Out of Gas: burnout and why we’re all exhausted

Burnout, like WFH or quiet quitting, has been another topic that the media has been recycling for clickbait recently. Articles often frame it like the flu, it’s a temporary affliction that will pass or there’s a quick remedy for it. It seems like there are hundreds of listicles titled something like “10 things to cure burnout” or “10 reasons why you’re burnt out”. Not all are terrible, the best piece I’ve seen was from NPR where they described the societal reasons why everyone in Gen Z is so tired. Unlike other pieces, they didn’t try to gloss over how pervasive it is and the existential angst of it all. It went a little deeper and had more of a touch of empathy to it. It resonated where others didn’t because if you asked most people my age they’d tell you that they’re exhausted. We all mitigate this burnout to the best of our ability and try to push ahead with our careers or friendships, but it’s always there affecting huge parts of our lives. The parts of life that make things worthwhile like our hobbies and passion projects. I’ve noticed it with my own hobbies, where I’ve just been too tired to keep up my usual writing schedule. I hear the same story from a lot of my friends. It’s not like we’re not motivated to do the things we love, we just don’t have the energy to do them. I want to write more, but after staring at a computer screen for 8-10 hours for work, the last thing I want to do is pull out my own laptop and stare at it. This just adds to the burnout because I’m not spending time doing the things I actually want to do. This is a cycle that I think a lot of people can relate to, and why I want to explore how society and culture are fueling burnout. 

So let’s dive into the existential abyss of modern burnout, starting with the same question that many of these articles begin with. Why are we burned out? Well, why does anything burn out? All of the fuel gets used up. Our brains are working overtime to keep up with everything that goes on in modern life. We’re surrounded by screens and take in an incredible amount of information through them. Not a moment goes by where we’re not reading or typing something. Our brains just aren’t made to do that. Every post we see takes energy to take in. Energy that’s needed to perform basic tasks and be in the world. Scrolling may seem passive and innocuous, but it’s frying our brains. There are also intense baseline conditions that work hand in hand with that chaotic information environment. Think about what we wake up to every day. The environment is collapsing, the cost of living keeps going up, and we’re becoming more disconnected from others. (If you want to read about these crises and possible solutions, I’d recommend checking out my Staring Down Dystopia piece.) We’re reminded of these crises almost every time we open our phones. Even if we’re not actively thinking about them, we still have to deal with the physical and mental impacts. 

On top of those baseline environmental factors is modern work culture which is constantly taking more and more from us. It’s true that for most in Gen Z that our jobs aren’t really that difficult. We sit at desks all day sending emails or making spreadsheets, docs, and slide decks. It’s not back-breaking labor, but it seems to be taking what little energy we have left. I don’t want to sound like a privileged asshole because those who work service jobs or construction have much more grueling schedules than all of us. Yet, there does seem to be a difference. When I pass a construction worker or a bartender at the end of their shifts they have this interesting look where obviously they’re tired but they’re somehow full of life. When I see a knowledge worker at the end of the day, they look like they just got attacked by a fucking dementor. They have bags under their eyes and their life has been sucked out of them. I think it’s because those other jobs are much more in sync with how our brains and bodies are supposed to work. They involve doing things out in the real world and solving problems on the fly. There’s something tangible being done. It’s embodied work. Modern desk jobs and “knowledge work” aren’t that. 

In the information and attention economy, there’s no such thing as a 9-5, because information isn’t confined to 9-5. Information never stops, so why should you? This takes away the separation between us and work. We can’t just leave the job site at the end of the day. The job site is everywhere, all-consuming and ever-growing. It’s all about optimizing output. What’s the maximum amount of work you can do each day? How late can you stay on? There’s always another thing to do, and there’s always someone who’s willing to do it. Which leads to more work for someone else to do, and so on. It really is crabs in a bucket. It’s impossible to keep u with computers and trying to is exhausting. Many of us don’t have a choice but to try to keep up. We’re the products of an education and economic system working against us. Universities are largely just factories that spit out laborers for the information and attention economy. An economy that you have to join to try to live a secure life in a city you like. That dynamic gives companies all of the leverage they need to push everyone as hard as they want to.

I’m not trying to give any fodder to boomer arguments around Gen Z being lazy. I get it, life requires work. It’s not all supposed to be easy, and there are points in our lives where we have to make sacrifices. Unfortunately, we can’t just paint or write all day. Something still feels off though. I think in the “old” days of work, things were more aligned with a pace that fit how we as humans actually work. There was more fulfillment from working so hard because people were more present doing it. The pace and momentum were also more natural. You weren’t tied to Moore’s Law and the ever-increasing speed of the information economy. Even if you didn’t like your job, it most likely wasn’t all-consuming and didn’t follow you everywhere. Today, our jobs leave us too drained to do the things we actually enjoy. People need things that they like to do and call their own. Whether it’s writing, art, sports, or any other passion, we need something more than just working in our lives. After spending 50-60 hours a week behind a computer, there’s not a lot of energy left to do those things that are fulfilling. We exhaust all that energy trying to stay caught up with this system. So instead we veg out in front of screens just trying to get any quick dopamine fix we can. 

I wish things were different and maybe eventually they can be. If we ever get the opportunity we can try to set boundaries at work. When we’re the bosses we can create real work-life balance and bring back embodied work for those we’re responsible for. In the meantime though, we need to find ways to get that energy back. The only cure for burnout is refueling. We have to try to carve out time to do real things that are meaningful to us. I know how that sounds after I spent the last few pages talking about all the reasons why we’re burned out, but scrolling through Tik Tok won’t refuel you. Taking a walk will. So will starting an art project or joining that rec league. Even if it’s just taking a break during the day to get some silence, we need to find our fuel. This is another area where we’ve forgotten our humanity, and it’s an area where we can reclaim it. At the end of the day, I know how you all feel and I feel it too. We’re fucking exhausted and just trying to find anything that fills us up. I may not be able to give that to you, but I can give you my support. We’re in this together and hopefully, we can create something better together.