Permission to dial it back

Four articles selected just for you, all a different take on tackling burnout and its companion, exhaustion. A fun read (not) but necessary, especially at this time of year.

A few weeks ago, I came across this HBR post on mental health and burnout. We’ve been taught the value of being highly productive, even though we now know how much of a health risk it is.

Have you felt drained lately? Then this series is for you. Whether you want to talk about it with others or learn more about how to deal with it, I hope this serves.

Give yourself permission to dial it back
Beyond burned out
In praise of extreme moderation

The last article tackles reducing parental burnout when a new baby arrives in the family. If you’ve not recently had a newborn, you may not be aware of the Snoo sleeper, but it’s certainly worth knowing about it.

The story of this invention goes beyond the fact it is supposed to give an extra couple of hours of sleep to parents thanks to the AI magic of its rocking motion system and white noise. The hefty £1195 price tag (same in euros) could turn you away unless, of course, you put a high value on your sleep. But this cot is more than a cot. It’s a “robotic caregiver” with a “social purpose”, as the FT puts it. And its founder, Dr Harvey Karp, doesn’t believe it should be only accessible to people who can afford the full price. The company has been donating beds to homeless shelters, clinics and hospitals, and a study of 44 hospitals has reached the conclusion that each Snoo cot was able to reduce nurses’ workload by 2.2 hours per shift (on average). An invention with a mission to improve public health. Read more here.