Artist burnout is an ever-present specter, hovering over our busy, productivity-driven lives just waiting to pounce and drain us of motivation.
It’s also very sneaky. We rarely see burnout coming until it’s already there, waltzing into our lives while inviting depression and anxiety to come crashing into our brains.
Burnout can be a very real threat. It can wreak havoc on mental health and physical well-being, bringing artistic projects to a screeching halt (if not prevent them from starting entirely). It can also bleed into our personal lives, creating chronic stress, emotional exhaustion and physical exhaustion.
How do you slay such a dragon? Here are some burnout-beating weapons to arm yourself with.
Insights: Quick Tips for Avoiding Burnout
- Learn to notice your personal signs of stress and exhaustion to take early action in resting and replenishing your energy.
- Establish routines for self-care, such as journaling, meditation, or other relaxing activities, to monitor and prevent burnout.
- Celebrate your achievements to maintain motivation and invest in a supportive community for times when you’re feeling overwhelmed or unmotivated.
Know Your Enemy
Burnout can look different for different people. You can’t stop something you don’t recognize.
Think back to times when you know you hit a place of burnout. What does it feel like? What are the patterns of behavior you can recognize? It’s also important to identify what the signs leading up to burnout were to help you avoid them in the future.
Knowing your tells of stress and exhaustion can help make you more aware in the future. If you can learn to recognize these signs and listen to them, you can take steps to rest, nourish and replenish your energy levels before it’s too late.
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Check-in With Yourself
When you’re in the thick of it, it can be tough to recognize warning signs of burnout. The best way to ensure you’re keeping tabs on burnout is to get into a routine of checking in with yourself.
Plan regular self-care rituals, even if they’re very small. A bit of journaling, a weekly bath or a few minutes of meditation in the mornings… making a habit of checking in with yourself (and taking care of your mental health) can help you spot burnout before it becomes overwhelming.
Make Sure You’re Refueling the Tank
I once had a friend pass along a metaphor that compared artists to sponges. Once we’ve wrung out our artistic output, we need to soak some art back up. We can’t always be producing without feeding our inspiration.
Make sure you make time to absorb the work that feeds your soul. Get out and appreciate your artistic community. Remember, you’re fueling yourself as an artist and not just constantly emptying the tank.
Celebrate Your Wins
I am so bad at this one, but it is so important.
We must be aware of the messages we’re sending ourselves about our art. If we are constantly telling ourselves nothing we do or produce is good enough, or if we let our victories go unappreciated, we’re internalizing the message that the effort isn’t worth it.
Motivation doesn’t just come into being, it must be cultivated and nurtured. Try to be aware of the way you talk to yourself about your craft.
Constant criticism is like tinder for the burnout fire. Holding yourself accountable is a good thing, but make sure you’re celebrating your wins along the way to help improve your sense of confidence.
Invest in a Support Network to Help Combat Burnout
A community of support is so important. No one can weather this industry all alone.
Invest in friendships, colleagues and connections to your community that can support you when you’re feeling insecure and unmotivated. Having a strong network to lean on is vital to staving off burnout. Plus, helping friends avoid burnout might give you insight into your own.
Sometimes, despite our best efforts, burnout is going to hit. Don’t beat yourself up about it. It’s a signal from your body that you must slow down, care for yourself and refuel.
Pushing through it is only delaying the inevitable, and can lead to mental health issues that affect your daily life and confidence levels. So, if you can’t avoid it, take your preventative measures and make them reactive.
American society treats its workers like machines and the acting industry is no exception. We must be vigilant and militant in our insistence on the right to function as humans.
Humans need rest. Humans need recovery. Humans need patience and compassion. Be proactive about giving yourself these things.
Remember that you’re building a lifelong career. It’s so easy to become hyper-focused on getting through the next thing (and the thing after that) until you’ve completely forgotten to breathe and live along the way.
It’s unreasonable to expect great art if you don’t take care of the artist. Focus on your mental health. The work will always be there. Treat yourself with the care you deserve!
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