Student Blog: Toasting Burnout with Megan

Burnout is never fun. Whether it's feeling unmotivated to do anything but sit in your room and down a bag of chips while watching your favorite comfort show or simply letting other responsibilities like classes, work, or friendships slip, it's never great. Burnout is something that most theater students experience merely because most of us are trying to seize the time we have in educational institutions or worry we might not have this freedom to experiment again. Here are just a few ways I manage these feelings of burnout. 

One way that I not only deal with it but try to avoid it is by limiting myself to one official show/process per semester. It can be in my university or outside with one of Harrisonburg's community and local theatre groups but, once I’ve signed onto the project, that is my big project for the semester. This allows me to put all my focus into that position and show without worrying about another show that I’ve signed onto at the same time. I know it can be tempting to sign onto multiple projects at once, especially if it’s an assistant position or it doesn’t seem like it would be a big commitment. However, even as assistant designers you still need to be familiar with the show, attend production meetings, and put a significant amount of mental energy into the show’s material to aid the lead designer. Budgeting my mental energy from the get-go and only picking up one production a semester might seem to some that I’m not taking every opportunity early on. But I’d rather learn and place significant mental energy in one position than have it split unevenly amongst three different processes. 

Another way that I deal with burnout is to designate a “no-work day” every other Saturday. Saturdays are typically our dark days at JMU meaning that there’s no rehearsal for cast members. I also typically finish my muggle coursework by Fridays which frees up my weekends. A no-work day every other Saturday means that I don’t give mental energy to production or coursework for the day. On these days, I might text my friends and we’ll take an impromptu shopping trip, park day, movie night, or simply enjoy each other's company. This not only lets me check in on my friends but it allows for a social connection that has nothing to do with the current production or isn’t in a formal setting. I find it also helps regulate my anxiety and overall brightens my mood. Additionally, having the day to clean my space and run errands is such a help. I know I work much better in a clean and organized environment and after two weeks, my room and living space is anything but neat. Vacuuming, dusting, and doing a space reset is necessary in order to keep myself motivated and less like I’m drowning in work. You also have needs like food and gas that are required to live and function in society. Allocating this time for those needs makes sure that they are still a priority. It also means that I won’t run out of gas after a rehearsal, which would be awful!

Lastly, I create time boundaries between production work time, coursework time, and my own life. For example, last semester during the hours of 7:15 am til 9:45 am, that was my time in the morning to get ready for the day, eat breakfast, and collect myself along with any materials I needed for the day. From 9:45 am to 4 pm, I typically have classes and work. Any short breaks in between I’ll dedicate to class work like readings, short essay responses, or projects. We also take time to eat and have sweet treats accordingly. From 4 pm-6 pm, I have dinner and complete any preliminary work for rehearsal that day like rereading lines, getting off-book, or reviewing music or blocking before rehearsal from 6:30 pm-10:30 pm. If I’m not being used at rehearsal, I’ll either continue class work I didn’t finish or continue getting off-book with other cast mates. By 10:45 pm, I’m back at my apartment and don’t continue any class or show work that isn’t immediate, as in it’s due the following day and I didn’t finish it. I’ll decompress and hit the hay soon after. Having these set hours helps me allocate my mental energy accordingly and allows me to focus on more pertinent actions instead of getting overwhelmed with what’s to come. I also like to remind myself if I ever do get overwhelmed that the work will get done. Even though it feels like won’t in the moment, it will. The universe always balances itself out whether class mysteriously gets canceled or it’s a chill rehearsal day, there will be time to get the things that need to be done, done.

In short, burnout is never great but developing coping skills early on in an educational setting can definitely help you as you advance in your theatrical career. I know it has for me!