Staying Positive
Staying positive is essential; it gives you the fuel you need to kickstart and manage your day. Unfortunately, it can get grueling at times, and you “wake up on the wrong side of the bed.” Depending on your role — as a parent, caregiver, employee, leader, and so on — the effects of burnout vary.
As a writer, burnout affects how I think and feel about my pieces. My delivery becomes sluggish, and thoughts fail to generate quickly enough. I end up doing tons of revisions because first drafts tend to become subpar and borderline unreadable (dangling modifiers, fragments, repetition). The mistakes give me a headache, and I’m unhappy with the results, but I am too lethargic to make the amendments.
By staying positive, I’m more driven and reminded of why I chose to become a writer. I’m here to engage, inform, and entertain, and I cannot achieve that without the right energy. The good news is that you do not need to become a victim of external forces. We have everything we need from within us.
Sleep well, stay focused on learning, enjoying what you do, and making a difference — or, as Steve Jobs said, “making a dent in the universe.” It might seem hopeless today, but it is merely a state of mind, and you’ve got the power to change your mindset at every waking moment.
