Start building your ideal daily routine 💪 The first 100 people who click on the link will get 25% OFF 🎁 Fabulous Premium ➡ thefab.co/rcwaldun

Im hella guilty of the whole "sticking to my identity" thing, but every time i do decide to break out of my identity and do something spontaneous/impersonal, I come back to my work with much more vigor. Great video

I was just talking about how in other languages, you can't say you ARE something because that would mean you ARE that thing and nothing else; it becomes your identity quite literally. Meanwhile in English we say we ARE things all the time: states of being and emotions (hungry, tired), skill levels (stupid, smart, genius), professions, you name it. In French, if you say you are hungry, it means you are that state of being; you need to say "I have hunger" ("j'ai faim") as it's a temporary place to be rather than a permanent state. I like that - room to change! In Gaelic, you don't say "I am a teacher," you say "it is a teacher that I have on me" which is less permanent as well (" 's e thidsear a th'annam"). There's a great ted talk about the way language impacts how we feel about ourselves and the world somewhere; your content reminds me a lot of it. Great thoughts 🥰

Hey Robin. This video was really a wake-up call for me. I am an undergraduate student majoring in Mathematics. While I really loved the subject, since few months, I have been trying to avoid it. I didn't know why exactly have I started ignoring something I once loved from all my heart. When I started to find the reasons for such 'downfall', I started to realise how since school days, I have only been studying. I grew up in a family who discourages multilple interests and label kids way early. So, here I am, at age 20, once labelled as an "academically brilliant kid", completely burnt out with no ideas as to what I want. But, in the hope to regain my sanity, I started dig up my past (which for reasons, I don't remember) to find some remains of whatever interests I had, which is when I found I actually like reading and painting but would always be guilty since it wasn't related to my academics. I still tried to push to do these things but would end up being miserable guilty which nearly paralyses me to do anything which was when I came across this video. Firstly, I was quite skeptic about the video but still I gave it a try and this turned out to literally be THE EXACT THING I NEEDED TO HEAR, sort of like a validation that it's okay to read and paint. It's okay to not want to be labelled as one thing. It's okay to have multiple interests. Long story short, THANK YOU SO MUCH. (Also, I had to write this long story so that I can actually justify my reasons to absolutely love the video.)

Thank you so much for this bright piece of thought, people need to realise that we sometimes need to do "useless" stuff /because/ it's useless and therefore liberating, so as not to fall into this utilitarian approach to life that basically turns you into a working zombie. Humanities all the way! (alright that's biased)

You make a good point, however it should be mentioned that the problem of burnout is a complex one, and it takes a complex approach to solve it. By which I mean you also need to fulfil your physical needs and social ones, as well as - as you mentioned - do things that have no other purpose other than fun. I think you said about it between the lines but perhaps it should be underlined a little more :)

I totally see these points. In my case, I hate being one-focused in university and try to swing around all my hobbies every week, but sometimes it feels like I'm abandoning the "main" thing because I'm not dedicating it as much time as the people around me. And still I can see that I am way more relaxed and not as burnt as them even though my results are not as brilliant (I don't want to be brilliant, I want to be happy)

I can totally see myself on this subject. Especially for someone pursuing an academic career, satellite interests are seen as time-losing activities. Having an academic career itself is a hard path to explain your "title" to society, having those stuff to your identity, people tend to think that you are good at nothing. I was having pottery classes and continuing my master's degree and at some point, I stopped going to art galleries, learning Italian and more importantly I gave up on pottery. This resulted in a very bad period of my life; burnout, depression etc. Hope this summer I will be back on track💪

As someone who has been very prone to falling into burn out from a very young age I realized a few years ago that no matter how much I need to meet any sort of deadline or goal it is CRUCIAL for me to schedule free time. Not time to sit on my phone and stuff but rather to do what I’m kinda itching to do at that exact moment sometimes that’s learning a skill and you know what sometimes that’s just finding a new musician or seeing my friends. Back in January I almost slipped into a massive burn out but was saved by starting crochet!! However I do find I put a lot of my identity into my interests I don’t let it limit my interests

This is really important because I notice everyday (because of school) I have stripped farther and farther away from my true self. I have been lacking with my outfits and makeup (which I love doing) because it seems to be a waste of time. I have made myself feel bad for having breaks, listening to music, watching shows and even creating art! This video was nice to see, I am still young also so I think I really should invest into the subjects I enjoy just to enjoy them. Nice video ! :)

i actually really like your videos, like a cup of tea. fresh, full of wisdom.

The R.C. Waldun content in my opinion is always freaking solid. Thanks man!! There's a lot of different reasons behind burnout so the solution isn't a one-size-fits-all thing but I honestly believe this solution you've offered is for me. Fingers crossed!!

Oh godammit you said what i needed to hear, I always felt like there was something missing and to be found, and it always bugged me. Thanks for sharing this amazing insight, its a valuable peace of life that you allowed me to solve.

I am so glad I found this channel. I was struggling so much with upholding my own label without realizing that I was doing it. Awesome channel; you’re simply brilliant.

Thanks for this perspective on burnout. I've heard it a handful of different ways, but this one resonated with me. It helped hearing you compare it to being stuck in a box/label and suggested doing "contradicting" things to get me out of the thought that I am *insert limiting label*. "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." 🤪

I really needed this video. Right now, I'm not working, but even still I find myself feeling burnt out from reading/studying/writing/bettering myself because "I want to be a smart person" to the point where it consumes me. Sometimes "smart people" relax and enjoy themselves because you can't be perfect 100% of the time. Even though I know I was taught that in school from a young age, I think I (and many other people) forget that from time to time as we age into adults. To summarize -- thank you for making this video, Mr. Waldun, because it's very helpful to perfectionists to hear. ❤

its crazy how timely this video is, my life is taking a nosedive due to burnout and im very grateful for this message

Lol as someone whose working to become a fantasy writer, it's weird to just now realize that I don't have to 'analyze' every book I read. That I could just pick a book for myself

This is so true! Thanks for talking about this which is something I have thought about a little before but not to this extent. You’re very impressive to me and I really like you.

damn, you got me reflecting hard. i wanna regain my childhood like mind state of just doing shit simply for the fun of it. what happened to that

You actually make a very great point. I always find myself interested in something else while I am doing what I think is my main, or should be my main, interest; at least at a certain point in my progress through that main activity. So, for example, I have lately been interested in Arabia before Islam. I have been enjoying reading a book that I have which is written in ancient Arabic-- very difficult a book, mind you. In any case, I have been neglecting since I was reading things that I deem to be the main object of my focus. And I lately have come to the realization that every time I run through a burnout, the best thing that I usually do is stop doing it. Once I stop doing it, I start to miss it. And once I miss it, I come back to the activity more hungry than before.

this is what i've always thought and i'm really glad there are so many people who agree, thank you for another great video essay

This is very timely. Earlier today I was thinking about how I’ve been burnout over these past few months. Thank you!

Woow. Tqsm for sharing:) Your vids always challenge my general ideas and I love having such space for contradictions.

Just brilliant, thank you for sharing this!!

I am personally experiencing burnout, and since my classes takes everything out of me leaving me no time, I have had to leave the other stuff that was interesting to me, like reading books, gaming, sports and other leisurely activities. last week was the week I decided, I will let my coursework be, not touch anything, just read books the whole day and play games, and fortunately I am in a place that allowed me to do that. It was such a good change after doing things to get over this burnout, and since motivation is highly required for my work, it was really making me hopeless, needing to do work, but having no motivation. What I'm trying to say is, need to remind yourself to do something you like that is not work, once in a while. it will help. though not completely, as I have experienced, but definitely some.

I don’t so much see a problem with labeling, because it’s more efficient and can reveal a large part of someone’s identity, not exactly dehumanizing them and their capabilities, but trying to understand how they choose to live and spend their time. Yeah, you shouldn’t aim for a “master status” and to force yourself to be one thing, but if you are one thing and are proud of it, and it makes up a large part of who you are, then I think it’s fine if you want to let’s say define yourself as a “writer.”

Do you have a podcast? If not you should totally start one

great insights, thank you for sharing!

I needed this reminder. Thank you 💫

isn't the main thing about impersonal interests the fact they they are not related to personhood? Aren't personal interests things NOT like your studies or your job, but your relationship with your girlfriend or your dad?

Sincerest thanks! I'm quite in obsession within about what should I do and why this thing is important and not important as I tend to fall in an escapist spiral down fall, thus making me avoid studying and pursuing more into a habit of exhaustion and addiction to videos or video games. Dearest thanks!

once again, your timing was impeccable

I would like to add, there are activities you do instead of work as a form of escapism, which aren't really your insterests. For example, I can't really call reading trash manhwas on the internet (which often can have 100+ chapters) my interest. They tend to consume your time greatly and unproductively, so beware of them.

Great, great, video. Thanks.

I didn't realize I'm currently in a burnout! Always considered myself as an academic person but now I'm bored studying at the univ lol. Thanks for the reminder to refresh ourselves with things outside our specializations (... gonna watch a ghibli movie now)!

Thanks, I liked the idea! (though all 11 minutes could be shrunk into "Having single interest leads to burnout. You should have multiple interests.")

Great idea

Much needed

Yo I needed this. It's perfectly timed my goodness. Tysm

Interesting, but for me personally it's more enlightening wrt how *other* people work, might be very useful to think of this while writing this type of hustle culture/ characters. As for me I'm physically & developmentally disabled, & mentally ill. I am lucky enough to have supportive parents & live in a state with decent medicaid & snap, so while I'm working on getting ssi paperwork done & maintaining this house, I don't have other commitments... which is good, bc I barely have the energy for that, anymore. Haven't looked at ssi in weeks, if not a month or more. I feel burnt out in a way that makes it hard for me to engage my interests, not bc of a sense of "should" or "shouldn't," but inability to find joy in playing games, etc, and difficulty even using devices except my phone. Like don't get me wrong, this is a very good video with a lot of good points, but as someone who hasn't been in any kind of schooling for the 8y now, and even when I had a job it was never a *career* just manual/"unskilled" labor, being burnt out bc nose to the grindstone is still just a very foreign concept to me.

I'm sorry to say this because I know that this video is sponsored but I hate fabulous because their customer service is horrible. When I cancelled my subscription after they had just charged me, they didn't return my money and I hadn't used fabulous months before I got charged.

Always wanted to check out Bertrand Russell. Seems like a great place to start.

Have you ever actually experienced burnout? It's not what you think. Let's start with the concept of mental fatigue, which is similar. Fatigue can be solved by rest with a vast variation on pervious work. Burnout, on the other hand feels like the circuitry that was used previously is inaccessible, as if that area of the brain was destroyed. After a long rest, sometimes many years, one can work on rewiring other nearby parts of the brain to take up the original operations. At least that was my experience of it. It's been 10 years. I'm in the midst of rewiring. I can once again read more concentrated works, not in days, as before, but more like in months. Where once it took hours of reading to feel fatigue, that became mere minutes of reading, before a wave of an unavoidable need for sleep overtook me. This still happens, but the time of engagement has been expanded somewhat. No other area of activity was disturbed.

I want you all to know that before I clicked this video I miss read BURNOUT as BURRITO. I had to have a whole conversation with myself as to why I did or did not want to engage with this video and more so if I really should...

there's this saying, "you are what you do" but it becomes dangerously confusing it labelling oneself through this and does it really define a person? as you said, human beings are complex beings and I do think a person shouldn't be enclosed in a certain label with certain expectations from them

I question why we even need to specialize in certain things and what mandates which ventures are more fruitful to a specialization than others? This whole trend of labelling and specializing I think boxes us in rather than letting us explore and create meaningful work. You can find fruit in seemingly unrelated ventures. My grandad over similar conversations brought to my attention that the reason we have so many choices in digital fonts is cause Steve Jobs took an interest in calligraphy. While I do think its essential to be really good at something for basic survival needs I don't think we need to limit ourselves to just that one thing or related subjects in the way education systems try to convince us. We bring more meaning and fulfilment into the work we do when we allow ourselves to be multidimensional and create out of a place that bridges our organic interests. That being said, I do agree that simultaneously pursuing interests outside of academia/occupation does help with burnout and motivation. Its easy to forget that I'm human and I have a life and that I should enjoy my very existence and delight in things that make me happy. My side interests/ hobbies always remind me to value existing and experiencing what life has to offer.

I few weeks ago I dreamed about you! Basically I was on a bar with a few friends and started to sing a song from Hamilton's concert, then suddenly I got conscious about the people around me and got so shy that my voice almost disappeared. (Happened before in real life) You were sitting right next to me, so you called me to talk about my shyness, and we ended up talking about books. It was very funny because in my dream I did not recognized you from your videos, but you have a remarkable voice and I was "man... Do I know him?". 😂 That's it! I felt like I should share this funny episode with you! Salut from Brazil ✌

Ça va bien? Tu nous manque. Maritere, Ciudad de Méxici

He is the person who I want to be

hey. im saké (21m) and big fan. Was curious if you would happen to know why my brain is always blank and whys I dont think efficiently as I should Lmao.

first

I read theoretical philosophy books for fun..hmm

This ' Side' or aspect of being burnt out, has NEVER been touched 🥲 before Thank you, Waldun for this brilliant piece of advice 👏 Definitely going to lift 💪 some burdens!!!