Solo Entrepreneurship
This Surprising Personality Trait Keeps Pushing Me Towards Burnout
Don’t be like me
I can’t stop working. It’s becoming a health hazard.
A year and a half ago, I left my career. I threw my keys in the safe and resigned from a career I loved. I ran retail stores for two decades and left to be a content writer.
I didn’t work out.
Not the way I planned it.
I wanted to write engaging, thoughtful articles. I wanted to teach people new things. I wanted to connect over shared experiences and share a sense of awe and wonder.
But a year ago, the company I wrote for pulled the plug on our team and didn’t pay us. I spent last summer trying to figure out my next move. I joined writing groups. I wrote personal essays. I landed a few clients and learned how to pitch.
But I wasn’t feeling it.
Pitching requires continuous research into the publication, and crafting a good pitch takes a ton of practice. I pitched a few places. I didn’t land anything, no surprise. I was half-assing it. Then I realized I just wanted to write what I wanted to write.
So, I did.
My Whole Body Hurts
I kept coming back to LinkedIn and cheering on retail leaders. I built communities for two decades in buildings; now, I’m just doing it online. My content on LinkedIn connects, and there aren’t that many people doing what I’m doing.
Few people know what I know about working in the frontlines of retail and can convey it like a right hook.
In January, my LinkedIn retail community asked me to write a book. So, I did. I spent the past five months writing, formatting, designing the cover, and self-publishing it on Amazon. It went live a couple of weeks ago.
After I blew past that goal, I immediately started building a membership community for retail leaders. I researched all the platforms to ensure I got it just right. I built it out, sent DMs to the fifty people who said they were interested, wrote three newsletters about it on various platforms, and downloaded the app.
We’re off and running.
It’s cool, but my whole body hurts.
I’m impatient. Ridiculously impatient.
I hurt my back a few months ago, and I’ve had shooting pains down my leg. I’m making progress, but it’s slow. My massage therapist told me,” You have difficulty relaxing.” Yeah, of course, I do. I have sh*t to build and essays to write.
I’m building a one-person business by myself. I don’t know how to stop.
Retail made sure my insane work ethic was exploited. Early mornings and late nights were hammered into my nervous system. But damn — this is something else. I just realized this one personality trait is leading to burnout.
I’m impatient. Ridiculously impatient.
Meanwhile, I’m working like a maniac.
Although I was somewhat shocked to realize this, it makes sense. My body is screaming at me to take a break, but here I go — off to the coffee shop at 7 am so I can get started on all these things I’m building.
I published a book and launched a membership group in the same month. I never really stopped to celebrate any accomplishments; I blew past them and asked, “What next?”
Impatient much?
How do I sell more books? How do I accumulate more followers? Answer: It literally doesn’t matter. My current content strategy will yield more sales and a more significant following.
When I worked for someone else, I had no problem leaving work. There was a precise start time and a clear end, and my days off were defined.
Now that I work for myself, it’s all fuzzy. Now I strategize how to work no matter what I’m doing (bad idea).
I don’t know when it will be enough. The impatience looms over my shoulder like Nosferatu.
Meanwhile, I’m literally limping through my day, working like a maniac.
Don’t be like me.
Yes, work hard but know when to stop. Set an end time each day and stick to it. Leave your phone in another room. Get outside. See people. Move your body. Recharge. You know this. I know this, but I don’t do it.
If you refuse to rest, your muscles will cramp up and not let go (my current state). Then you’ll drag your laptop in bed with you and continue to work because why not? You’ll be in too much pain to do anything else.
You don’t want that. Believe me. This is the most pain I’ve ever been in.
Impatience and this constant work ethic are driving me to burn out. Even though I intellectually understand it’s happening, I still do it.
Let this be your cautionary tale. Breathe. Set boundaries. Your work will always be there, but your health and your family will not.
Impatience is a weight. Let it go.
Kit Campoy is a former retail leader turned freelance writer based in Southern California. She covers Leadership, Retail, Web3, and more.
