Burnout can creep in at any time during the summer. If it does, know you are not alone. To conquer it, try to get away from the camp property on your days off; change your schedule if possible or alter when you do certain activities; and remind yourself that you will make it through this.

Signs of Burnout

  • You don't want to go to work. You are late, take longer breaks, or are absent more frequently.
  • What used to be fun and challenging isn't any more.
  • It takes a lot of energy to "fake" the enthusiasm that used to be real.
  • Your responses to mild crises are inappropriate and ineffective; you're short tempered; you snap at people; you yell at people; you're bitter, sarcastic, negative; you complain a lot.
  • You have difficulty staying focused; you're forgetful; you think about non-job related things: vacations, hobbies, personal phone calls, home problems.
  • You're not as professional; not as careful with details; you find yourself saying, "I really don't care," when you would never have said that before.
  • You have physical symptoms such as aches, pains, illness, depression, feeling old.

— Peter Gero, Ph.D., MFCC