How I kill burnout with 3 mindset shifts and instantly save my energy

without sacrificing your ambition or career growth.

I became a productivity freak during the pandemic.

It started in March 2020.

The government announced a sudden lockdown in a nation of more than 1 billion people. Everything came to a grinding halt.

No horns. No street hawkers. No cattle. Just pin drop silence at mid-day. Like hundreds of others, I suddenly found myself working from home.

I didn’t even have a comfortable table and chair to work from home. I quickly bought both, set up a lamp, and added a webcam, a fancy mouse, and a compact keyboard. My “home office” came alive.

Suddenly I felt productive.

“This work from home thing is great”, I thought.

Without an office routine, I craved structure. I set up clear work times, breaks even sleep schedules. But what about meals?

“I can eat at my work desk, right? I’m at home after all. Should I really take breaks for lunch and dinner?”

I convinced myself I had to be more productive.

That’s the lie I kept telling myself.

In 6 months, I put on more weight, spent less time with family, cut down on personal time, ordered food from apps and felt guilty for being away for more than 15 minutes.

But work? It was thriving.

I spent more than 10 hours at my work desk with 2 big screens, answered slack messages within 5 seconds and responded to emails within 5 minutes.

I didn’t realize I was slowly burning out.

My entire day was consumed with work and more work. I resented my wife or my son walking over into my workplace. I would snap at them. By the end of 2020, I knew I needed a real break.

I spoke with my manager. The conversation lasted 10 minutes. He gave me a week off immediately, offering more if I needed. He waved me goodbye.

I left “work” that night.

As I came out of my apartment, the cool autumn air hit my neck. I felt weightless, like a burden had been lifted. “I’m not responsible for anything!”, I thought.

For a whole week.

I had long talks with my wife, took my family out for dinner, watched birds on the fig tree, rode my bike and jogged in the evenings. I began to come alive. My words were richer. My meanings were deeper. My connections became stronger.

I ended up taking another week off.

Stress lifted off me. Relief washed over me like a gentle wave. With each minute, I felt lighter.

I learned my biggest lesson.

Productivity had been draining my energy. I needed to be mindful of how I used it. Without energy, I couldn’t do the things I loved.

The realization changed everything.

I became more intentional about managing my energy throughout the day. Recharge wasn’t a tactic - it was a strategy that became woven into my life. I began to live with more balance, seeing the value in recharging, not just grinding.

Here are the 3 mindset shifts that changed my life (and can change yours too):

You’re Not Lazy. You’re Just Drained.

I used to think exhaustion meant I wasn’t strong enough.

I thought I needed more discipline, more grit and more coffee.

But the truth?

I wasn’t lazy—I was depleted. High performance isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about knowing when to stop.

I learned the hard way—by grinding through calls, feeling guilty over short breaks, and skipping meals.

I thought productivity meant squeezing every drop of energy out of my day. But all it did was leave me running on empty.

So I flipped the script. I stopped seeing rest as a luxury and started treating it as fuel.

Breaks weren’t wasted time - they made peak performance possible.
Recovery wasn’t an afterthought; it was the foundation.

🔑 When you stop blaming yourself for being tired and start recharging intentionally, everything changes. Energy is finite. Use it wisely.

You Don’t Need More Willpower—You Need Better Boundaries

For the longest time, I believed

If I had more willpower, I could do it all.
If I could just “push through,” I’d be unstoppable.

But willpower is like a battery—it drains fast. And when it’s gone, even the smallest tasks feel impossible.

The real game-changer?

Boundaries. Instead of trying to power through exhaustion, I started protecting my energy. I set work hours and actually stuck to them. I stopped answering Slack messages after dinner. I gave myself permission to say no.

The result?

I got more done in less time. Because I wasn’t leaking energy on things that didn’t matter. I wasn’t spending my best hours on shallow work or endless meetings.

I was focused, intentional, and in control.

🔑 If you’re struggling with motivation, don’t double down on willpower. Redefine your boundaries. Guard your time. Protect your focus. That’s how you create momentum.

Want to produce your best work? Stop working so much.

For years, I believed the secret to success was simple: do more. Work longer hours. Say yes to everything. Stay “busy.”

But here’s the paradox:

Burnout doesn’t lead to breakthroughs.
Overwork doesn’t make you more valuable.

Your best ideas, your sharpest thinking, your most impactful work - happens when you create space.

When I started working less, setting limits, taking breaks and prioritizing deep work—I got better at my job.

My thinking became clearer.
My execution became sharper.
My energy lasted longer.

Less isn’t lazy. Less is strategic.

🔑 When you stop glorifying busyness and start protecting your energy, you don’t just feel better—you perform better. And that’s the real power move.

Pick one energy-draining habit to break this week. Turn off Slack notifications after 7 PM. Or schedule a 15-min lunch away from your desk.

Small shifts create big impact.

Thanks for being here, I’ll see you next Tuesday at 10 am IST.

Vijaya