I'm currently experiencing early symptoms of burn out (tiredness, loss of motivation and focus, etc.) and planning to take a break for 2 weeks at least.
How long did you take a break until you recovered from burn out and were you able to remember fundamental programming knowledge and skills?
Top comments (9)
I once spent 6 months off sick with burnout - I got some woodworking done but didn't touch a keyboard for most of that period. Other times I've managed to recover in a month or two but I'm getting better at recognising the signs of burnout and take better care of myself these days.
As for the fundamentals of programming it's like riding a bike - you fall off a lot if you get too out of practice so go easy on yourself when you try to start back up.
Thank you for sharing your experience and encouragement, Ian.
While I stay away from a text editor right now, I still read coding posts (not technical ones) as I like to read people's thoughts and stories. I think it's safe to do it as long as it does not tire me out and actually enjoying it. Maybe it will help me to get back on the foot.
I hope you continue to stay healthy and prosperity!
How do you avoid burnout?
Since I love coding so much, I never feel tired of coding. But, I had once I lost motivation to do one project at work, and couldn't find why. And I try to join some seminars, talk to some people (mostly developers) and sometimes, they feel the same.
And I tried to read some books, work on another project as a side hustle. They help pretty well.
I like reading stuff - books or blog posts. They help me to relax and it's a good way to stay educated beyond the schools. You're very lucky that coding is your passion and never seems to get bored. While it's not my passion, I do enjoy building something on the internet.
That's interesting mood to be in. It happened to me, and I am sure it can easily happen to anyone, even some experienced developers. The main thing that I noticed during that period is that my motivation didn't go down without a reason. There is some trace to follow that can lead you to finding what caused this state. For me it usually happens when I'm afraid to learn, try, experiment a new things. Or when I want to finish projects or execute some idea very quickly, therefore I want the end result fast, bypassing the process that awaits me. I would say these symptoms of loss of motivation and focus are mainly the result of not knowing how to start off and what to expect during working on the project, regarding your current knowledge and experience as a developer.
On the other hand, it could be that your mind and body are simply tired and that you need only a good time rest. Its good to know how to recognize what state are you in and fulfill your basic needs. When I notice that I'm tired its usually a sign that I need some quality rest or do workout, do basic exercise, take a walk or run. Don't be afraid that you won't be able to remember all the skills you've learned so far. After all, you can be even more productive when you find out what you actually need to try to change in you lifestyle, if that's the case.
Hope this isn't too long and that helps to someone :D
No, that was very interesting to read. Thank you for sharing your experience!
I've been doing backtracking on why I lost my motivation all of a sudden and one thing I noticed is I was getting impatient with React. I was learning the library for 3 months now and the fact that I'm having a trouble of understanding the basic concepts means I was feeling not confident in being a good developer - impostor syndrome, in other words. Combine this with the desire to build a React app for Twilio hackathon as quickly as possible and you have the perfect recipes for getting burn out.
So, yes. I think I'll take care of my health and maybe I won't do the hackathon after all.
I'm also experiencing burnout currently...doing nothing...it happens to me every month or so doesn't know why?...it usually took me a week or two to recover completely...but it is hard since I'm working at a company so I have to recover within 2-3 days, otherwise...π
And don't worry you'll be more productive when you recovered from this...till then Enjoy!...don't codeπ
Yeah, I hope I get enough rest and be productive again!