What do you do if you're feeling overwhelmed by burnout in your higher education career?

There is a difference between burn out and worn down. If you are experiencing burnout, it could stem from your emotional, mental and spiritual energy you deploy daily. Worn down could be taking on too many responsibilities and lacking the discipline to manage your time. You should not be burned out after only three years in higher education. That is worn down. Getting a momentum to the work is important. Higher education work can be heavy and toxic if you take it home or internalize institutional transgressions. Mindfulness and positive thinking can keep you present. Find joy in some of the successes and remarkable programs available. Supervisors and the work can wear you down but how you manage or lack thereof is what can burn you out.

1. Hablar con alguien de confianza sobre cómo me siento y buscar apoyo. 2. Establecer límites claros en cuanto a mi carga de trabajo y compromisos. 3. Priorizar mi salud y bienestar, incluyendo hacer ejercicio regularmente, comer bien y descansar lo suficiente. 4. Tomarme tiempo para relajarme y desconectar, ya sea a través de actividades recreativas, meditación o tiempo al aire libre. 5. Buscar ayuda profesional si es necesario, como hablar con un consejero o terapeuta. 6. Reevaluar mis metas y expectativas para asegurarme de que sean realistas y alcanzables. 7. Recordarme a mí mismo que está bien pedir ayuda y tomar descansos cuando sea necesario.

I love everything about the teaching and learning process and as one who has carried that passion from my classroom to my car for 25 years, I understand the blurry lines between career and personal care. One extremely engaged faculty member runs the risk of being pulled in 100 different directions by well-meaning students, colleagues and supervisors. In an effort to support others those instructors will often put themselves last (if at all) on their own task lists. The best educators do the opposite. They tap into fellow colleagues and other on-campus talent where they can, outsource where needed, and consistently delegate like their lives depend on. Quite frankly, especially when it comes to women and people of color, it often does.

It’s important to learn how to say no to requests that infringe on our work and personal life balance. Most of the time, those who request do not consider what we already have to do. We do not have to say no right away. We can say we will think about the request.

Firstly reassessed my work and rearrange it again by top urgent, urgent and less urgent. Then distributes tasks to my team to do it earlier and faster. Omit every things that unnescessary and make me overwhelmed without benefits. Lastly try my Best to finishing my work before be loaded and reach the burnout.

Rest is pivotal to growth. Embrace the power of a positive "NO". Allow yourself the "freedom to fade" (Professor Laura Morgan Roberts) . My coach recommended "Rest is Resistance" by Tricia Hersey- reading it has changed my mindset when it comes to the impact systems have on our physical and mental wellbeing, and more importantly what we need to do to maintain our sense of self-preservation.

I once heard a story about a mouse named Rex. This was a mouse obsessed with eating cheese. Every day, Rex made a pledge to find and eat as much cheese as possible. This was a singularly focused activity. Rex drew out a detailed plan and worked his plan (even using AI tools to help him locate cheese). The more adept he became the ‘bigger’ he got. Now Rex felt vindicated and excluded any other mice from joining him. He made the decision to find even more cheese and upon doing so devoured it with glee. Apparently this is a pattern Rex repeated until the day his tummy exploded. “REX-ed.” Luckily, bedrest and a change in diet rescued Rex. The cheese was moved. Don’t be like Rex. A better you is better for you (and your students). Say cheese!

Higher education is a calling and vocation for many professionals. As a first generation Black woman, there was a sense of loyalty to the work specifically advocating for students and their families. If you are a person driven by advocacy, you must evaluate more often "why" you are doing the work. It could be borderline narcissistic to think you are someone's savior. Helping students can be your calling but your responsibility is to professionalize the work and services and not take on familiar burdens. Volunteering outside of work to fulfill that need can quell some of the intensity of the daily work. At the end of the day, it is a job you want to do well and enjoy. Understand the difference and I guarantee some of the tire will fade.

One of the things that helped me work through my burn out was detaching my identity from my work. Understanding that my work is what I do not who I am helped me to decenter the stress of work and create stronger boundaries that I felt confident in communicating with others. It's hard to not wrap your identity around your work, especially in helping professions, like education, and I've found the more I detach the better I can show up for students and for my colleagues.