The Burnout Remedy

   One day someone just might ask you, "So...what do you really want?" And in that moment, deep within your particular answer, there's so much to learn.Because if you quickly blurt out an answer, it could be your heart's desire making itself clear. Which is a good thing.But, you might pause and make a very calculated response - the response you know the asker is dying to hear - and you'll learn something about how far you are willing to go to please others. Rather than yourself.And if, when asked what you really want, you completely draw a blank - a stone cold, deer in the headlights head scratcher - well, then, you may have uncovered an incontrovertible truth.It's very likely you are burned out. Roasted, toasted, fried crispy burned out.Sapped of every ounce of your imagination by the grind of the relentless, day-to-day busyness that is your life.Gah, I am exhausted just thinking about it.Aren't you?So what do you do when you are a walking tortilla chip, unable to even identify one thing you really want?First, take a break. I'm not saying it has to be a month in Fiji, but that would be cool if you could pull it off.But I bet you can find a single day.One whole day for yourself. And just in case you aren't clear, "for yourself" translates into: no chores, no work, no obligations. (Now some of you are starting to hyperventilate because that seems so lazy. So indulgent. So "not me".)(Others are anxious because there's so much to be done. There's always so much to do. Got to keep doing!)(Still, one or two of you are frantic because you fear that if you step away for even one day, someone might jump in and take your place and then where will you be? Living in a van down by the river, that's where, mumbling about Gantt charts and pivot tables.)(And, if you don't mind me saying so, it's exactly this type of do-do-do, fear-based drama that has drained you, my darling.)On this For Yourself Day, you are to find something that restores your energy. Something to block out the noise and haste and allow you to reconnect with the Essential You.Because your Essential You is really pretty fantastic. You may have forgotten just how fantastic, but with a little time and attention, you can find You again.For yours truly, I find myself when taking a walk in nature, reading a great book, seeing art, doing a little writing, and preparing a tasty meal.(As you can see, I have faced burn out once, twice or a zillion times in my life.)At the end of a day such as this, a day when you've attended to your own self and your own energy, it's entirely possible that you will have found an answer to the question, "So...what do you really want?"And whatever it is, it will be your answer.Yours.And it will be exactly the right one. Which will feel both totally exciting and utterly relieving.So, let me ask you... when are you taking that day for yourself? [Editor's Note: My office will be closed on Wednesday.]