How to Avoid Burnout

Set Boundaries

Work hours have end times. Emails can wait until tomorrow. Your hobby isn't your job unless you pay for it.

Burnout comes from boundary erosion. One day you work until 11 PM. Then 12 AM. Then you're checking Slack on weekends.

Stop before it starts. Hard stop at 6 PM if that's your rule.

Work hard 8 hours. Then stop. Sleep 8 hours. Do something unrelated 8 hours. This balance isn't weakness; it's physics.

Your brain can't produce high-quality work every single hour. After 6 focused hours, you're cooked.

If you're only a coder, one bad code review ruins your day. If you're a coder AND a gamer AND an athlete, criticism lands softer.

Identity diversification is psychological armor.

Burnout isn't personal weakness. It's a broken system you built. Too many goals. Too little time. Too much perfectionism.

The solution isn't more discipline; it's fewer goals or more time.

Burnout is predictable and preventable. Spot the warning signs early: irritability, exhaustion, cynicism.

The second you feel it, change something immediately. Reduce scope. Take 3 days off. Delegate. Don't wait until you break.