How to Avoid Burnout 🔥

Hey y’all,

Do you ever find yourself at your desk unable to start your work?

That was a dumb question. Of course you have.

However, I’d argue that most of you aren’t lazy—you’re jut burned out. Laziness is having the energy but avoiding the work. Burnout is seeing the work but lacking the energy to begin.

(Re-read that until it clicks.)

I’ve experienced burnout multiple times during my academic and professional career. In today’s newsletter, I’m going to cover three tips to avoid it.

Tip #1: It’s a Marathon, Not a Sprint

During my freshman year at MIT, I spent spent an entire week studying for a computer science final. I pulled multiple all-nighters going over past exams, answering practice problems, and revisiting confusing lecture material. Although I thought I was being productive, I was setting myself up for one of the lowest points in my academic career.

I felt physically exhausted and emotionally drained.

The solution? Spread your work out—both over the long-term and the short-term.

Long-term means starting on assignments early. If a project is due in two weeks, start sketching ideas today. Make incremental progress. Even 15-30 minutes of initial thinking can make the project feel less daunting when you return to it.

Short-term means working in manageable chunks. I now use a modified Pomodoro technique: 45 minutes of focused work followed by a 15-minute break. This keeps my energy levels stable throughout the day instead of depleting all my mental resources in one exhausting push.

Remember: consistency beats intensity. Your brain isn't designed for extended periods of maximum output—it's designed for rhythmic cycles of effort and recovery.

Tip #2: There’ll Always Be More

One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned as a creator is that the work never ends. (This also holds true if you’re a student, unfortunately.) There's always another video to film, another post to write, another email to answer.

If you don't set boundaries, you'll work indefinitely.

This realization hit me hard about a few months ago. I found myself filming all afternoon, editing all evening, and scripting all night. I felt like I was running on a hamster wheel.

The solution? Give yourself a hard cutoff.

Now, I decide in advance when I'll stop working each day—usually around 9 PM. When that time comes, I get off my computer regardless of what's still on my to-do list. Is this sometimes anxiety-inducing? Absolutely. But I've come to accept a critical truth: the work will be there tomorrow.

This boundary has actually made me more productive during my working hours because I know I have a finite amount of time. It's also improved my content quality because I'm bringing a refreshed mind to my work each day.

Tip #3: Embrace Imperfection

My perfectionism has always been my biggest enemy as a content creator. I'd record voice-overs 10+ times to get the perfect take. I'd spend hours tweaking illustrations that most viewers would see for only a few seconds. I'd obsess over my editing, making micro-adjustments to ensure everything was pixel-perfect.

Eventually, I had to acknowledge the 80/20 rule.

The 80/20 rule (or Pareto Principle) suggests that 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts. Think about spending 3 hours to get an A- essay, then another 8 hours just to bump it to an A. Or doing 85% of a problem set in 2 hours, then grinding 4 more hours for those last few tricky questions.

Now, I aim for excellence, not perfection. I identify the core elements that matter most—like the clarity of my explanation in a video or the theme of my visuals—and I make those excellent. For everything else, "good enough" is truly good enough.

This approach not only preserves my energy but also allows me to create more overall.

Burnout isn't inevitable. It's the result of unsustainable work patterns, boundary issues, and perfectionism. Hopefully today’s newsletter can help you get back on the right path.

If you want study help, come join my Discord! We have a global community of students helping each other succeed in school. I’d love to see you there.

If you’re ready to level up this school year, check out Scholar OS. It’s the ultimate Notion template designed to help you organize your classes and life in one place.

I’ll see you next week!

Best,
Gohar