5 Ways to Avoid Burnout and Hustle-Culture for Photographers & Creatives
5 Ways to Avoid Burnout and Hustle-Culture for Photographers & Creatives
Why Honoring Your Energy and Intuition are Ev-ver-y-thing
Are you waking up in the mornings, feeling like you need to still sleep 45 extra days, and having ZERO motivation, I mean NONE AT ALL for your work day ahead?
Photographer creative friend, you’re probably burnt out.
So you've been constantly hustling and not seeing the results you feel like you should be? You’ve been following all of those big gurus who hold up the hustle like a trophy and listening to the advice you’ve always heard of ‘‘hustle 24/7 #hustle’’. But, it seems like you’re hitting a wall and not moving the needle forward. If so, you're not alone. A lot of creative solopreneurs feel this way. In today's society, there is a lot of pressure to be productive all the time, and being a creative solopreneur, you’re also expected to do everything in your business. It can be easy to burn out with expectations and industry standards like these.
Plus the standard of a 40hr work week that, ummmm, sorry to tell you is a bunch of bullshit. Your brain actually has a cognitive decline working above about 25hrs a week. And, if you’re overworking (aka the most common reason for burnout), anything over 45hrs a week, your brain is as if you aren’t working at all PLUS you are overstressing your nervous system.
#downwiththe40hrworkweek
As someone who has experienced extreme, multi-year-long burnout firsthand, I can tell you that it's not fun. It's draining, physically and mentally, and it creates havoc within your nervous system. If you're constantly hustling and grinding, eventually something is going to give. That's why honoring your energy, interests, and intuition when building a business is important.
Building a photography or creative service business is a long game, it needs to be sustainable, and burning out cycles are not only unsustainable but affects your health, your nervous system (which then influences how you perceive everything around you), and your ability to grow the photography business.
In this blog post, we will discuss five ways to avoid burnout in your photography or creative business and create a more sustainable business and lifestyle by honoring your energy, interests, and intuition.
1. Make sure your elopement photography or creative business is in line with your interests
It's important to be passionate about the work you're doing if you want to avoid burnout. If you're not interested in what you're doing, it's going to be difficult to keep up the energy and enthusiasm required to sustain a business. Your dopamine levels will be low and it will feel like dragging through the mud to get anything done. This is ESPECIALLY true for my fellow ADHD entrepreneurs.
Do some soul-searching and make sure your business is in line with your interests. It doesn't have to be your only interest, but it should be something you're excited about and have a connection to your mission and superpowers.
Passion is what keeps us going when the going gets tough and burnout starts to set in. If we don't have a strong why behind what we're doing, it's easy to give up. But if we're passionate about our work, we'll find the strength to keep going even when things get tough.
So ask yourself: is my business aligned with my true interests? Do I enjoy the work I'm doing? If not, it might be time to make some changes.
This does not mean you must do everything in your business, however, or if there are things ABOUT your business you don’t like to burn it all down. Just check in that what your business stands for and offers to the world is in fact something you are interested in and lights your fire.
2. Take time for yourself outside of your photography or creative service business
This may seem like common sense, but it's important to actually take time for yourself, even if it's just a few minutes each day. During this time, you can do things that recharge your batteries, like taking a walk, reading, or meditating. I actually walk every morning outside by sea here in Iceland for about 70min with stopping in the middle to visualize and meditate before I get into my work day or even get on my phone.
It's important to remember that we can't pour from an empty cup. If we want to avoid burnout, we need to make sure we're taking care of ourselves first. Only then will we have the energy and resources to pour into our businesses.
If you’re an introverted entrepreneur like me, you must take time not only for yourself but to actually stop working.
As introverts, our energy taps get taken by the day-to-day interactions needed so it’s so important you take stock of when your energy is depleted and don’t force any more productivity.
Enjoyment and joy are the antithesis and anecdote for burnout. So take some time each day, even if it's just a few minutes, to do something that makes you happy and recharges your batteries.
So often my clients come to me wanting me to help them with their business thinking the issue is that they need to do MORE to see growth, but in reality, they need to do less in their work days but take more time for themselves and find joy in things outside of work in order to see their business move forward.
If you’ve been looking for an experience to give time for yourself in nature to connect back to your creativity, release what’s been holding you back, to create a 6 month strategy map-
join us in Iceland at the Iceland Adventure Business Retreat
3. Set limits within your productivity and schedule
Don't try to do everything yourself.
Delegate tasks whenever possible and create boundaries for yourself so you don't overextend yourself.
This may mean saying no to new projects or clients, setting office hours, or taking breaks throughout the day.
There's a difference between being productive and being efficient. Productivity is about doing as much as possible, while efficiency is about doing the right things in the most effective way possible. When we're trying to avoid burnout, it's important to focus on being efficient rather than productive.
So ask yourself: what are the tasks that only I can do? What are the tasks that can be delegated? How can I streamline my processes so I'm not wasting time? By setting limits and focusing on efficiency, we can free up our time and energy to focus on the things that matter most.
As an ADHD introvert, I work only 4-6hrs a day, 3-4x a week because that's what my ADHD introvert energy brain needs. I set boundaries in order to give my working hours full productivity, versus fucking around for hours unnecessarily and finding myself exhausted by end of the week.
If you don’t take the time to limit your productivity based on what your nervous system can actually handle, you’re going to be living in a constant state of stress not allowing your nervous system to relax which will for sure lead to burnout. Guaranteed.
4. Follow your intuition and pay attention to when your brain & body have had enough for the day
I’m a transformational, intuitive coach for solopreneurs. This means- I use my intuition to help guide my clients into honing their intuitive skills, and, growing their business around their energy. Following your intuition and allowing your energy to be your structure and roadmap in your business is a secret weapon. This is how one of my clients went from feeling guilt and shame every single week because she felt like she was not ‘doing enough’, but, after learning to follow her intuition and building her work weeks around her energy- she’s now calm about her work, enjoys life outside of work, and sees that her energy has completely shifted.
So it’s safe to say that one of the best ways to avoid burnout is to follow your intuition when it comes to how and when you work. If you're not feeling productive, take a break. If you're feeling overwhelmed, ask for help. And if you're just not feeling it, don't force it.
There's a reason they call it burnout. When we push ourselves too hard for too long, we eventually burn out. So pay attention to your brain and body and when they've had enough for the day. Then take a break, rest, and come back when you're feeling refreshed and ready to work again.
This doesn't mean that you should take a break every time you don't feel like working. But if you find yourself struggling day after day, it might be time to reassess how you're approaching your work.
Here is your permission slip: it’s ok to not work the same hours every day, for 5 days out of the week. Many of my private clients come to me once they are way past the point of burning out. In order to help them come back to center, they often need to pay more attention to their intuition and work only when they feel fresh enough to do that- which might not be working at all.
5. Work with purpose and intention
When we're clear about our goals and why we're doing the work we're doing, it's easier to stay focused and motivated. But when we don't have a strong why behind what we're doing, it's easy to give up.
So ask yourself: is my business in line with my interests? Do I enjoy the work I'm doing? If not, it might be time to make some changes.
Work with purpose and intention, so you can avoid burnout and build a sustainable and profitable business that you enjoy. Otherwise, you'll find yourself struggling to keep going day after day.
When you are putting your intention into what you are doing and you know the purpose for the energy you are putting out, it will help you not only stay motivated but help you not become busy just to be busy. You know the ole’ 80/20 rule, also known as Pareto Principle, make sure you are putting that 20% in with intention and purpose to see results without burning out.
xoxo Steph
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