Student Blog: No Gas Left In The Tank

Burnout can feel almost exacerbated by the high stakes of college academia. There’s homework and classwork, club obligations, and other things that require our attention. For me, burnout often creeps up right at the beginning of the school year (now lol). Two things that make for a terrible disaster is being a perfectionist and a people pleaser, so I often say “yes” to projects I know I shouldn’t take on and I set high (and most times unattainable) expectations for myself in getting all of my assignments and tasks completed, then I act surprised when I’m mentally exhausted and drained by the time midterms come by. 

I had a lot going on in my life two days before the semester was about to begin. I was packing for school, unpacking from a family vacation, finalizing an article, working, thinking of new pitches for my school’s newspaper, sending emails to my production staff for the show I’m production managing for… a lot was going on in my brain. This “keep going” mentality followed me to school as I’ve now shifted my focus to classes and homework, writing articles for the newspaper, conducting production staff meetings, and attending various meetings for the different clubs I’m involved in.

I don’t have much time to myself anymore. If I’m not in class, I’m in a meeting. If I’m not in a meeting, I’m doing homework. And if I’m not doing homework, I’m writing something - a newspaper article, an email, a message to the cast and production-staff GroupMe. I’m always thinking of my responsibilities.

So how are you feeling, Jordanna? Thank you for asking…. As of right now, I am doing good. I’m trying really hard to stay on top of my classes, and to not let other things take priority. I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on that. I’ve implemented some strategies to help my brain not melt from overheating. 

Here’s a tip - If you have a lot of time before class to complete an assignment, do it then, and not in the middle of the night. Last semester, I would have so many responsibilities and assignments that it would result in me going to sleep at nearly 4am most nights - trying to submit things knowing I won’t have any time to work on them during the day. With the way I’ve set up my schedule this semester, I have ample time on Tuesdays and Thursdays to complete smaller assignments before class, since my first class of the day is at 2:30pm. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I have a nearly four hour gap between classes, so I like to take that time to complete assignments as well. 

Secondly, ask for help. College is busy, so if you have friends who can help you out with responsibilities, then don’t be afraid to ask. I said earlier I often send emails to the production staff, but sometimes, I just don’t have the time to do it because articles need to be written. I have a wonderful team of supporters consisting of one director, one music director, and three stage managers who are more than happy to transmit information to the production staff when I cannot because they know how much of a busy busy bee I am, and I’m so grateful for them. 

Last but not least, try scheduling a time every week to meet up with your friends. Every Tuesday at 11am, my best friends and I all meet up at the dining hall to have brunch together. It’s really good for me because I’ve set an unconscious rule for myself to not think of any of my responsibilities when I’m eating with them. Of course if I have an assignment that absolutely needs to be completed, I’ll miss out on brunch that day, but if I know I can get it done another time, then that’s what I try to do. The time I spend with my friends is a time for me to not focus on school related things, and it has been really beneficial in eliminating my stress.

Though of course, burnout looks different for everyone, so what I find that works for me may not necessarily work for everyone. The biggest advice I can give is to just take care of yourself. If you need to take a break and step away from whatever is causing your burnout, do it. You know your limits, and setting that boundary on what you can and what you can’t handle is an important part of the process of understanding how burnout affects you. Not completing an assignment isn’t the end of the world, and speaking from experience, most professors will understand and offer you an extension if you communicate the situation to them. Just take everyday one step at a time, and give yourself grace.