What burnout really looks like at the top and how to recover or prevent it.
She’s a VP. Smart. Strategic. Everyone counts on her, but lately, something feels off. She’s exhausted by Monday. She’s performing, but not thriving. She’s quietly wondering: Am I burning out?
I’ve seen this story play out with high-achieving women over and over again. On the outside, they’re crushing it. On the inside, they’re running on fumes.
This month, a writer for Forbes Magazine reached out after reading a post I wrote on burnout. She’s writing a feature on the topic, and we both recognized how common and yet quiet burnout is among women leaders. We’re conditioned to push through, to prove ourselves, to handle it all. Until one day, we can’t.
So what exactly is burnout? And how can you recognize it before it goes too far?
What burnout really is
Burnout isn’t just being tired. It’s a collapse of motivation. A depletion of your emotional and mental reserves. And time off won’t fix it if the root causes are still there when you return.
Psychologist Christina Maslach identified six common burnout triggers: lack of control, misaligned values, insufficient reward, work overload, unfairness, and breakdown of community. Any one of these, if left unaddressed, can quietly drain you over time.
What it looks like at the top
What I often hear from senior women:
“I feel like I’m operating on fumes, and I can’t afford to fall apart.”
“I’m not unhappy. I’m just… blank.”
“I used to love my work. Now I just get through the day.”
What I see is constant overdrive with no room to think, the invisible pressure to prove you belong, guilt for both stepping back and pushing too hard, and a slow, quiet drift away from meaning and purpose. There’s often no safe place to say, “I’m tired.”
How to spot it before it’s too late
I often use The Energy Project’s Four Energy Zones to help leaders identify where they are:
- In the Performance Zone, you feel high energy and positive emotion. This is your peak state.
- In the Survival Zone, energy is still high, but it’s fueled by anxiety, urgency, or frustration.
- Stay there too long, and you drop into the Burnout Zone, where both energy and emotion are low.
- To return to high performance, you must move through the Renewal Zone, a state of rest, reflection, and recovery.
Top performers don’t live in Performance 100% of the time. The key is to move deliberately between Performance and Renewal. When we skip Renewal for too long, we get stuck in Survival… then Burnout.
If you’re nearing burnout: Here’s how to prevent it
Start by checking in with how you feel. Are you energized, resentful, or simply numb? Your emotions are your dashboard.
Then, protect time for recovery the same way you protect meetings. Put it on your calendar and honor it. Reconnect with what gives you energy: moments of stillness, creativity, nature, meaningful connection. And most of all, work in pulses, not marathons. Perform. Recover. Repeat.
This isn’t indulgence. It’s a strategy.
If you’re already burned out: Here’s how to come back
Start by identifying what’s driving it. If the issue is sheer overload, real rest is the antidote, not just a weekend full of errands, but restorative time and pacing. But if the root is systemic – such as lack of control, unfairness, or misalignment with your values – time off alone won’t solve it. You need to address the cause, not just the symptoms. That might mean setting new boundaries, redesigning how you work, or even making bigger changes.
You can’t coach, meditate, or vacation your way out of a setup that’s quietly draining you. But you can reclaim your energy by getting clear on what’s driving your burnout and what boundaries, changes, or conversations are needed to move forward.
You weren’t meant to carry it all
Burnout isn’t a personal flaw. It’s a signal that something needs to change. And you don’t have to wait until you’re at your breaking point to listen. If this resonates, here’s your permission:
- Block time for focus and recovery
- Reconnect with your values
- Invest in spaces where you don’t have to perform, just be
Through coaching, retreats, and reflections like this, high-achieving women are reclaiming their energy without sacrificing their ambition.
Because rest isn’t a reward. It’s a strategy. And only you can decide when to begin.
