46. Understanding Burnout as an Online Service Provider | Part 1 of a 3 Part Series on Burnout

In this first episode of our three-part series on burnout, we dive deep into what burnout truly is—beyond the common misconceptions. Learn what burnout really is and why it’s often misunderstood. 

I share my personal burnout story and guide you through the foundational understanding of burnout, specifically tailored for online service providers. 

This episode breaks down the three critical components of burnout: lack of energy, lack of empathy, and lack of fulfillment. 

I also debunk popular myths about burnout, such as the belief that overworking alone leads to burnout or that a simple vacation can cure it. Tune in to gain a clearer perspective on the root causes of burnout and learn why addressing these causes is crucial for creating a sustainable, balanced business.

If this episode resonates with you, be sure to check out my FREE MASTERCLASS:

💫 From Burnout to Balance: 6 Steps to Burnout-Free Business Growth for Online Service Providers.

➡️ Visit MASTERCLASS to access this valuable resource and start your journey toward a thriving, balanced business.

>>> Don't forget to like, subscribe, and leave a review! 💌

Thank you for being a part of the Soulpreneur Scaling Stories community!

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Transcript

[00:00:00] Andrea Elibero: Andrea here, your host and passionate business coach and scaling strategist for Soulful Service Providers and Coaches. Welcome to another episode of Soulpreneur Scaling Stories. Have you ever wanted to look behind the curtain of your fellow entrepreneur's business to see what actually went into scaling it?

[00:00:22] Well, you are in for a treat because that's exactly what we are doing here. In each episode, we will be uncovering the truth behind the lessons and the stories behind what it truly takes for sole preneurs to scale their businesses intentionally. I'm hoping that their stories will help you to unlock the true potential of your business so you can create your own soulful, abundant and aligned laptop lifestyle through intentional scaling.

[00:00:46] So whether you're just starting out on your scaling journey or you're a seasoned entrepreneur seeking inspiration, this episode has something incredible in store for you. Are you ready to rise, grow and create? Create a business that fully supports your dream life. Well, let's [00:01:00] dive in before we begin.

[00:01:02] Make sure to hit that subscribe buttons. You never miss an empowering episode filled with real stories and soulful insights.

[00:01:11] Hello, and welcome to soul preneur scaling stories. I'm super excited today because I'm doing something a little different and a little special. Today is episode one of a three part series that is all about burnout and this is near and dear to my heart. And I will tell you my burnout story a little bit later in this episode. 

[00:01:32] So how is it going to work? What we're going to do is this episode is going to be really laying the groundwork. What actually is burnout and understanding it because I promise you that it's not what you think it is. And then episode two of the series is going to focus on what is this transformation? What does it look like to go from burnout to balance? Which is obviously the goal that we all want to have in our business. 

[00:01:57] And then the third part in the series is going [00:02:00] to focus on the practical steps to accomplish this. And if this is a topic that is of interest to you, then I am so excited to introduce you to, from burnout to balance six steps to burnout, free business growth for online service providers. Which is a free masterclass that I recently created. 

[00:02:19] That is the ultimate ultimate guide on all things burnout specifically for this industry. So obviously it's linked in the show. Notes is linked below and it is@dancingleafsolutions.com slash burnout. So are we ready to dive in? 

[00:02:37] Okay. So before we could do anything, talk about how transformations, what to do, et cetera, et cetera. We need to define burnout. And I found this to be super fascinating because burnout is not what you think it is. So what is it, what does it actually mean to be burnt out? There is a researcher named Dr. 

[00:02:54] who she is the world leading expert in this area. Um, she defined [00:03:00] the world health organization's definition of burnout and all of these things. So you can dive into that more with her, if you want to. 

[00:03:09] Let's take that part out about diving in more, please. Thank you. Um, okay, so let's define burnout according to Dr. Moslem. As luck. Burnout has three components. It is a lack of energy, a lack of empathy, and a lack of fulfillment. Let's get into each one of these. Uh, lack of energy. What does this mean? 

[00:03:31] So, and think about this too, for yourself as you're doing your work, what your day looks like, how you're feeling. So I really invite you to, as I'm describing this, think about you as like, oh, am I experiencing this? Or have I ever experienced this? Do I relate to this at all? So I lack of energy. 

[00:03:46] This happens when you have chronic stressors that are happening, right? So you have stress, stress, stress, all these things are happening. And then. Uh, you're not really taking care of yourself so well, and you really start to feel exhausted. [00:04:00] The ed, the energy is just not there for things that you normally are able to do. And then when you start to experience this, this first phase of burnout, the next phase is a lack of empathy. So what happens here is okay, you're having all this stress you're feeling exhausted. And now you kind of start to withdraw, right? 

[00:04:20] You kind of like, oh, like you stopped caring about things. And you even have the cynical feeling about your work. So you're having all of these thoughts, all of these feelings happening. And maybe you even become a little bit hopeless, like, oh, why am I doing this? What's going on? I'm not good at this. I used to enjoy this and now I don't, and I just don't care anymore. 

[00:04:42] And you know, all of these types of feelings and what happens when you start to have these types of feelings is. Ah, well, maybe your quality of work starts to slip a little bit or maybe it doesn't, maybe your work is still okay. Maybe you're still doing a good job, but it's a lot more effort on your part to [00:05:00] do it. 

[00:05:00] That is a big deal too, because a lot of times. Burnout can be a little bit tricky because people think that, oh, well I'm still functioning climb must be okay. Right. I'm still getting all of my things done. But it's taking you so much more effort to do them and you're not feeling good while you're doing it. 

[00:05:18] So first one. Is the exhaustion, the lack of energy. Second one, the lack of empathy, the starting to feel cynical and hopeless. And then the third part is there's lack of fulfillment. So maybe you do, you know, you like your business, you like your work, but fundamentally deep down, you're not feeling fulfilled by it anymore. 

[00:05:38] You aren't happy. Like you used to be. If you can recall back when you started your business. You know, or maybe you, when you were first learning about things and you were really excited and whatnot, and now you're just like, ah, it's just another job. It's just another thing to do. So those are the three things that are required in order to be experiencing. Burnout.

[00:05:59] Along [00:06:00] this same line. Let's talk about some myths about burnout. So now that you know what burnout is, let's talk about what it is not. Burnout is not a term for just working too much. It's not overworking.

[00:06:14] Overworking as a factor that can lead to burnout for sure. But it is not the end all be all. 

[00:06:19] And let me give you an example. Have you ever. Been doing something and you just lost the time you were so into it. And all of a sudden you looked up at five hours of past. This has happened to me. This is how I feel, what I'm doing. Things related to my coaching business. I'm so excited to be doing them that I don't even feel the time pass. 

[00:06:38] I feel like I'm in flow. So I'm working a lot. I'm doing all of these things. The time is passing, but I don't feel like it doesn't feel like that. So working the amount of work that you're doing is not the thing that's leading you to burnout. And this is such a common myth.

[00:06:54] This is

[00:06:54] This is a thing that I really wish I could shout from the rooftops. Overworking is not [00:07:00] burnout. Here's the thing.

[00:07:01] It's not the amount of work. It's the relationship between you and what you're doing that leads to burnout. I'm going to talk about this more in the next episode. But just remember that it is not the amount of work. 

[00:07:15] It's not the number of hours. It's the relationship on certain factors. Of your work to yourself that lead to burnout. The next myth is that Bernard happens because you just can't hack it. You can't handle the pressure. I am sure that people have told this to you before, right? You're like, oh, well you just can't handle it. 

[00:07:34] Maybe you're not meant for this. Man. Listen. Well, listen. Right. Burnout is not because you can't handle the pressure. Quote unquote, it's not about coping. Having burnout is not about how well you cope with negative experiences. It is about a mismatch in these six criteria. It is not in any way, [00:08:00] shape or form that you just can't handle it. So if I think of an example from my own life, Let's say for me, and I'll go dive into this a little bit more previously. 

[00:08:10] I have had clients as an OBM that, or this combination of clients that has burnt me out. Not because I couldn't handle the pressure of being an OBM, but it's because what I was doing was not in alignment with. What I wanted to be doing. It didn't fulfill me, you know, so everything was very stressful. 

[00:08:32] Everything was very exhausting. I had all those thoughts and then I just was feeling resentful towards my business. So it's not about, oh, you can't handle the pressure. I have pressure now. Right? There's pressure and business. Always. But I'm fine. It's, I'm happy with it, you know, so. She was just think about it. 

[00:08:49] It's not about the pressure. It's not about the amount of work.

[00:08:52] And then the last myth is that. Well, you just need to take more time off. You just need to go on holiday. You just need a [00:09:00] vacation. Yes, holiday vacation sitting on the beach. All of this is lovely. And we need these things to cope. We also need to sleep well. We also need to eat well. We also need to do some meditation and yoga and just have an overall healthy lifestyle. These things. Are not the solutions. 

[00:09:23] And that's why they're called coping strategies. There's a difference between coping and solving the root cause of a problem. It's kind of like when. Before I was in this industry. I was a nurse and I was working clinical research trials. And I was working specifically with fatty liver, which happens is a thing that happens. 

[00:09:45] And a lot of times with obese people, So the medication that we were studying is a medication to help fatty liver to help take the fat out of one's liver. Okay. Great. 

[00:09:57] These are the same people that also have high cholesterol, [00:10:00] high blood pressure. All of these things that have diabetes, all of this. Giving people, all the, of these medications is helping them cope with their illness, but it is not helping them to fix it. It's not causing the root cause. In most, not all, but in most of the cases of fatty liver, it's caused by this extra weight. So the, the fix the solution is to lose weight. 

[00:10:24] It's not to add on 15 different pills. Right. These are coping strategies so much like in your Bork and your business. If you are experiencing burnout and somebody said, well, you can fix it by taking time off, just go on holiday and come back. Yes, you will feel better for a little bit, but it is not a solution because this is not fixing the root cause of the problem. 

[00:10:47] The burnout is going to be there. It's going to return really quickly when you come back. Cause you're going to come back and do the same thing. It's going to be a cycle. That's going to continue to repeat itself unless you change something at the root. 

[00:10:59] [00:11:00] Okay. So, so there are.

[00:11:03] Six research back factors. There are six research backed factors that lead to burnout. And the burnout happens when there's a discrepancy between. Your work, your business, what you're doing and yourself in each of these factors. This is Dr. Research. This is not me. This is, this is proven. 

[00:11:26] This is her, her research. So research backed factors. And again, we're going to get into these in detail. In the next episode, I really, really want you to take away from this, that. 

[00:11:37] It is not. Just that you're working too much. It's not just that you can't handle it. It's not that there's something wrong with you. It's because there is a misalignment and this misalignment leads to lack of energy, lack of empathy, and being unfulfilled. What does this look like? What can this look like for you as a service provider? 

[00:11:58] So a lot of times on the [00:12:00] outside, what this can show as is your work, your day to day tasks, start to really feel like a chore. You start to procrastinate things. A lot. Things that you can easily do. You don't have the motivation to do them. And so now your Workday is extending, extending, extending, extending. 

[00:12:20] You're working longer, longer hours, but you're not getting as much done. You have the capability to do everything that you're doing. But you're not. And now you're feeling a lot of extra stress there's client issues. There's tasks, issues, work. All these things are coming up and you're not feeling good anymore. 

[00:12:38] And then this leads to you. Looking and you see clients online. And, you know, maybe you're scrolling in these Facebook groups or see on Instagram, somebody is looking for somebody or, oh, that could be a really amazing client. And you keep scrolling. 

[00:12:55] You keep scrolling, you don't reach out to them. 

[00:12:59] [00:13:00] And that should be assigned. Ooh, something's kind of off here. You don't want this client, you don't want to do this work. Why what's going on? What's underneath this feeling. And then finally one last sign is that. You were like, okay, I know there's a problem.

[00:13:16] And I want to do something, but I don't have any energy to do it. You think, oh, there's there has to be a solution to this, but I don't know what it is. 

[00:13:25] I can't, I can't do it. So that's what burnout can look like. And so now let's talk about what again is the real problem. And I talked about this earlier. A little bit. I touched on this, so. To make an actual improvement. You have to address the root cause of your burnout. Not just the coping strategies and it's not about taking time off. 

[00:13:48] Yeah. You'll feel better for a bit. But the root cause that's causing the issue is still there. It's not about the yoga, the meditation, the sleeping bag. It's not about these coping strategies. If you really want a [00:14:00] sustainable long lasting business. You have to make actual changes to the core of your business. 

[00:14:09] So you're not experiencing, you're putting yourself in the situation anymore. And the really cool thing is that you have a business, which means that you're in control of all of this. You don't have a nine to five. And a nine to five, you're only in control of some of these things. You're not in control of everything, but here you are in control of every single piece. 

[00:14:28] And that is really, really powerful and beautiful. So you can fix this, you have the strength, then you have the capability to fix it. I am going to share with you my own story and briefly share with you also my own story of burnout. 

[00:14:44] I had a significant burnout when I was only working with one-on-one retainer clients as an online business manager.

[00:14:52] in the service pro era. Of my business. I was the most financially successful I've ever been. But. [00:15:00] I was exhausted. I was resentful and I was unfulfilled. 

[00:15:12] Why was this? Because I wasn't working. In a way that was aligned with. My value is my vision. What I was amazing at, I was in my zone of excellence. Which if you don't know is something that you're good at and you can do easily, but you don't love it. I was not in my zone of genius, which is the thing that you love, that you're excellent at. 

[00:15:34] That's like kind of the work that you just flow. It's what I call your unique magic. And there's more to this that relate to each of the six categories began. This is for next time, the next episode. And so I had all of the signs of burnout and. Because of this. I had the experience of seeing these clients and not being able to bring my fingers to the keyboard. And being able to even reach out to them, these people who are looking for an OBM that were aligned with me, I couldn't do it. [00:16:00] I experienced this burnout, the effects of this for almost a year, almost a year. 

[00:16:04] And in that time, It led me to reevaluate everything and it led to my pivot into what I'm doing now, because I spent that year thinking I spent that year rediscovering myself, uncovering, rebuilding. It took me a long time. To figure out what it was that I actually wanted to do, but the cool part that really cool part was that. This actually turned into my intentional scaling framework. And that is the core of my coaching business. 

[00:16:32] Now is this, this framework? And this is the thing that will help you too. Not to take almost a year to figure out and to dig yourself out of this burnout. And hopefully with this podcast episode, and with this free master class, you won't, you'll notice the signs before they get too bad and you'll know how to fix everything and how to change it. 

[00:16:53] And you won't go into the same. You won't have the same experience that I did. And, but with [00:17:00] this, with my framework, I was able to transform my business. I was able to get to the root cause and create this business to re to pivot it into something that. Really ensure that my values were upheld. That really let me do these things that, that led me to feel valued and challenged and free and successful and happy and balanced and about all the things. 

[00:17:23] Right. All the things. So my business is intentional as your should be too. And this is the thing that prevents them burnout is when your business is intentional. 

[00:17:35] None of these are at the six doctors, by the way, you'll have to stay tuned for that. So I created a thriving, successful and balanced business on my own terms. And I share this with you to inspire you to know that you can do this too. It's a hundred percent possible for you to do this to you. You don't have to live in this world of. Burnout in this world [00:18:00] of resentfulness in this world of being unfulfilled. 

[00:18:02] This is not why you left your nine to five. It's not why you started a business in the first place. You can do this too. I'm not telling you that, oh, you need to leave this and go into coaching at all. You need to find the thing that is super aligned with you. You need to find your unique magic of the things that you're really excited to do. 

[00:18:19] But it's a hundred percent doable. So. Thank you for listening to this first definition of burnout. I really hope it clarified some things 

[00:18:28] and gave you a really deeper understanding. Of what burnout really is. And not these myths, these things that you see that people say that burnout is. And again, in the next time I'm going to share these six factors. So that way you have the actual steps to take, to get out of burnout for good. 

[00:18:45] So you can have this thriving, balanced business that you set out for.

[00:18:49] And

[00:18:50] And don't forget that I have linked below the, from burnout to balance masterclass and I go into everything super in depth, and it's really amazing. 

[00:18:59] [00:19:00] And there is a special invitation. For only for people who download this masterclass. So go ahead and check that out. Dancing leaf solutions.com/burnout, and I will see you guys next time.

[00:19:13] Thank you so much for joining us today. I really hope you found inspiration and insights from today's episode. You know, scaling your business intentionally and from the inside out is a transformational process, but I'm here to support you every step of the way. Head on over to dancingleafsolutions. com slash resources for free tools to help you do just that.

[00:19:39] And thank you again for being a part of the Soulpreneur Scaling Stories community, your presence and dedication to growth, inspiring me every day.