Thank you to R.A. Bolles who requested this post.
We’ve all experienced burnout. That fried-brain feel. It can be different for everybody: Over easy. Soft-boiled. Scrambled. And it can come from a lot of different catalysts: Being overworked and underslept. Depression. Self-doubt. Imposter Syndrome. Even a run-of-the-mill straight of bad days.
Though the symptoms and consequences of burnout can be dire, in our productivity-obsessed society, we often loathe burnout more for the way it detracts from us getting from A to B than for how it’s impacting us physically or mentally. This article will encourage you to maintain precision focus even when you’re experiencing burnout, but you’ll also notice that I’ve sneakily included some things that should help you improve your health even as you improve your productivity. (Look at me Jessica-Seinfelding these proverbial black beans into your metaphorical brownies.)
So, first, how are we defining precision focus? For the purposes of this article, precision focus is the ability to sit still and work on the same task productively for thirty or more minutes without giving in to distraction.
Precision Focus in the Context of External vs. Internal Motivation
The thing about precision focus is that, when we are completing a task that someone else expects of us, we can usually force ourselves to do the work even when we’re not feeling our best. We may not have precision focus, but we somehow manage to tick boxes off our to-do lists. This is because external motivators like not being fired for missing too many days of work are in play.
Meanwhile, if we’re burned out or brain-fried in regard to something we do for pleasure and/or not (yet!) for pay, like creative writing, then it is easier to give up on that activity when we’re feeling crispy around the edges. This is because all we have to motivate ourselves are internal motivators, like pride in our work, which are not usually tangible in the way that a paycheck, a glowing review, or a standing ovation is.
Don’t get me wrong. Internal motivation, time and again, has been proven to be a stronger, longer-lasting source of "get up and go" than external motivation. But every once in a while, our internal motivators need a tune-up.
Let’s take a look under the hood. Like a mechanic’s advice for your car troubles, the following suggestions for ways to get your work done while burned out go from the cheapest and easiest solution on up.
8 Ways to Maintain Precision Focus
Just Say No! (to Multitasking.)
Multitasking is the best way I know to get off task. According to the Department of Informatics at the University of California, Irvine, it takes “an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds” to get back on task after interrupting your original task. Sure, you may feel like you’re doing twice as much in the same amount of time, but let’s stop kidding ourselves. Multitasking just makes us feel more manic. You know what this means: before you sit down to write, phone off, inbox paused (yes, you can do this now), social media blocked.
Set Goals.
The main thing that drains my focus is when I feel like I’m on a hamster wheel, working extra hard but going nowhere. It’s demoralizing! But did you know that even if you feel that way, you could be progressing far more than you thought? If you’re setting SMART goals, then you’ll know objectively, quantitatively, and certainly what you’re accomplishing. So, set goals. Stop reading this article and do it. You won’t know what productive means until you have.
Refill Your Cup.
I’m likely not the first person to tell you that you can’t drink from an empty cup. If you’re running low on energy, consider whether you have taken any time for yourself lately. Self-care doesn’t have to be sponsored by Gwyneth Paltrow. It doesn’t have to cost a darn thing. It’s exactly what it says it is: taking time for yourself because you understand that you’re just as important as your goals, much less the people you want to make happy.
Build Up Your Intrinsic Motivation.
It’s a bonus point if pursuing your goals benefits you personally. Even though it isn’t as tangible or easily measured as extrinsic motivators are, intrinsic motivation is what keeps us going for the long haul. It’s enjoying your soccer game even when your mom isn’t there to cheer you on.
If you’re a writer, then you know that the days when you have a soccer mom on the sidelines are few and far between, so instead of saying, “I should write because I should write,” which is tautological and silly, dig deep and journal about what it means to you that you get to be a writer. Forget the daily struggle of writing life and focus on the fact that you take meaningless symbols and arrange them on a page to create art, meaning, entertainment. You are a writer; you write books. Isn’t it awesome that you are?
Meditate.
Studies have shown that regular breathwork and meditation practice improve focus, anxiety, and health. Bonus points if you meditate while visualizing the things that motivate you intrinsically (see above).
Create and/or Stick to a Routine.
Laser focus is not something we’re born with, and it’s not something we have unlimited stores of. With that in mind, if you’re sweating small things you should already have down pat, like when you’ll wake up, what you’ll eat for breakfast, what you’ll wear, then you’re expending focus and energy that could better serve more important tasks. It takes practice, but it behooves you to get in the habit of making a routine. Make use of a planner, whether a fancy bullet journal, a corporate one you bought at Staples, or the calendar app on your phone. If and when possible, wake up at the same time every day. Lay out your clothes the night before. Plan your meals and your workouts. Go forth and conquer.
Be Adaptable in Your Routine, Though.
Sometimes, life gets hectic or your schedule changes, and you don’t have the leisure time you hoped to use to write. Maybe your daughter or son signs up for a recreational sports league, and now your leisurely Saturday mornings with coffee and your manuscript are shot. (Oh snap. Now you’re the soccer mom in my previous analogy.) (Also, if you have a kid, in a sports league or not, and you have an entire Saturday to yourself, I think we all want to know your secret.)
If your routine is similarly thrown for a loop, take a beat and then try to adapt. In other words, give yourself a moment up front to admit how much this hit to your schedule sucks. You’re not being selfish here; you had a good thing going, and it’s being taken away, at least for the time being. Once you’ve taken your moment, refocus your energy on how you’ll fight to reclaim your writing time. What other areas of your weekly (or monthly) schedule are flexible? Who can you delegate responsibilities to—in the kid example, a partner or babysitter—so that you have more time to focus on things that are important to you? Even if one part of your schedule has become inflexible, I guarantee that you can find a more forgiving window of time if you adapt to your new normal and are willing to think outside the box.
Fake It Till You Make It.
You may not feel motivated at first, you may feel pretty burned out and brain-fried, but if you have the energy to do so, get your butt in your writing seat at the same time every day. Routine is key because it sets your brain on autopilot. Before you know it, you won’t have to overcome the inertia of opening up that Scrivener file. It’ll be second nature.
A Note on Personal and Mental Health (+ 2 Bonus Tips)
Despite the tips given above, if you are truly brain-fried, then you need to go easy on yourself. The tough thing about being a creative writer is that it’s not like being a technical writer or an informational nonfiction writer. There are times when we have roadblocks, no matter how great our outline is. Sometimes you can push through them, but sometimes you can’t. Be mature, by which I mean know your body and your mind well enough to know when your system is fatigued or depressed beyond moving another inch. Admit to yourself that, sometimes, you need to take a break.
You may even need to talk to someone. Sometimes there are things you can’t tackle on your own or at least not without the input of a third party like a therapist, a counselor, or an understanding friend. Whether you help yourself or reach out for the support of others, this sort of recharge can be crucial. When you are strong enough to get back to the writing life, you’ll be better equipped for precision focus and more enthusiastic about putting pen to paper or fingers to keys.
Confession: over the last year or so, as Hatch Editorial Services has grown, I have often felt burnt out.
(There have been days that I’m jealous I don’t get to curl up in a ball and sleep like my cat.) This is why my blog has fallen by the wayside. I’m working actively to get back to posting once a week and sending my Editing Vault subscribers a bonus email on the same schedule. (Shout-out to my Vaulters!)
All of that to say, first off, I know you; I see you; I am you. Second off, hold tight. There are going to be a lot more editing and writing tips coming your way, especially ones that focus on how to think “Type A” and make greater strides in your creative practice.