Thriving not Surviving

Strategies to go from merely surviving to THRIVING for women in STEM

Am I Burning Out?

      Last week I decided to take on an extra project that I’m passionate about right now. I’m rolling out a new program on creating a plan for your career. I’m really excited about it and yet it’s taken a full plate to overflowing. Last month I challenged myself to create 20 YT videos in 20 days starting when I got back from vacation. All of this aligned to the same week. {Sigh}

    One of the risk factors of burn out is a heavy workload or working long hours. Wow that sounds a lot like what my world looks like right now. I do run the risk of burning out right now, however I do have control over my work so that mitigates the risk.

    Early in my career I had no control over my work and the workload was insane. We were working 7 days a week because we need testing time on weekends. The days were long, and it was going on and on. I felt unappreciated and was treated like a drone who was there only to...

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Save your sanity with work boundaries

Things are crazy right now. Are we working from home or not? Are kids learning in school, virtual, hybrid, or home school? Do we go out or do we stay home? How can I get a break from being on 24/7? Can we get delivery, carry-out or do I need to cook again? It’s exhausting!

Add on to all that stuff workplaces are ramping back up. More work is needing to be done, often by less people or in fewer hours per week. Some of this would be overwhelming alone, and all together it’s way too much for anyone. So, it’s time to give yourself credit for all you’ve accomplished and the fact you have kept things together so far.

How can we move forward without going completely off the deep end? First, know you are not alone, even if it feels like it. The world is upside down right now. We all need to find our balance again and we will find it.

Now that you’ve accepted that you are managing to get through the mountain of challenges it’s time to create a strategy for...

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What are you teaching them?

Each one of our interactions with others teach them something about us and vice versa. They may learn we are kind, caring, rude, get angry quickly, is very sensitive, stay calm and collected, or will stand our ground. We also learn how the other person behaves in various situations. Each of these nuggets of information shape our interaction with that person over time.

Years ago, I had a phone conversation with someone who was so angry and was berating me for not having the answer he wanted. I shared what was fact and it set him off. I finally spoke up and told him if he continued to yell, I was hanging up. He sputtered and said I wouldn’t dare. My response was “How long have you known me? Yeah I will.” He settled down and we resolved the issue. Our calls after that were not always great, we were in a terrible situation at work, and yet he never raised his voice again. He learned I wouldn’t tolerate that kind of abuse.

Flash forward a decade and I find myself...

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