9 posts tagged with "burnout"

Unless you've won the lottery or have a trust fund that pays out in premium coffee beans, you probably have a job. Most days, you're likely fine with that arrangement—solving problems, sending emails, and optimizing workflows. But let's be real: even the best jobs come with moments that make you want to delete your professional identity and start fresh.

Burnout is more than just feeling tired—it's a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress. If you're here, you've likely experienced it firsthand. The good news? Recovery is possible, and it starts with small, intentional steps. Let's explore how you can rebuild your energy, regain your focus, and rediscover joy.

For comprehensive stress management strategies before burnout sets in, check out The Modern Office Playbook for Managing Job Stress. If you want to understand the different types of burnout, see 3 Kinds of Burnout and How to Deal with Them.

The world of software development is an exhilarating and fast-paced industry, where innovation and creativity intertwine. However, the demanding nature of the job, combined with high expectations and tight deadlines, can often lead to burnout. Burnout is a state of physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion caused by chronic stress.

Building remote culture isn't about replicating office dynamics through video calls and virtual happy hours. It's about intentionally designing systems, processes, and norms that help distributed teams thrive. The companies that figured this out early gained a massive competitive advantage in talent acquisition and retention.

Most organizations approached remote work as a temporary accommodation — "How do we make this work until we can get back to normal?" The smart ones realized this was an opportunity to build something better than what existed before. They focused on outcomes over activity, asynchronous communication over constant meetings, and psychological safety over performative presence.

The difference between teams that struggle with remote work and those that excel comes down to intentional culture design. You can't just hope good culture emerges organically when people are scattered across time zones and working from their dining tables.

It's natural for energy levels to fluctuate from day to day, but full-fledged burnout can undermine your happiness and career. Look at the different kinds of burnout and some strategies for dealing with them.

Preventing burnout protects your overall health and your career. However, if the way you work changed radically over the past year, your old defenses may not be enough.

Stop feeling guilty and let go of unfinished tasks​

We often feel that we need to be accomplishing something at all times. However, it’s not true. This is just a myth that our society has created and it’s time to stop feeling guilty about not being able to finish everything!

Causes of burnout​

1. Sedation Spending too much time in one place, staring at the same things day-in-day-out.
2. Stress Programming is high-stress, high-mental energy. This can lead to mental breakdowns, depression, anxiety, etc. Don't be afraid to talk to a professional. It is especially useful to find a professional with experience with programmers if possible.
3. Monotony kills. Try to do smaller tasks and order tasks to prioritize variety and change.
4. Isolation. Talk to your friends, family, etc. regularly--even if it can only be virtual.

Eight Dimensions of burnout​

Everyone experiences burnout at least once during their career. What many people don't realize is that it can be felt in many forms[^1], and manifest in different ways.