Burning out. It’s a common experience among hard working college students to begin feeling the need to break off from the constant demand of work, friends, and life. Burning out clearly isn’t healthy. It is a major sign that one is pushing themselves to their very limits day in and day out. All one really looks for when feeling burnt out, is a way out. A way out of the misery and into the secure feeling of a balanced and accomplished life.
For some reason, we never see that happen.
When we quit pushing ourselves to the breaking point, all eyes seem to fall around us. The daily struggle of other students (burnouts in training), and there constant self-pushing and moving, suddenly we look at ourselves poorly. We feel we are being inadequate, like we should be working still, maybe even harder than before. We try to get up earlier, finish work faster, get more involved, find more opportunities…
It is insane. Nobody stops. We all suffer, and yet, what do we even get out of it? Triumph? Resilience? Does our limit really expand, or do we just lower the standards of what we consider complete/fulfilling? Do we end up taking pride in every task we finish, or does everything become another check box? It doesn’t make sense. Why would anyone be smiling that they completed a class project the night before it was due by staying up till odd hours with an energy drink in one hand, coffee in the other.
We brag about our burnouts in front of each other. How often have you heard of someone complaining that they’ve been up since 5 in the morning, finishing an assignment that was due at 10, knowing full well that said person is involved in at least three different organizations, is taking extra classes, and is on some sort of athletic team? They had a pretty busy schedule the day before, so obviously they couldn’t get to that assignment at a time that was more reasonable, like during daylight hours.
It is ridiculous to even think we are fighting to see who can bend their will more in order to achieve ________. Fill in the blank. It’s different for everyone, yet we all sneak a peek at what the other person is filling in. We get a little nervous when we see other people achieving something different than us. This is even when we are doing something just as rewarding.
Why do we really do it? These are clearly self-burdens. No one takes this on because someone told them to (explicitly). It is possible that we just want to feel at level with those who seem to be doing so much. Perhaps it is our expectation that companies we want to work for expect us to be so hardworking and decorated in our resume. Maybe this whole hardworking mentality is a testament to our wanting to feel valuable.
Well how does it feel? To be so exhausted from everything. To feel the overwhelming presence of what’s to come, without appreciating the reward that came with just doing what is already considered to be pretty great? I bet it sucks, but you know it doesn’t have to be this way.
Willpower is what probably got us in this mess in the first place. We created the will to destroy ourselves in determination that we would be the combat veterans of overworking. Why don’t we flip that around? Redefine willpower to just do what we are passionate about. We can centralize our work, focusing only on the things that really matter! Our performance can then return triumphantly, and the fruits of our hard work and determination can be felt by those truly impacted: Our individual selves.
Burning out is not healthy. It is not something that measures hardworking value. If we think our friends are pushing themselves higher and higher, that doesn’t mean we need to outwork them. Companies aren’t looking for burnouts with decorated resumes. They actually want smart and passionate people who care about what they do, and want to make a real difference i.e. they are not looking for a robot who can do everything.
Let’s fight the collapse by choosing to do what is important to us, and not what appears to be necessary in order to feel adequate. Don't burn out. Use your gas wisely and keep your torch aflame.
