know why I had set It up that way! ..it all makes sense now. I work Monday Wednesday Friday One day is all I need to manage and knowing in my head that I have tomorrow off... I can be a blob the next day if I need to.

[@NormyTres]

I'm really excited about this too - I'm watching this 10 months after you posted - can't wait for the follow up video in 2 months' time!

[@loismustdie231]

You are amazing. I have had a history of years where I am only able to put together a few days at a time without burnout.

[@gauntlettolife833]

Great video Paul 👌 I am someone who works intensely and gets A LOT done. There seems to be ashift in a lot of workplaces ( depending on the Industry ) that are focussed on results rather than filling the time model. I am applying the energy model that you talk about in this video, my biggest challenge is changing my mindset of feeling guilty for resting etc.... There's a lot out there about "self-care" and it is true but there is also the self acceptance when those of us who work intensely and very productively that it is not only is that accepts it but that others respect it as well. All the best for this year Paul 👌

[@NgaireandLucyTravel]

I'm ASD level 1 ( aspergers) and working in the health industry. After receiving formal diagnosis last year at 46, I've been gaining more understanding and "aha" moments of behaviours I've had my whole life but only recently can place a name or understanding to. When I was younger and in my University days, burnout would be 3 months solid off all commitments, practically having a sabbatical at my parents house, away from social, study or work commitments. Now, 30 years later, I find I push myself more every day ( due to covid staff shortages) and by day 4 of each week fall into a burnout like phase where I don't want to use brain power on anything substantial, such as follow up calls/documents needing addressing, working etc for the whole 3 day weekend. I often ☆dream☆ of taking 6 months off to just rest and de escalate the feelings of overstimulation. Right now it's not an option, but I tend to take an extra day off if I'm overwhelmed. I've been casual at my workplace for 12 years which allows me to work as little or as much as I wish, and I've done 120 hr fortnights more recently due to covid shortages in hospitals. But right now, I'm trying to balance days off in between to stay mentally healthy, and work around 60 hrs a fortnight.

[@cristobaljavier]

I feel 100% related to your burnout experience. Thanks for sharing your insight and plan, it's brilliant 👏👏👏

[@bakakafka4428]

Good for you, go for it! Though not very helpful for most people, you're in a very lucky position to be able to create your own work time table like this.

[@stefanmargraf7878]

Excellent analysis! Due to my never ending coping strategy, by brain decided to have migraine to tell me when to stop. (which is then too late...) That headaches last for 3 days, mostly at weekends. It feels like an injury to the brain.

[@rebeccarolnick1890]

Thank you for this video!!! This is EXACTLY what I've been thinking about, and exactly what I needed to hear! I'll take this challenge with you :) I would like to go 12 months without burnout. I've been trying to work 4 focused hours per day and do the most important tasks, and then listen to my body and let myself rest whenever I need to. How do you listen to your body and figure out when to rest BEFORE you're burned out? I find it challenging to listen to my body in that way when my whole life I've been trained to push through and push through and not rest until I'm completely burned out.

[@smilingfairy765]

Thank you so so much! Your videos are such a great resource! Your words help me time and time again to discover my own needs more clearly and to feel less alone :) Would you consider doing a video on what you do while taking a break? I've realized that breaks are important but I sometimes struggle with figuring out break time activities.

[@linden5165]

Right now I haven't had burnout for 18 months, but my energy reserves feel pretty vulnerable and I put a lot of time and effort into my own well-being. I don't work at all which is a big part of my current strategy. I'd like to work again some time in some way. Every period of burnout was worse than the one before and I ended up very unwell with physical illnesses. Fortunately I've recovered but I'm very tentative and careful about testing new limits. One of the things I had was ME/CFS and crucial to managing that is the concept of pacing and working within energy limits, making all accommodations, tuning into how you feel and responding to it. Those techniques apply really well to autistic energy management. Like so many of us, before I knew I was autistic my primary strategy was to just keep pushing and pushing myself and it had awful consequences. I'm still learning what to do instead!

[@Aiken47]

Woah travelling for that long would be awesome, I’m feeling I’m nearing my burnout limit at work.this would be awesome Paul but I’m in IT and do oncall too, there’s no flexibility to change work hours. I can’t take the mental or financial loss to find unstructured casual work(I would lose my mind doing this kind of work) I have literally had to set up cognitive dissonance or self gaslighting to justify working everyday it’s a balance between Working and giving myself depression. My strategy is to completely waste the rest of the day after work, I don’t do what I would like there’s plenty to do around the house I only do what’s immediately necessary. I blow of some mental tiredness by riding my motorcycle making me focus on something I enjoy or some minor gardening (also a hobby) My wife has picked up cooking the mundane dinner meals to give me the time to zone out, I only cook what I consider to be fun or challenging- that means I rea search the cuisine then adapt with no recipes 😊 I go by flavour and pretty much can make something decent each time. … small coping mechanisms, that’s not to say it prevents some meltdowns either.

[@jimaholic]

This is so on point - thanks so much! Love to get an update! Love to know how you’re going 1/3+ of the way through the year. Any tweaks, iterations or observations on your plan/execution? I hope, for all our sakes, it’s working out for you!

[@robipresotto]

I'm a software engineer mostly working with cloud solutions and like you paul always tries to adjust my routine and go for long walks to avoid burnout. I can focus and be extremely productive so always can find time to turn a little a bit off. Sparkling water with lemon helps a lot also to calm down and of course lots of dark chocolate :P

[@croitor2009]

I think we should perfect the art and skill of resting,no phone no screen time, just rest.A great resting activity can be gardening, i m just not getting tired doing it.

[@ash.mystic]

I relate to this a lot! I’m diagnosed with bipolar disorder type 2 (among other things) and tend to push myself extra hard in manic states to take advantage of the high energy and creativity before a depressive episode hits. But it easily leads to burnout and can actually trigger depressive episodes. It just happened this week.. so thanks for the reminder to take breaks BEFORE I reach my limit! Also, your time/energy management philosophy reminds me of the 80/20 rule. I’m curious if you’re familiar with it.

[@blondesloth]

What is the 80/20 rule?

[@ash.mystic]

@@blondesloth The 80/20 rule (also known as the Pareto Principle or Pareto Distribution) is the general principle that 20% of what you do results in 80% of your outcomes. Put another way, 80% of your outcomes result from just 20% of your inputs. Applying it to your life can be very useful because it means that you can be a lot more efficient and effective by eliminating things that take a lot of time but don’t give much in return. If you can identify the 20% of things that provide most of the value and just focus on that, you will have more free time and your life can improve a lot! There are a lot of good videos about it on KZbin so I recommend looking it up :) And an interesting book about it is “The 4-Hour Work Week” by Tim Harris. Philosopher Jordan Peterson also talks about it a lot in the context of economics and political theory.

[@Good_Praxis]

It's amazing to see you switching to energy management after I had just learned about the concept of energy management over time management a couple of days ago!!

[@senaitmesfin4923]

I didn't know when i worked as a nurse i was burn out the dr.told me i am burn out. I haven't worked now for 2years. After 10 years hardworking and hade gone through cancer treatment 10 years ago. I love what u r doing keep upp the good work thanks a lot!!

[@arobinreads]

Thank you for sharing this. In a burn out right now and I think I need to make some changes in my life, so I can do this as well.

[@TheWriterOnFire]

I am currently jn the midst of burnout. I'm dealing with it, I took a day off, I am indulging my hobbies and weird quirks (unmasking essentially) and not focusing too much on what is on my to do list. It's helped a bit, I'm definitely feeling better. Even just knowing that I had a day off coming up made the beginning of the week easier

[@madao7865]

I tend to burn out when trying to maintain relationships. The only time I burnt out at work was, too, because of trying to avoid conflict.

[@WeWalkAI]

I wish I saw it a year ago. That could have saved me from a clinical depression and an absolute burn out.

[@AE-wy7ze]

The only thing that got me through burnout was regular swimming and thermal bath. Water has a very curative effect. I dont know if I am autistic, but listening to Paul brings me so much peace, like finally someone gets me.

[@alexadellastella5247]

Such a great video! makes so much sense! thank you o much, it's gonna help me tremendously to shift from prioritising energy management over time management.... I had never seen it this way...

[@Fifi313-55]

Omg I’m an engineer too and I’m very certain I’m autistic too and everything makes so much sense after watching your videos

[@joee555]

Your videos are very helpful, thanks for making them.

[@elinamakela8435]

I work two to three times as fast as my colleagues so I work and then I do something easy and enjoyable that is classified as work but I treat it as a break because it's so soothing. And after work I methodically wind down, drink calming tea, do a deep stretching routine, read a book and listen to a guided meditation while laying on a acupressure mat. I've managed 8 months at an open office 40 hours a week and this is not only my longest job vacancy but also the longest time without burnout in years. Last year I had chronic migraine and very low coping in everyday life so I developed this wind down method and it's a winner!

[@Joe-pw5wf]

Does anyone else here struggle with Employment with there aspergeres? I'm finding it so difficult and the pressure just keeps on building, it's immense! Hope you guys can help me out 😊 cheera

[@madamfreed3322]

Yes! I am looking for work due to having a major panic attack at my last job and my boss firing me for it. Not sure if this also applies to you but i struggle with ocd that makes certain job tasks almost impossible. In my experience it is all about finding an understanding work group, as i have had some incredibly understanding management able to work with me on my bad days and others like the boss that fired me.

[@Joe-pw5wf]

@@madamfreed3322 I understand exactly what you mean! I can't just find any job and that's the wlone for me ( like customer service in retail of McDonald's etc). Those jobs I. Simply cannot do but its so hard finding a place where you can carry out the tasks but with the least amount of stress.

[@NoiseDay]

@@Joe-pw5wf The two jobs I've found more comfortable based on their nature is janitorial and working in a library. I would also consider bookkeeping or secretarial, but I've never done it. With janitorial, I was at a middle school working 4 hours after school was out. All the kids and most of the teachers were out of the building within the first half hour, so it was just me and a vacuum (and my headphones) most of the time. At the library, my job was essentially to put the books away and help the rogue patron find an item. Everyone was super nice. It didn't last because of my personal needs and interests, but I'd go back if I could get paid managing inventory and sitting in the quiet hidden office area. A few people in my department were probably autistic, but I didn't ask to make sure.

[@Joe-pw5wf]

@@NoiseDay I'd definitely look into that! Thankyou very much pal! Do you mind if I ask what you do now? Of course if you'd prefer not to say then that's absolutely fine. I only ask as I want to know as many jobs that autistic people have so that I can hopefully look into it myself! Cheers buddy 😊

[@shortycareface9678]

I definitely experience burnouts, but mostly related to social obligations. I'm doing some volunteer work, and I agreed to a meeting (at a pub) last weekend, in regards to that... even when I had originally said that "this will be my weekend off from social contact", due to having drained my energy on it already. Came home from that, and had consecutive meltdowns. It's been a LONG while since something like that has happened. My executive functioning was out the window; literally everything I tried to accomplish ended in screaming and throwing stuff around. So, I went and took a nap. And the next day I turned all my social media/message board notifications to "Do not disturb". I can be extremely outgoing and sociable... perhaps to my own detriment. The issue is that I usually enjoy it while there, but I come home and realize I've sort of been sacrificing my alone time. All the time to myself, I now have to spend resting and recuperating from the social time. So, I definitely need to set stricter boundaries for myself, and be better at opting out/saying no.

[@monaami555]

That would explain why I get tired way quicker after being promoted to the manager, even though I'm not stressed and I don't work more hours then when I was an engineer. My day consists of focus switches every 30 minutes at minimum. I'm exhausted. I find it very hard to make that mental shift. I feel it would help if you made up more examples, eg a 30 minutes long video of examples, a kind of "brainwashing" into the mental shift :D I will try myself.. you're right, it's not easy to find the right way especially if it goes against what people are recommending generally.

[@livingwikipedia1952]

I experience burn outs everyday but a massive one on saturday. I hate it. Even if I manage to push myself to work, I feel like I'm not efficent enough. Thank you for showing me the way.

[@stevenranc]

Hey! I discovered your channel today. Thank you for your video and for sharing your experience. I have a story quite similar to yours. I'm a designer and I had 3 burnouts that led me to quit good jobs that I really loved. The last burn-out, I stopped everything, without a plan. It took me 6 months to recharge and I went traveling 1 month through California to escape this routine that was making me sick. During this break, I consulted to understand what was happening to me, and why I was so tired? Because I saw a pattern and I had difficulty communicating my feelings to others. I was diagnosed with asperger, like you, at 30 years old. Work is a challenge for us. In my sector, it is difficult to apply your methodology. But I take some breaks during day and it helps a lot. It's a really good strategy. I also use tools to release my mental load, such as calendars, a task board and taking a lot of notes 🙂

[@peterwynn2169]

My folks went away for nine days in the past fortnight. It gave me the reset I needed. One thing my folks don't yet follow with me is this, when I start something, I want to finish it. Every third Thursday, I have to go to hospital for an infusion, so what I do is, I wake up, I put a load of washing on, I wheel the garbage bins out, put the novel I'm reading in Shigemi (my car) and back her out of the garage, have breakfast and a shower and go. Then, when I come home, I bring in the washing and sit in front of my computer. If it starts to rain while I'm at the hospital, I appreciate my folks bringing the washing in, but if not, I like to do it myself. What stresses me out, though, is, I do the washing as dark colours first, towels second, mainstream colours third and whites last. My mother has said that we should throw it all in together. Well, what happens? I get dark items returned with fluff on them, or my father forgets which clothes are his and which are mine, and sometimes it gets down to, "Where are my clothes?" So, I get burnt out by getting frustrated as much as anything else. If someone gave me a department of something and said, "Right, you do it your way. I would say, "Okay, 8:30am-12:30pm, functioning time, 12:30pm-1pm, lunch, 1-3:30pm, sleep or rest, 3:30pm-3;45pm, get dressed, wash face, clean teeth, 3:45pm-8pm, functioning time, 8pm-8:30am, rest.

[@benedekk.8381]

I like the hoodies! Also great video

[@greimalkin]

What you described is exactly what happened to me. The problem is they expect that cause that consistent level of productivity out of you.

[@NickCombs]

I think it's a great idea. I've been unofficially, subconsciously doing this for a while I think. The trickiest part seems to be noticing when my battery is getting low. It's easy to tell when it's empty, but not at all when it's at 50% or so. There's a bit of guilt in choosing to not work when I still feel like I can, even if I'm trying to reason with myself that it's for the best. I can try to just call it break time at a certain hour every day, but my focus doesn't seem to like rigid scheduling like that. I think part of the problem is that there are a lot of social distractions from coworkers, meetings, announcements, etc. Today we actually had a "zoom out" day where everyone moved those distractions (for the most part) to another day or just cancelled them. And it was a really nice change for me. I think they want to do that once a quarter, but I'm going to try assigning DTO towards regular half days every Wednesday to help break up the week.

[@musicteacher5757]

God bless you, Paul. Me too, for the laser-focus approach. Feels so good, then you have to pay for it.... And sometimes other things pile up on top.

[@PeterDragonPPG]

burnout absolutely sucks... I didn't know what kept happening for the longest time but I just kept pushing through... switched from 5 days a week to 4 for a few years and it was a glorious improvement, but ultimately not enough (wasn't just the burnout, my realizations were not limited to just ASD). Left abusive job end of last year and I have never felt better.

[@jim_jam_dseries]

Good luck with your plan Paul! 👍 Working in a setting where my hours are not changeable, means I am yet to find an effective anti-burnout strategy. The functioning-while-exhausted part becomes very tiresome, doesn't it?!

[@tee57515]

This is so helpful. I've never heard anyone leverage the intense focus, I relate. I feel like I've never had one or interests. It's a rotating door. I can't wait to hear an update and am implementing this next week. I always joke that I'm someone who flies to close to the sun, every other month and resigned to thinking burnout what just a thing. So 🤞🏽 this plan. I'm curious what's the different between burnout & overstimulation?

[@louisasmiles]

I'm recently diagnosed as autistic which I'm thrilled about, and I spend all my free time in bed. (If I'm not walking the dog.) I'm unapologetic about this. I love my bed. I love naps. I love sleep. It works for me atm.

[@wolvilataniere]

Wow, I absolutely relate to your experience. I'm in a burnout since December, between work and family life, and I'm currently quitting my job because I can't cope with everything right now. When I'm back on my feet, I'll try to implement a similar approach with short intense work and big rest periods to space up burnouts (I managed to keep on tracks for about 16 month with a 4 days week and remote work, but finished by burning out anyway).

[@elisabethgronlund6842]

I’m on my third several year long burnout and have had several shorter earlier, the first when I was 14. Now I’m over fifty and I have to get back to work again. Somehow. I don’t know how and what but I have to. But, I’m not willing to die for a job. I need rest every day and I need to schedule time, or days, to recharge after going somewhere. I think that I would be able to work at least part time if I never had to leave my home or meet people. :-) Now that I’ve been home with my kids and don’t have to commute daily to a job, I actually have the energy to enjoy seeing friends and family. I never did when I was working. Life OR work. I hope to find a work situation where I am able to still appreciate life.

[@dahgomeedeh8034]

Wow! I feel like you just described me - and what I need to do. I'm a university student, and I'm deep, deep in burnout right now. I just dropped a class and am only doing 12 credits now. Learning isn't difficult. It's everything else that saps my energy. I wish I knew how to practically apply your ideas in my situation.

[@s.b200]

I've been in your shoes, and university isn't as forgiving when it comes to taking sick-leave

[@queecas]

Great vid, i love them

[@turley5305]

I just found your channel and haven't gotten to watch through a lot of your videos yet, so my apologies if I haven't seen the video yet. How do you go about coping with "emotional overload"? It's a major issue for me and I have no idea how to tackle it.

[@HyperSculptor]

You must express/exteriorise in a physical way. For example if you are angry, you can punch a pillow (don't punch anyone!), or roar like a lion under the shower. Or get in your car, close all doors all windows and yell/scream. very simple and efficient. if an emotion is not expressed physically, it gets trapped in your body and harms you from the inside. Wishing you the best.

[@biscotti5]

I’ve started creating a similar strategy for myself and only just realising that I might be on the spectrum at age 40. I’ve never worked full time and I don’t think I could. I like the 3 day weekend idea. What do you do for rest though? I find it hard to rest.

[@Monicaeloo]

Thank you so much for your videos!

[@jedigirl2785]

I switched to being a part-time employee and a part time student. Yeah I'm super broke now, but I'm happy and have energy for actual people.

[@stoic521]

What do you recommend to those who can't afford this kind of luxury? Can totally relate btw. Rest and quality sleep are absolute key.

[@didyouhearthat4794]

Thank you very much for this video Paul. Where you talking about me or are you in my head ? Haha !

[@Maxine_Mjoen]

I don't think my "phone battery" has been above 20% since the last time I had a real summer break (no school no work). So that would have been... 10 years ago? I'm so tired. I need to find a new job, but I don't even have the energy to job search.

[@cannymoose]

I worked zero hours contract for years because it meant that when i was in burnout i could refuse the hours, it just meant i had to save like crazy whilst working to pay the bills when i took time off. I only found out i was autistic a year ago. What you suggest here sounds like a good plan. I have discovered i need to take a nap/meditate/ quiet switch off for example to break my day.

[@kenyonb]

Hopefully it’s not too late to get this through. I’ve been exploring what makes me burned out and what my relationship with those things are, and I feel like I’ve landed in a decent understanding of it. So I’m bad with conflict resolution which I view in a broad abstract way (from relationships to dishes). It’s very difficult to maintain things and even more so to address it in the moment, so that’s what I’m working on. I’m not sure if I’m on the spectrum, I don’t have money for testing, so I’m just exploring possible ways to mitigate stress. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the enneagram if that’s something you’re familiar with. The 9 has a very burn out feel to it, so I’d be interested if you identify with that. It’s a good structure for self discovery and growth.

[@jumper2023]

Very interesting topic, thank you for that. I'm interested to see how this method works for you, as I have similar issues. I've had to take a 1 year break recently due to a 5-year burnout and since then I try to go slower, work less focused so I don't burn out after an eight hour day. This feels very unnatural though and I keep having to set timers to remind me to slow down and it doesn't really work. I'll have to think about how to implement your strategy, maybe it'll feel more natural to me too.

[@felitastic]

Would be great if people were able to do that, just work in their style, take breaks when needed instead of breaking down. I don't know how I will handle work if/when remote work ends for me - I am just finding my way of working without stressing and burning out too much but that will not work in the office.

[@brandonheald9624]

The midday breaks are key. Got out of sync with them however the past couple months and overall productivity has shifted.

[@jliller]

For awhile now I have been interested in trying a 9 hour or 10 hour day so I can take three-day weekends either every week or alternate weeks, but practically speaking it hasn't been possible. Some of my work (the project-oriented stuff) I could definitely hyperfocus while working 4-5 hours, take a 1 hour lunch break to eat & read, and work another 4-5 hours. The problem is the rest of my work which makes this impractical: meetings, phone calls, substituting on the customer service side of things, co-worker needs something urgently. These things, some of which are unpredictable, drain my battery faster and take me out of the zone. When I go into the office on any given day I usually don't know if it will be the kind of day I can work 9-10 hours.

[@flurkills8780]

😂😂I also quit my job because I was burt out and just traveled for a year. I then became burt out traveling. I'm now in the process of finding out that I might be on the spectrum and living my life in a way that's better for someone on the spectrum. It's hard because I have so much other mental stuff going on it's hard to tell what's really going on and what I need but I got a therapist and I'm on a healthy hopeful path right now😃

[@LightsandVessels]

Really useful. thanks!

[@BarryBazzawillWilliams]

That sounds like a really awesome strategy and I am glad you have the ability to implement it in your current working environment. My immediate thought was could you see this ever working in your previous work life. Is it possible to measure how efficiently and the work output of an engineer so instead of everyone working 8 hours a day for the same pay you can say I can produce the same work out put in 4 hours or 6 hours than a NT worker in 8 hours. This is better for my mental health and better for the company in the long run. Without annoying the NT that thinks its not fair that you get paid the same for 6 ours where they work 8. I currently work 0.8 FTE this permits me to use my not at work time for a break or for my adhd / special interest distractions then find the motivation to get the work done efficently

[@krecik-a]

I have a burnout living my life to the fullest. I have a job which I love, it is for an institution. This is very precise and fulfilling job. But live in a country with very low salary, so if I want to have a normal life and own a place to live, like home, I have to take extra job after my working hours, so I don't have much of free time. Making my own business in that area is totally impossible in this country because of taxes and low amount of clients. I don't know what to do to avoid burnout....

[@jimmyfiredragon8582]

Great video. Did you travel to the UK on your 18-month trip Paul?

[@leighannjohnson8176]

The only time I was able to avoid burnout long term was during the Covid shutdown when I barely had to interact with people. People burn me out the most!

[@BarbaraMerryGeng]

Hi Paul - Oh, I’m late ! I will watch & leave a comment. Cheers. 🥗🐇👋🏼

[@ArtsyMegz_On_Etsy]

How do I achieve this when I work for an employer? These days most places keep a minimum number of staff on, so that they all have to work at a rapid speed, and each person can't just focus on their own work, they also have to take on other job positions (a list of tasks that are required to be completed after hurrying up to finish my own job). I swear, if my job starts having a problem with me, I need to somehow find a way to work for myself; which SOUNDS great, but what if I can't find a way to make that happen?

[@dubstep4dogs]

Paul, how’s the plan going? This idea is such an ah-ha moment for me right now as I’m trying to balance my natural work style with feeling the need to work every moment I can.

[@TheWriterOnFire]

Unfortunately my current job doesn't really have space for a lot of these things. My entire day is transitions, I have to work a set number of hours bc I can't speed run the work that I do. I recently got an extra day off in the week which is helpful. But I still have to work for five hours, take a half hour lunch break, and then work another three hours. I follow a set daily schedule that everyone has to follow so I don't have the option of changing my day up

[@evita105]

i've experienced a lot of burn out as well. Having just finished my engineering degree recently, i am now figuring out how to do the entire work thing, and i'm interested in hearing how you deal with your boss in regards to the need for recovery. Do they acknowledge that you work more focused for those hours? and do they accomodate that need for longer breaks? or are you expected to take those hours on your own time?

[@mimistar1427]

Excellent video articulating your strategy to manage work and your energy to avoid burnout. However, it would be good if you could also talk about how this relates to your personal relationships i.e. family and friends. How you will manage your personal relationships, and energy to ensure that you don't burnout in the next 12 months?

[@Sandman03276]

Burn out = working with a team with differing work ethics

[@zachrose7779]

I work 7 12 hour days in a row then I get 7 days off and I still am right on the cusp of burnout the past few years have been rough on the energy side of things I've needed breaks that last months on months where I don't even leave my room besides to bathe and all that stuff

[@nikitusilu]

I am currently going through a burnout now, I find it almost impossible to get out of it. After so many years of studying and now I am supposed to find a job. Just making one page in my portfolio makes exhausted. Have no idea how to fully recover, it’s pretty sad as I am running out of money and time..

[@louisasmiles]

I've found an amazing job.

[@rachelthompson7487]

I can't believe people on the internet understand me more than my own family dose

[@dwyerfire]

What do you if the work is necessarily not something that can happen 'all at once'? Was this ever a problem for you? Like as an AI researcher, it is difficult to do projects like that because it usually involves long training times or submission to a super computer (& subsequent waiting). I mean there are some methods I've learned to make work more amenable to 'batch production', e.g. instant feedback loops in a jupyter notebook, doing 'down-sized' test runs which finish nearly immediately etc... But it still seems hard.