Burnout and Resilience: Breaking the Overthinking Loop
For some of us, burnout looks like exhaustion or irritability. Sometimes it looks like you, sitting at your desk, replaying the same mistake over and over again. That kind of mental loop is what we call rumination.
And it quietly chips away at your resilience.
You’re not weak. You’re stuck.
What Burnout Looks Like in Your Head
You make a mistake at work. Not huge, but enough to get under your skin. You can’t let it go. This constant type of stress can lead to burnout. It can start to build, especially when you get caught in patterns like:
- Overanalysing what went wrong, trying to fix it mentally
- Playing it safe and avoiding decisions
- Beating yourself up, thinking you need to be harder on yourself
- Pretending it didn’t happen and pushing forward like nothing’s wrong
And Then You Try to Cope by:
- Working long hours to make up for it and show that you’re competent
- Keeping busy with low-value tasks to look or feel busy
- Forcing yourself to move on without processing what happened
I just don’t think this builds resilience.
It just masks the problem and drains your mental energy even more.
What Helps You Bounce Back
You can build resilience. Not through hustle or pretending it’s fine, but by learning to handle the mental spiral better.
Here’s what works:
- Give yourself permission to grieve – Allow yourself time to sit with your feelings, knowing that you need to move on.
- Normalise mistakes – They’re part of work, not a character flaw. What have they taught you?
- Focus on what’s next – What’s still in your control? Start there. Let go of what’s not in your control.
- Talk it out – Get perspective from someone who won’t sugarcoat it and is interested in your development.
This isn’t about being “tough.” It’s about thinking clearly when things go sideways.
Want to know how resilient you really are?
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Need a sounding board?
If you’re ready to break the burnout loop and develop stronger, more sustainable resilience strategies, let’s talk.
📅 Book a strategy session with Barbara and start building your bounce-back muscle today.
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