Burnout Prevention Part 2: The Foundations Most People Skip

Most high achievers only think about burnout once they’re already halfway cooked.

They notice the brain fog, the irritability, the lack of drive – and decide it’s time to pull back. But by that point, it’s not prevention. It’s damage control.

When it comes to burnout, there are many risk factors that aren’t fully within our control – like workload, lack of autonomy, a poor working culture, limited support from colleagues, or being on call. But there are just as many factors that are within our control – and this is where prevention needs to begin.

Being highly self-critical, using unhelpful coping strategies like alcohol, sleep deprivation, perfectionism, overcommitting at work, experiencing a conflict of values, and lacking support outside of work are all strongly linked to burnout in the research. These are the factors we need to pay attention to – because this isn’t just a conversation about boundaries. It goes much deeper than that.

1. Generate Emotional Energy – Keep Your Spark Alive

Energy generation is a skill – one most high achievers have never been taught. But let’s face it: energy is your capacity to work, and it’s the principal currency driving your engagement and impact. Without it, you can’t do much. And eventually, you burn out.

Stress drains energy. That’s not a problem if you’re disciplined about your recovery. But for many, resting can feel like laziness. And ironically, the more aligned we are with our work, the more wasteful time off starts to feel.

But here’s the thing: just like a muscle that’s overtrained without time to recover and repair, your body and mind eventually break down. Without intentional recovery, your energy reserves nosedive – and you burn out or break down.

When energy generation becomes non-negotiable, everything elevates. You’re happier, more focused, more fulfilled. You don’t just function – you lead. Energy is what keeps your spark alive and burning brightly.

The work of Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz completely shifted my thinking about this. They introduced the High Performance Pyramid – a simple but powerful framework for full engagement, built across four key layers:

• Physical energy: endurance through sleep, nutrition, hydration, movement
• Emotional energy: positive emotions ignite it; negative ones deplete it
• Mental energy: cognitive capacity – focus, decision-making, creativity
• Spiritual energy: motivation, meaning, alignment with values

Most high achievers try to power through with physical hacks – cutting caffeine, eating clean, exercising more. But if your emotional energy is leaking, no amount of green juice will save you.

Burnout is characterised by emotional exhaustion. And for that reason, this level of energy needs special attention.

If you’re constantly managing tension, conflict, self-doubt, or people-pleasing, your emotional battery is being drained silently – and fast.

Prevention starts by plugging those leaks:

• Who do you need to spend less time with?
• What situations or environments trigger you?
• What habits or commitments are depleting rather than energising you?

Next, focus on generating positive emotions:

• Spend time with people you love
• Do activities that fill you up
• Work on projects that excite you
• Build relationships with colleagues who lift you up

And don’t forget the basics: if you’re under-slept, underfed, or overstimulated, your emotional energy takes a hit. Just think back to the last time you were hangry or had five hours of broken sleep – it’s much harder to regulate frustration, anxiety, or anger when you’re lacking in physical energy.

Without emotional energy, we feel flat, disconnected, and depleted. And when emotional energy is low, your mental energy suffers too – focus, clarity, and decision-making all go out the window.

Start paying attention to where your emotional energy is at – what’s fuelling it, and what’s draining it. And then move where the energy flows.

2. Identify and Address Misalignment

One of the most overlooked causes of burnout is misalignment of values. And this runs deep – it’s the kind of quiet discomfort that keeps people up at night.

You might be exercising, eating well, maintaining a healthy social life, and prioritising sleep – but if what you’re doing (or who you’re doing it for) goes against what you believe in, that tension becomes hard to ignore. Over time, it creates disconnection, cynicism, even resentment.

Research shows values conflict is a stronger predictor of burnout than workload alone. And from what I’ve seen with clients – and experienced myself – it’s one of the most powerful, yet underestimated, risk factors.

So what does it look like?

• You value fairness – but your work environment is toxic
• You need autonomy – but you’re micromanaged and voiceless
• You value transparency – but your organisation operates with spin
• You believe in honesty – but you’re surrounded by politics and pretence
• You’re driven by creativity – but your role is rigid and bureaucratic

You can’t sustain high performance in an environment that’s in conflict with who you are.

Burnout prevention here isn’t just about quitting. It starts with getting crystal clear on your values – what you stand for, and what you won’t tolerate. From there, it’s about aligning how you work and lead to reflect those values – and advocating for the conditions you need. And if that’s not possible, it may be time to look for an environment that fits who you’ve become.

3. Perfectionism – the Quiet Saboteur

This is the one nobody wants to talk about – but it’s one of the most important.

Burnout isn’t just about how much you work. It’s often about how you relate to work.

And perfectionism is a key player.

If you’re STUCK in perfectionism, chances are you:

• Set unrealistic expectations for yourself
• Struggle to say no or delegate
• Feel guilty resting or doing “less”
• Overfunction to avoid criticism or failure

That constant internal pressure becomes your default. You override tiredness. You overcommit. You take on more than is healthy or necessary – just to prove you’re good enough – and tell yourself it’s “just what’s required.”

But perfectionism doesn’t protect you from burnout. It leads you straight there.

It distorts your standards, erodes your self-worth, and makes rest feel like a risk. It creates a life that looks successful on the outside but feels relentless and empty on the inside.

There are two forms of perfectionism that are particularly risky:

• Self-oriented perfectionism – setting impossibly high standards and criticising yourself relentlessly when you don’t meet them.
• Socially-prescribed perfectionism – believing others expect you to be perfect, leading to chronic people-pleasing, over-functioning, and a fear of letting others down.

Both types are consistently linked in the research to anxiety, depression – and yes, burnout.

And the worst part? It’s often praised. Masked as ambition, work ethic, or dedication.

But what looks like commitment can actually be compulsion. What looks like drive is often fear in disguise.

This is why so many high achievers burn out – not because they didn’t care, but because they cared too much, in the wrong way, for too long.

Burnout prevention isn’t just about stopping what’s making things worse – it’s about operating in a way that truly supports your wellbeing and performance. That means building systems that create clarity, energy, confidence, and positivity.

If this resonated and you’re ready to live and work in a way that energises you rather than exhausts you, I’d love to help.

You can find out more about my High Performance Reset Programme here, or go ahead and book your FREE discovery call here. 

It’s time to stop surviving – and start thriving.