10 Ways to Avoid Burnout
Photo: Nubelson Fernandes on Unsplash
For leaders on the brink, and those quietly holding it all together.
A special kind of exhaustion hits those who care too much, work too long, and lead too often from a place of depletion. Burnout doesn’t always show up as collapse. Sometimes it’s the quiet numbness.
The disengagement is masked as productivity.
The low simmer that eventually boils over.
For leaders, especially those who are neurodivergent, burnout isn’t just about workload.
It’s about overstimulation, misalignment, unmet needs, and unsustainable systems. The world often rewards our output while ignoring the cost. But thriving leadership requires more than resilience—it calls for strategy, rest, and collective accountability.
Here are ten ways to prevent burnout, mainly, but not exclusively, targeting neurodivergent leaders. These are drawn from mental models, somatic intelligence, and systemic awareness in my coaching toolkit.
1. Learn Your Early Warning Signs
Burnout rarely arrives unannounced. It whispers before it roars. For some, it's brain fog or irritability. For others, hyperfixation is followed by an emotional crash. Start tracking your signals early, whether it’s disrupted sleep, disconnection, or avoidance. Awareness is your first defence.
Keep a weekly energy journal or use colour-coded mood tracking apps to spot patterns before they spiral.
2. Reclaim Your Rhythm
Our culture rewards hustle, not harmony. Neurodivergent leaders often have non-linear energy cycles, bursts of brilliance followed by deep fatigue.
Honour your natural cadence.
Design your work week around your high-focus windows and your rest periods. Don’t apologise for needing space to reset.
Notice when your breath becomes shallow or your shoulders tighten. Those are cues that your pace needs adjusting.
3. Set Boundaries, Not Just Breaks
It’s not enough to take a Friday off. Boundaries are the architecture of wellbeing.
Be clear about what you won’t do after hours, during holidays, or in emotionally taxing meetings. Teach people how to work with your capacity. And most importantly, keep those boundaries visible to yourself.
“My best work comes when I’m not overextended. I’ll revisit this after a recharge.”
4. Build a Recovery Practice, Not Just Rest
Sleep is vital, but recovery is multifaceted.
Create rituals that regulate your nervous system, such as walking barefoot on grass, deep belly breathing, stretching, swimming, laughing, or cooking. Somatic rest is about letting your body release stress, it’s not just about being still.
Try 10-minute body scans, vagus nerve stimulation such as humming, cold splashes, or gentle movement after intense tasks.
5. Curate a Supportive Network
Burnout is isolating. Especially for those who lead others.
Build a circle of humans who don’t need you to be “on”. People who can mirror your worth beyond your performance. Share your rhythms.
Let them hold you accountable for your self-care, not just your output.
Who in your life checks in with you, not just your results? Strengthen that bond.
6. Audit the Systems You’re Up Against
Many leaders, especially those who are neurodivergent, burn out trying to fit into systems never designed for them.
Instead of adapting to dysfunction, question it.
Are your tools overstimulating? Are meetings draining because of social pressure or unclear roles? Are you taking on emotional labour that others should be carrying?
Map your work ecosystem. Where are you leaking energy due to poor design, bias, or lack of autonomy?
7. Rebalance Dopamine, Not Just Deadlines
For many neurodivergent brains, motivation is dopamine-driven. The chase of urgency, novelty or validation can create an addictive loop of overworking.
Interrupt it.
Design goals that reward process, not just completion. Bring play, music, or movement into your workday to regulate your reward system.
Use gamification apps or time-boxing to pace yourself. Celebrate micro-wins with rituals, not just checklists.
8. Make Meaning, Not Just Progress
Purpose fatigue is real.
When your work stops resonating, it becomes a grind.
Reconnect with your “why” and not the corporate version.
What matters to you?
Who do you want to impact?
What kind of legacy are you quietly building?
Burnout thrives in disconnection. Meaning protects against it.
Write a 100-word manifesto for the leader you're becoming, not just the role you’re in.
9. Name What You’re No Longer Willing to Sacrifice
Time with your partner. Time with your kids. Your family. Your friends. Your health. The joy of creating.
Burnout often creeps in when we compromise sacred things without even realising. Reassert what’s non-negotiable. Your values aren’t luxuries. They are the boundaries of your wellbeing.
Reframe what is important. "I’m not lazy, I’m prioritising what keeps me whole."
10. Create Collective Accountability
Healing from burnout isn’t a solo project.
Share your capacity openly with your team or board.
Design group norms that value rest and reflection. Offer and accept grace. Challenge the worship of overwork out loud. You’ll be surprised how many people were waiting for permission to do the same.
Institute “no meeting” days, energy check-ins, or buddy systems to protect capacity and connection.
Burnout isn’t a badge of honour, it’s a signal. A signal that your body, your mind, and your systems are out of alignment. As leaders, especially those whose brains run differently, your sustainability is your strategy. You don’t have to break down to slow down. You just need to remember
You are not a machine.
You are not your productivity.
And you are not alone.
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