From Burnout to Boundaries: How to Protect Your Energy at Work

Burnout rarely shows up as one bad day. It shows up as saying yes to one more thing until there's nothing left to say yes with.

Lindiwe Davis, known as The Couch Coach, came back to Inclusive AF to talk with Katee Van Horn and Jackye Clayton about staying the course in your career when the path keeps changing, and protecting your energy while you do it.

Boundaries are not a performance problem

Setting a boundary means deciding what you will and won't take on, and saying so. That is allowed. The people who push back hardest on your boundaries are usually the ones who benefited from you not having any.

Discomfort and struggle are different

Growth is uncomfortable, and that's normal. Struggle is when the effort keeps rising and nothing moves. Knowing which one you're in tells you whether to push through or pivot.

Smart pivots beat panic moves

A pivot doesn't have to mean quitting. It can mean a new role, a new team, a new skill, or a new way of doing the job you have. Make the move on purpose, not in a rush.

Imposter syndrome means you're already doing it

Lindiwe's take: feeling like a fraud usually shows up when you're doing something new. That feeling is evidence you're in the room, not proof you don't belong there.

Community and permission

You don't have to figure it out alone. Find people who will tell you the truth, and give yourself permission to just be for a minute.

For managers

If your best people are the ones who never say no, check their workload before they check out. Ask what you can take off their plate, then take it off.

Listen to the full conversation with Lindiwe Davis on the episode page.