How The End Of The NBA and NHL Seasons Helps Reduce Burnout
WeTheNorth
Within the last week or so, the St. Louis Blues won their first Stanley Cup, and the Toronto Raptors won their first NBA championship.
The build up and excitement in St. Louis and Toronto was rabid, and having friends and loved ones in both cities, I was able to celebrate those championships with them.
So much goes into sports seasons. So many hours of practice, travel, games, injuries, front-office moves, press conferences, etc. The schedule is long and grueling. We as novices often forget how incredibly talented these professional sport athletes are, and the amount of personal time and effort they put into their sport.
Yes, many are paid very well. That truly doesn’t matter to me. I don’t care if you make $50,000 or $50 million, if you’re constantly trying to improve your skills, I honor you and your gifts and contributions.
Now that the NHL and NBA seasons have ended, the major league that has pretty much our attention over the next month or two is Major League Baseball.
Baseball has been my favorite sport since I was 8. It created my desire to enter into accounting when I was 14, and has provided me decades of joy.
The high pace, high drama, stakes are highest months of April - June for the NBA and NHL are now over, and now we can sit back and watch a sport that doesn’t completely have a time clock (other than pitchers needing to get on with it and not walk off the mound every time.)
High energy, long hours, to sitting around, relaxing, having an adult beverage, bbq’s, baseball game on the radio. Summer breezes, friends, relaxation.
It’s a different pace in the summer, as it should be. Your work loads should be reduced (but guessing in some organizations that’s not the case.) Vacation time should be taken and embraced.
When was the last time you went on vacation? If the word “year” is mentioned, you’re waiting too long.
There are many people that only have a couple weeks vacation, so I know that’s tough. But many have 3-4-5-6 or even more weeks vacation, and they bank them, and never use them.
Burnout is a choice.
If you haven’t booked your summer vacation time off yet, what are you waiting for? Even if you bank it around a holiday weekend, please take some time off. Catch a baseball game, go to a BBQ. Go to the beach or a park. Unwind with a physical book.
Enjoy a slower pace. You can thank me later.
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I help people recover from or prevent burnout in their lives. Register here for my next webinar on going from burnout to your ideal life.