Since high school, I've been cycling between two phases.
Phase number one, wow, this girl is productive.
Wow, this girl does not stop. Wow, this girl is on fire.
Wow. She doesn't sleep. And then cycle number two, wow, this girl cannot get out of bed.
She can't get anything done. She has not gotten anything done in a week.
What's wrong with this girl? Is she okay?
Since high school, I've been bouncing back and forth between those two phases nonstop.
I rarely find myself in between. I'm either one or the other.
When I'm in a productive phase, I just feel like I have endless energy.
When I'm in a productive phase Working just comes easily to me.
I sit down, I start working on something, and...
I just immediately like click into a flow state.
Things are just seamless. When I'm in an unproductive state, it's the complete opposite.
I procrastinate beyond belief. I feel intimidated to start projects because I'm not confident that I'll have the brainpower to complete them.
I think it's because usually when I'm in an unproductive state of mind, I'm physically and mentally exhausted. because I didn't get a lot of sleep the night before, not because I'm sick, but because I just am.
And there's no explanation. I tend to waste a lot of time on social media, online shopping, things like that, My addiction to entertainment becomes 10 times worse.
I can't focus, like I'll sit down and start working on something.
And then I'll get distracted by my phone.
I'll get distracted by an online shopping website.
Like I'll get distracted. Or I'll be like, oh, I'm hungry and I'll go like cook something.
I'm not hungry even. I just like distract.
I can't focus, you know? And my self-esteem suffers because I feel incapable of performing at the level that I want to perform at.
And it just makes me feel bad about myself.
And it kind of ruins every other piece of my life.
You know, my social life is very important to me It hasn't always been, but it is right now.
I've gone through phases throughout the years where... my social life is a priority and then it's not and then it is and then it's not.
But more recently, it has been. And it's really hard for me to go and be social when...
I'm not being productive in my work life.
I feel guilt and shame and I don't feel like I deserve to go and be social.
Whether or not that's a healthy mindset is a different conversation.
But my self-esteem goes down, which then ruins everything else in my life.
During these times when I'm struggling to be productive, I always need to take a step back and analyze what's happening.
Why is this happening? Why am I unable to be productive?
And what I'm always trying to figure out is, am I being lazy or am I burnt out?
Because laziness requires a different treatment, if you will, than burnout.
Laziness requires discipline. and willpower to solve.
It's about being a little tougher on yourself.
Whereas burnout requires a break. It requires submitting to burnout. the exhaustion, submitting to the inability to be productive, and allowing that to run its course a bit more.
Laziness can only be fixed by counteracting it with effort.
Whereas burnout can only be fixed through taking a break.
They both require complete opposite treatments.
Yet, they're so hard to distinguish. They are...
Very hard to distinguish. And obviously... the best option is to go and talk to a doctor, talk to a therapist. get help that way.
But sometimes we want to take matters into our own hands and figure it out for ourselves.
That's always what I do. Today I want to talk about the difference between laziness and burnout.
Because they are kind of hard to distinguish, but...
It's such a great thing to understand because... it helps you get through that phase not being productive so that you can get back on track.
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Things people love. So first, let's start out with the definitions for each.
What is laziness and what is burnout? Laziness is not wanting to do an activity or exertion. despite having the ability to act or exert oneself.
Laziness is not always bad. Sometimes we must be lazy to recharge.
But at times we must be honest with ourselves about whether we're being lazy in a responsible way or in an irresponsible way.
I think an example of irresponsible laziness is laying in bed and watching TV all day when you really need to finish work.
And you know, you could do it and you know, it'd be fine.
Like you wouldn't have a mental breakdown if you, if you did it.
But you don't do it anyway because you're just so cozy and comfortable in bed.
And you're like, eh, I know that this...
This thing is due tomorrow or due in two days.
But I just don't want to do it. I think responsible laziness is laying in bed all day on a Sunday when you're You have nothing better to do.
That's responsible laziness. That's just being a human.
Like... We can't do shit every single day.
It feels so good to lay in bed and watch TV and recharge when it's responsible to do so.
And we should all do that, right? It's irresponsible when There's going to be a really negative consequence for you being lazy.
And... mentally, you know deep down that you actually could do it and it wouldn't, harm your mental state.
You know, it might be a little frustrating.
It might be a little exhausting, but it wouldn't, severely damage your mental state, right?
Burnout is a state of complete mental, physical and emotional exhaustion. caused by a lack of adequate social support, taking on more than one can handle at work, school, or interpersonally with family and friends and poor self-care.
Burnout is much deeper. I've experienced burnout many, many times.
And it's so much deeper than being lazy.
When I'm feeling lazy, I'm like, yeah, I could go do that but I really don't want to.
Like what comes out of my mouth when I'm lazy is, oh, I really don't wanna do that.
When I'm burnt out, I'm like, actually, I can't do that.
Like I literally cannot do this or else I don't know what I'm going to do.
I can't do it. When I try to work through burnout, I have a mental breakdown every time, a freak out.
Whereas when I push through and work through laziness, I'm like, glad I did.
And I always feel... better at the end.
Whereas when I'm burnt out and I work, it destroys me.
I'm an emotional wreck. I'm exhausted. And it doesn't get me back on track.
It actually makes the problem worse. Now, a huge difference between laziness and burnout is that Laziness can be irresponsible or responsible because it's more of a choice in a way. burnout is not a choice.
It's never irresponsible or responsible.
It's It just happens to you, you know? And it's so deep in your brain and in your body that...
You can't just push through it like you can laziness.
And both laziness and burnout come into our lives at inconvenient times.
Why? Because there's never a convenient time to not be productive.
I mean, sometimes are a bit more convenient, but even then, there's no good time. to be lazy or to be burned out.
But at least with laziness, it's something that you can push through.
It's not easy. I know I'm making it sound easy right now, but we all know it's not easy, but you actually feel better. when you push through.
So I decided to do some research specifically listing out what laziness looks like and what burnout looks like because I had never done that before.
In the past, I've just gone based on feeling, you know?
Oh, I feel like I could push through this, so I must just be lazy.
Or, oh, I don't think I can push through this.
I think I'm burnt out. But I've never really dug into what they both look like.
So let's explore that together. What does laziness look like?
To start, you have no motivation to start the day, but you feel rested.
Like, if you were to get out of bed, you wouldn't feel like you were carrying a backpack with bricks in it.
Like... you'd be able to get up and feel pretty good, but your bed is just so cozy and it's so warm.
Ooh, it's so warm and you're so cozy and you're remote. is right next to your bed and the TV's right there and you just want to turn it on.
Like that's lazy. right? It also looks like making a lot of excuses. saying, I can't do that because I have to do this other thing later.
So that means I can't do that. Constantly making excuses.
I definitely make a lot of excuses when I'm in a lazy mood.
Like for example, if I have like a doctor's appointment at 3 p.m., I'll be like, well...
I can't really do anything before 3pm today because I have to make sure that I don't Miss my doctor's appointment.
I can't be late to my doctor's appointment.
So I'm not doing anything before that doctor's appointment.
When you're in a lazy mood, you may also... spend a lot of time entertaining yourself.
Social media, YouTube, TV, mindless entertainment.
When I'm in a lazy phase, I cannot stop.
There is no time in my life when I'm more addicted to entertainment.
Because it just allows me to forget about the shit that I'm supposed to be doing.
And it's so easily engaging and it just kills an hour, it kills two hours, it kills three hours.
And I don't have the willpower to turn it off when I'm lazy.
Whereas when I'm in a productive phase, I'm like, it's no problem.
It's no problem. I'm turning it off, putting my phone in the other room, not gonna look at it all day.
When you're lazy, you may also settle for mediocrity.
You're not pushing yourself to produce... your peak quality of work, you know, you're half-assing everything, doing the bare minimum. because you just want to check things off the checklist.
You're not trying to go above and beyond.
And... I don't think any of us feel great about ourselves when we work in that way.
We're not proud of ourselves when we half-ass shit, you know?
But sometimes... That's all we wanna do.
We don't want to put the full effort in.
We could, but we don't really want to. Laziness also comes with the victim mentality. feeling like your life is too overwhelming when in reality, that's not accurate, you know?
There have been times in my life where I'm like, It's not my fault that I have so much stuff to do.
And it's like, no you don't. Like you have nothing to do.
Like you have barely anything to do. You just don't want to do it.
And being lazy makes you feel bad about yourself.
And when you feel bad about yourself, your ego's being threatened.
And it's so much easier to be like, I'm the victim of my life when in reality your life is not bad.
You don't have that much to do. You just are lazy.
I... totally do this sometimes. And I try to snap out of it fast because...
I don't like complaining when it's not warranted like that.
I don't like complaining because my ego is bruised because I'm lazy and I feel bad about myself.
So I try to catch it in the act, but sometimes it slips out.
When you're in a lazy phase, you may also find yourself afraid to start a project because you're scared you're going to fail.
I know I mentioned that earlier because that happens to me a lot.
But I feel like there's this sort of hamster wheel dilemma here. with laziness because lazy behavior lowers your self-esteem.
You don't feel good about yourself But then when your self-esteem is lower, you don't feel confident to start a project.
So then it's like... The laziness makes you insecure and then being insecure makes you not want to start working on what you need to work on. because you're scared you're going to fail.
But then that leads to more laziness, which then, do you see what I'm saying?
It's a hamster wheel. And it's very hard to get off sometimes.
It's also very hard to stick to any habit that requires discipline when you're in a lazy phase.
Work, exercise, challenging hobbies, et cetera, are all put on the back burner.
Stuff that's easy, like hanging out with your friends, going to a party, that stuff's fine.
But like anything that requires discipline, no.
Not happening. Although I did mention the parties in hanging out with friends being easy.
That's not necessarily easy for everyone.
And some people... are too lazy at times to go and be social too.
Everyone's sort of different. Last but not least, many people experiencing laziness are kind of messy during their lazy phase.
Their house is a mess, their room is a mess, their closet is a mess.
Things start to pile up. Now... That's what laziness looks like.
There's not one perfect picture, right? It definitely looks different for everyone.
Now that we have a vague picture of that, let's dig into what burnout looks like.
Genuine exhaustion, physical, mental exhaustion Getting out of bed in the morning is challenging.
It feels like you're carrying a backpack full of bricks.
It's sometimes excruciating based on my experience.
But it's not just physical. It's also mental.
I can't explain it and if you haven't experienced it before, humor me here, but when I'm in a stage of burnout, I literally feel like my brain cannot process anything else.
I can't think. Like I try to think about something and my brain is just, it feels fried.
It's so tired. It's so fatigued that I can't, process a thought.
All I can really do is lay down and stare at the ceiling empty in my head.
During a phase of burnout, you may find yourself unable to put full effort into everyday tasks.
Like you have no motivation. there's no motivation left.
I would say the difference between laziness and burnout when it comes to motivation, at least based on my experience, is how it feels impossible when you're burnt out.
It feels like you truly can't do what you have to do.
Burnout also causes you to feel dissatisfied with the level of work that you're getting done. it brings a sense of failure and self-doubt.
It's almost like no matter how much you do, no matter how much you get done, you never feel satisfied.
You never feel like, oh yeah, I'm done, I'm accomplished.
I'm proud of what I did. For whatever reason, you never feel satisfied.
And this is sort of a hamster wheel as well.
You're burnt out. But you push through and you get work done.
Then you don't feel satisfied about it. which then makes you feel like you're doing all this work for nothing, which then makes the burnout worse.
And then you're like, oh, I have to keep working.
So then you keep working. But then you still feel dissatisfied.
You see what I mean? It's another hamster wheel.
And the burnout just constantly gets worse.
People with burnout also experience emotional outbursts.
I really, really, yes, I have experienced that.
I know I'm burnt out for sure when I start working. because I'm trying to push through the burnout, and then I have a meltdown. crying, panic attack.
I have an extreme outburst. And it always happens in private.
You know, it's not like anything anyone ever sees, but...
It totally happens to me. And that's when I know I'm burnt out because when I'm lazy...
When I start working, I am like, wait a minute.
I'm like feeling more motivated now. Burnout can also cause depression and anxiety due to feeling detached or alone in the world. feeling drowned by one's own life.
I've noticed this as well when I'm burnt out.
I feel trapped in my own life. I'm like...
There's so much that I have to do. I've already done a lot.
I feel trapped. I feel suffocated by my life.
I feel like I have no space to just breathe and be silent and recharge.
And that has caused me depressive episodes and anxious episodes forever.
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A lot of people also isolate themselves when they're burnt out.
It's interesting because I have had phases of burnout where...
I've isolated myself big time. But I've also had phases where... it's really helped me to go out and be social because...
I had fun, you know? Like, there have been times when going out and being social has... helped ease my burnout because I feel loved and supported and I'm having fun.
So I think it depends. Burnout is usually caused by an overwhelming life.
A particular person might have a lot of time pressures, due dates for things. deadlines for things.
They might have a massive workload. They might be experiencing emotional turmoil. there's something or some things in this person's life that overwhelms them to a point where they're empty.
They don't have any gas left in the tank.
We all can handle a certain level of challenge, difficulty, but we all run out of gas at a certain point and we burn out.
We're not machines. We're not robots. As much as I wish I was a robot, I'm not.
So keep that in mind. And last but not least, burnout cannot be cured. through vacation or time off.
This is the worst part. There have been periods in my life where I've been experiencing burnout and I've gone on a vacation.
So hopeful that it would make it all go away.
And then by the end of the trip, I'd be like, fuck. it's exactly the same.
Like nothing has changed. I'm still burnt out.
And what the hell am I going There are definitely a lot of similarities between laziness and burnout.
But I think there are enough differences that it's not impossible to distinguish.
It's hard to distinguish, but it's not impossible.
I think the hardest part about figuring out which you're experiencing is figuring You can convince yourself that you're burnt out just because you want to be more lazy.
Like you can use the excuse that you're burnt out when you're really just lazy.
And I've done it. That's why I'm saying that.
I've done that. I've been like, oh, I'm burnt out.
It's like, no, Emma, you're not and you know that.
You know what burnout feels like, my love.
You're not burnt out. You're being lazy.
You know what I'm saying? It takes... brutal, brutal, brutal honesty with oneself to figure out what you're experiencing.
And you really have to analyze yourself almost in third person. and figure out what's really going on.
But it's way easier said than done. It's so easy to just be like, I'm burnt out when you're really just being lazy.
It's so easy because the irony of it all is like, Burnout looks almost identical to laziness.
There's definitely some differences, but it looks very similar.
And yet, to solve both are completely opposite.
If you convince yourself that you're burnt out when you're really just lazy, then you just get to keep being lazy because in order to heal burnout, you have to rest.
I mean, it's not just resting. There's more to it, but resting is a part of it.
It's not fun to admit to yourself that you're being lazy.
It's a huge blow to the ego. And I mentioned earlier, it's not always bad to be lazy.
Sometimes it's a responsible thing to do.
But what we've been discussing today is irresponsible laziness.
It's a different type of laziness. But the plot thickens because sometimes you'll be convinced that you're not in a productive phase.
You'll think you're lazy or you'll think you're burnt out. because you feel like you're not getting enough done.
But sometimes you have neither laziness nor burnout.
You're just experiencing hustle culture.
Well, what's hustle culture, you may ask?
According to Talkspace.com, Hustle culture is when a workplace environment places an intense focus on productivity, ambition and success. with little regard for rest, self-care or any sense of work-life balance.
If you're in an environment that has hustle culture, or you self-inflict hustle culture into your own life because of the internet or societal pressures or whatever, You may feel like you're lazy when in reality you're normal and you're doing great.
Hustle culture inspires us to believe that having a work-life balance is being lazy.
And I experience this all the time. I experience laziness, burnout, and hustle culture All at various times.
And it's so overwhelming to try to figure out what my issue is.
Because the way to solve each one is so different.
I may get all my work done for the day and then decide, oh, I'm going to go out tonight With my friends, we're going to go get a little drink.
And I'll feel like a lazy piece of shit.
Why? Because I know deep down that I could have kept working into the night, you know?
I'm self-employed. I am my own boss and I make my own schedule and I can work whenever I want, at any hour I want.
And sometimes I feel like I should just never stop working because there's always more to do.
But I need to go hang out with my friends.
Like that... recharges me, that refuels me.
And so in moments when I feel guilty, about having a work-life balance, I have to be honest with myself.
Are you actually getting your work done too and then doing fun stuff?
Or are you just doing the fun stuff? And if I'm doing both... then I can conclude like, okay, this is the hustle culture voice speaking in my head.
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So now that we sort of know how to distinguish one from the other, Let me share with you how I personally handle each one.
When I determine that I'm dealing with burnout, I allow myself to rest first and foremost.
I move around my schedule to the best of my ability.
I can't always move everything around, but I'll move as much around as I can to lighten things up a little bit.
And then I'll figure out what it is in my life that's causing the burnout?
Is it work related? Is it relationship related?
Is it friend related? Like, what is it? What's happening?
You know, what's the root? And then... I'll figure out what I need to address there so that my life doesn't feel as overwhelming and suffocating.
And it's not always an overnight fix, but I think the best way to heal burnout at least based on my experience, is to actually change your life. change something in your life.
And again, it sucks because it's not always something you can do overnight, you know?
But I think that's the only way that you can heal it for good.
I also think with burnout... Talking to a professional is very helpful because it's a much deeper issue than just being lazy or believing in hustle culture.
It runs so much deeper. And for some people, just resting and... making a few tweaks to life isn't enough.
And so I think Burnout needs to be taken the most seriously because it just runs way deeper.
When I determine that I'm being lazy, my first step is to ban entertainment for the next...
48 hours minimum. Entertainment just feeds the laziness.
It's so easy to procrastinate. It's so easy to distract yourself.
So when I own up, And admit to myself, you're being a fucking lazy bitch. the TV's off, the computer's away, the phone, well, the computer's not away because I might actually have to work on the computer.
The computer stays out. The phone goes in the other room.
I'm focusing. And I find it's also helpful during phases of laziness to make a checklist and to commit to completing the checklist to the best of my ability.
And I might put the bare minimum on my checklist, but I force myself to to put 100% into that shorter list of things to do.
Because I found that it's harder to come out of a phase of laziness and then try to do everything all at once to the best of your ability, that's just too much.
So I try to do the least amount I can to get by, but put 100% effort in.
And then that starts to build my self-esteem back up.
And then I start to feel more confident in myself.
So I'm like, okay. Now I can go and I can do more tomorrow.
But it starts with putting the entertainment away.
I'm not kidding. That changes everything.
Everything. When you're in a lazy phase, you turn the TV off, you put your phone away.
You put the book down, you do all that and you just lay there quietly for a minute.
You'll be out of bed. You'll be ready to go.
I think during phases of laziness, it's still okay to watch a little TV before bed.
But like during the working hours, Right?
That's what I do. I don't know. And last but not least, when I determined that my issue is hustle culture getting into my head, It's a matter of being proud of yourself for what you did accomplish.
Realizing, hey, wait a minute. I did get shit done today.
And hey, wait a minute. I'm establishing a healthy work-life balance to avoid burnout in the future.
I'm doing the right thing and there's nothing wrong with having a work-life balance.
In fact, that is... the best thing you can do, right?
It's more of a mindfulness activity replacing the... negative narrative that comes from hustle culture with... a positive, confident narrative.
Like, I'm doing great. I'm getting my shit done and I'm having fun.
This is what life's about. And that's kind of all you can do. when it comes to the hustle culture of it all because The way that you're living your life is not flawed.
Actually, it's just your mindset. You're actually getting enough done.
You're not being lazy. You're not burnt out.
You're actually doing great. You actually are very balanced.
You're just... Listening to the wrong narrative.
And that's all I have to say for today. That's it.
That's all I got. I hope you enjoyed this episode.
If you did, Come back. Come back on Thursdays and Sundays and hang out every week if you want.
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I love and appreciate you all. Thank you again for listening and I can't wait to talk to you soon.
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