This Journalist's Experience Of Quitting His Job Due To Burnout Is The Most Helpful Thing You'll Read Today
Journalist Somesh Jha shared his thoughts on Twitter and it seems that a lot many people resonate with his feelings. The thread is now going viral on the microblogging website.
We all get burnout at our jobs - it's no secret. It's more than exhaustion and could linger for many days or sometimes, months. And it's definitely not something to be ashamed of. What's burnout, you may ask?
Well, according to Help Guide, "burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. It occurs when you feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet constant demands."
Dice
Unfortunately, not everyone has the means and resources to quit their jobs when they feel drained out and that is why, we see so many people, just physically and mentally exhausted, getting through life one day at a time.
Penning his experience on the subject, a journalist shared his thoughts on Twitter and it seems that a lot many people resonate with his feelings. The thread is now going viral on the microblogging website. Journalist Somesh Jha shared the thread about his personal experience with feeling burnout.
It has been over a month since I took a major step back and left my job, thanks to something called #burnout. I had hit a wall.... A thread:
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
Burnout is beyond exhaustion. Not only do you feel that you have no energy left to work, even if it's the kind of work that you enjoy, you also feel detached. Cynicism takes over, efficiency takes a hit and nothing seems to pull you up.
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
In past 8 years, journalism has not only been a career, it has been my calling. I TOTALLY LOVE digging stories & holding the system accountable. I worked at (an often unhealthy) neck-breaking pace but that's something I enjoyed doing until...burnout hit me, & it hit pretty hard.
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
Suddenly, I lost all motivation to chase a story. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the feeling of emotional, physical and mental exhaustion. As a policy reporter, meeting people is a core part of the job and the pandemic only made things worse.
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
However, as much as it may seem personal, burnout is actually not an individual issue... if one goes by the literature:
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
"Research has definitively shown that burnout is an organisational problem, not an individual one."https://t.co/T2hamwwLV9
Here's a simple analogy - if you burn your bread in a toaster, the problem is not with the bread.
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
Also, leaving a job is a privilege and that's why the best way to deal with burnout is to prevent it.
A burnout can shatter your confidence like nothing else & it can make you feel drained. If you are feeling burnt out like me - don't doubt yourself. The first step is to identify the problem & the cause. Don't be harsh on yourself or blame yourself. Because it is NOT your fault.
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
Plenty of journalists have spoken out about burnout, especially in the west where the topic of mental health is not ridiculed or pushed under the carpet, unlike in many organisations in India.https://t.co/aGa2fByCjUhttps://t.co/qMsvvLLNVY
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
Having realised the problem sooner than later helped me make some really good decisions and a break is just what I need. I hope to bounce back and continue with the dig :)
¡ª Somesh Jha (@someshjha7) June 6, 2021
Keep a check on your mental as well as physical health.
