For a while now, I've been trying to think of new things to write about, and I obviously haven't had much success. Beyond just writing, I was having trouble motivating myself to do much of anything, be it work, freelance, or fun. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out why I was having so much trouble with motivation. Nothing I did seemed to work. It's obvious to me now, and it was probably obvious to others what the problem was.
Burnout.
I was burned out on work, burned out on the common activities I did, burned out on just about everything. What's somewhat amusing is that I read about burnout fairly frequently, and I always think I'll recognize it when it happens. That may be the one problem most people fall in to. It is hard to know when you're getting burned out. By the time you do realize, you have to make a major course correction to fix it. For me, that course correction has been a 5-day weekend. Thursday through today.
I originally planned to fly to New York City as a vacation to visit a friend. However, plans fell through, and I ended up not going. At first I was somewhat depressed that my vacation wasn't going to happen, but sometimes changes are better. Instead I've stayed at home and done only what I want to do.
I've gone out to dinner and had great conversations. I went ice skating for the second time in my life. I went to Music Midtown on a whim with a friend. I spent an entire day getting to know someone new. I trained for my triathlon. I watched an entire season of Married With Children.
I did not think about work. I did not think about freelance. I did not work on any personal projects. I did not worry.
I was and am happy.
Burnout.
I was burned out on work, burned out on the common activities I did, burned out on just about everything. What's somewhat amusing is that I read about burnout fairly frequently, and I always think I'll recognize it when it happens. That may be the one problem most people fall in to. It is hard to know when you're getting burned out. By the time you do realize, you have to make a major course correction to fix it. For me, that course correction has been a 5-day weekend. Thursday through today.
I originally planned to fly to New York City as a vacation to visit a friend. However, plans fell through, and I ended up not going. At first I was somewhat depressed that my vacation wasn't going to happen, but sometimes changes are better. Instead I've stayed at home and done only what I want to do.
I've gone out to dinner and had great conversations. I went ice skating for the second time in my life. I went to Music Midtown on a whim with a friend. I spent an entire day getting to know someone new. I trained for my triathlon. I watched an entire season of Married With Children.
I did not think about work. I did not think about freelance. I did not work on any personal projects. I did not worry.
I was and am happy.