Get a Life!….Sure Fire Signs That You Are Burned Out!

The last several months have been extremely busy for me. About a week ago, I started to really feel it. Now that much of the busyness is behind me, I have been reflecting on the signs of burnout and what to do about it. Of course, I had to check in with friends and associates to get their take on burnout. Here’s the list we came up withsure fire signs that you are burned out

One of my friends who can do just about anything met her match with young motherhood. Her husband came home from work one day to find the baby wide awake and her sound asleep with the vacuum cleaner running! The babyis graduating from high school next week and off to college, so she didn’t warp him too badly!

When I get burned out, I get cranky and have been known to bark at anyone within range. One of my kids told the dog to stop barking only to realize it was me!

This morning, I went to pour myself a cup of coffee and caught myself putting the coffee pot in the cabinet with the coffee mugs.

One friend described her life as a maze of uncompleted projects. Each seemed like a good idea when she started them.

A massage therapist was laughing when she shared the story of a stone breaking during a stone massagethat is some serious stress!

A personal trainer was telling me she knew she was burned out the day that she was teaching a class and realized her shorts were on inside out!

Have you ever had a complete stranger ask, How are you today?and you tell them. Or worse, burst into tears or chew their head off.That will teach them to be polite!

Another common sure fire sign that someone is burned out is that the world starts to feel very small.

And, of course there’s the feeling that you are a live lit wire and even the smallest spark will set off an explosion.

So, how did I get to this place of burnout? I loved being at home when my kids were small. Even though I was a freelance public relations consultant, I worked a very limited schedule and mostly from home (babies take long naps!) But it seemed I just blinked and it was time for them to start school.

After leaving the corporate world, I dove into the Momthing head-on. My circumstance was a little more complicated because I have a child with special needs. I was overwhelmed by the challenge and really gave myself a hard time because it never seemed I did anything right! I was ready to throw in the towel and go back to work where I could fix things! I learned a very important lesson in perseverance!

I loved volunteering at school and in the community some of the time but it was not my passion. I realized it was time to re-invent myself. With the internet revolution and the dot com burst, the world of media had changed overnight and my public relations Rolodex was a history book. Great! I am too old for a paper route and too young for Social Security so what on earth am I going to do?

Burn out is usually some mix of stress with lack of passion. Often it is a great time to give yourself permission to try something new. So, what’s your dream? To own a business? To start a charity? To go back to school? What are you waiting for? Dream it, believe it and do it! If you think you can, you are absolutely right. If you think can’t, you’re absolutely right, too!

Other times, burn out is brought on by a season of unavoidable stress. That is when it is so important to surround yourself with your board of advisors. Look through your life for someone who will take care of you when you need it. Then let them. Be aware of what you need. Keep in mind that we are all giversand takers. Be aware of which mode you are in at this time and be sure that your expectations line up to that place.

I had always loved fashion, so I decided to start a business where I work with professional women to dress for the job they want instead of the job they have. Granted, my fashion trainingup to this point consisted of shopping! I picked up some clothing lines, attended trainings, read every book and magazine I could find on the subject, branded myself, designed my blog and started marketing myself. I figured out pretty quickly that if you are really interested in something, there is lots of great information out there.

Being in business for myself, especially when the economy has been going through an interesting cycle has had its good and not-so-good moments, but it always comes down to I am as successful as I BELIEVE I Am.It’s not perfect but I absolutely LOVE it!

Laura Beth DeHority is the owner of Glamour By LBD. She loves to help women find the style that fits the life they want and the body they have. Check out her daily blog posts at http://www.glamourbylbd.com