I’ve been contemplating the issue of burn out lately. In my experience PR can drive a lot of people to crash. I don’t think it’s anything deliberate or malicious, just the nature of an industry that’s always running on deadline and in a fast, rapidly changing environment –not to mention the consistent competition (internally, with other agencies, other brands, other voices, other ideas, etc).
I recently felt close to burn out. I’m not saying this to illicit sympathy or pity, but was consistently exhausted due to the nature of my life, which features little to no down time. And I didn’t feel I had much to give, which I hate.
But I’ve developed a little checklist of things that I start to do, or ramp up when I feel a little thin, which I think saved me this time. These are all lessons personally learnt or inherited from friends and I thought to share them as they really helped me lately. Continue reading
Catherine Donnelly 