In my last Just Chat, I talked about how I knew I was going through a burnout stage with my work. Indeed I was, and probably still am. But as I write this, I’m doing so in the shade on a balcony overlooking Playa Blanca harbour in Lanzarote. A different form of burnout, you might suggest!
One of the problems I have to live with is my own need for perfection in everything I do. Honesty, I rarely achieve it, I just strive for it. Perhaps that’s a reason why, although I’m creative, I’ll never be able to have free enough movement of my hands when it comes to art and drawing.
The task of bringing all of my previous work into this website was a big one, bigger than I imagined it would be. So I’m experiencing some frustration with the speed it has been happening. I keep telling myself that I’m retired and there’s no real hurry. But I also keep imagining how lovely it will be when the day comes and all I have to do is add new content as I produce it.
I’ve observed that alongside my need for perfection, I’ve also got a lower tolerance threshold than I used to have. Little things annoy me easier than ever in the past. A child screaming, a dog barking, pigeons, and a few other things wind me up. Is that part of my burnout phase, or just a sign I’m becoming a grumpy old man? I can’t help think there’s a link between perfectionist tendencies and a lower tolerance acceptance.
Anyway, here’s an update to my work and this website. We’ve been here four days and are now settled in. The location and views across the harbour are incredible and we’ve spent most of our time sat on comfy chairs whist observing the comings and goings below us. Observation days, as we now call them! The hired car has only been used once for a short trip. We didn’t actually need to hire it, but didn’t know what this location would be like until we got here.
I brought with me this time a small 11″ Chromebook to use with the intention of returning home with the old 15″ laptop I’ve been using here in the past. The jury is out at the moment as to which of the two units will be coming back with us and which will go into our long-term storage facility. This post is the first time using the Chromebook for working with. So far, so good.
I’ve been sitting for messages from the spirit connect twice every day and as I write this, there are seven sessions complete. The first three of those were worded by a speaker brought in to sort me out! Basically, I got a rollocking and over the first three sessions he worked with me to get me back to form for transcribing their messages. It’s my fault. I hadn’t made time to sit whilst at home and I did no transcribing between series 6 and this new series 7. That’s three months. In that time, I had gone rusty, though I didn’t realise so. Anyway, the special speaker sorted me out. You’ll probably get to read those sessions in November and December, which ironically, is when we’ll be back here again!
Experiencing a burnout is miserable. Everything becomes too much effort and I question myself too much. It’s like a form of depression I would imagine. As I mentioned in the last post, the only way through it that I am aware of is to keep working, keep focusing as best I can, and keep doing what needs doing. Hopefully this break in Lanzarote will help me regain some mental strength.
After the last post I received a comment from another reader who understood my words as he had also experienced a burnout some years ago in his job. I will question him some time to find out how he dealt with it himself. It’s not a nice phase to go through. As I mentioned in the last post, online content creators the world over are experiencing burnouts at an alarming rate as the demands on them increases.
The temperature here is in the low 30s and I’m shirtless in the shade on the balcony, loving every wisp of breeze that cools me a little. After I’ve finished this post, I’ll be making us both a picky lunch with salad. Isn’t it wonderful how nice salad tastes on holidays, and how boring it is at home!
I’ll get another of the series 6 WFSIW ready today and tomorrow. And I want to tell you about how the spirit world brought me a name for someone, minutes before they told me their name and confirmed what I already know. It’s a good lesson for all of us, and I’ll get that written up for you in a day or so.
Don’t forget, your comments are always appreciated and help me realise I’m not talking to myself!