On the brink of burnout 😫

#WednesdayWisdom

"For fast-acting relief, try slowing down." —Lily Tomlin

Morning Musings

After 12 flights, five states, four time zones and three countries in eight weeks, I finally understand how celebrities end up being hospitalized because of exhaustion. I am dead tired. My bones are tired. I don't get how people travel for work all the time, I'm too old for that shit.

And it's not just the travel, which is exhausting in and of itself. It's the stress from work and the constant hustle with my side-projects, not to mention serving on two boards, volunteering with various organizations and just plain ol' regular adulting. I'm worn out, beat down and just all around over it.

After working through lunch on Friday, purchasing in-flight WiFi to file two freelance stories on time late Monday night and waking up with a massive headache Tuesday morning, I knew it was time to take a break and I took a sick day.

I needed to rest. And I'm not alone.

Text convos and tweets with friends and followers helped me revealed that many of us are in the same boat: overworked, underpaid and, in some cases, unfulfilled. So we dive in head first to passion projects and side-hustles to fill the void and/or supplement our incomes. And that leaves us with practically zero downtime.

I challenge you to answer this question my therapist once asked me: "When are you not working?" And yes, even if it's something you "love," it can still count as work. Five months since I started therapy and I still don't have a good answer because the truth is I'm always on the go, always on the prowl for the Next Big Thing. I'm addicted to busy and I'm afraid that if I stop to rest, I'll miss out on the next big promotion, opportunity, etc.

But that's no way to live. Life goes on. And I don't want someone to discover my body in a conference room because I worked through lunch again to file this story, interview that client, work on this newsletter ... the hustle has got to stop. Who's with me?

Love,
L'Oreal

ICYMI

As I mentioned , lately I've been obsessed with the new Netflix series, Dear White People. Here are two pieces about I wrote for HelloGiggles, including an interview with Marque Richardson, who plays Reggie.

Dear White People is everything I wish I could say aloud

It's more than a show, it's a movement

Links I Love

Three ways to break free from being "too busy"

Don't focus on your situation, focus on your trajectory

Burnout sabotages performance -- here's how to handle it

My Latest Obsession

When I first heard about Ann Shoket's book, The Big Life, I knew I had to add it to my to-read list. A few pages into the intro and I was already in tears. Why? I found myself identifying with every ambitious woman Ann described. I closed the book and thought, how does she know me? Easy: Ann served as the editor-in-chief of Seventeen for the better part of a decade. We practically grew up with her.

And while some of the advice may be geared more toward entry-level, the interviews and anecdotes from inspiring women are reason enough to stick around. If you're in Chicago, you can meet Ann today at the WeWork in River North. I'll be there!

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Well, that's all folks. I hope you enjoyed this of LT in the City Weekly! Hit me up on the Interwebs below or simply click "reply" to tell me what you think. Thanks a bunches!