The 90 Day Fatigue Is Real. Here are Two Reasons Why This Happens.
Ever start a new project, a new job, or a challenge where you’re motivated and excited, but you happen to lose that excitement as days drag on? And before you realize it, production goes down with it? Some people might throw the label that you’re just lazy. It’s easy to assume this whenever something happens, but it doesn't help us get better.
Maybe this has happened to people on your team that you work with or work for you. Now, I’m here to share a few things that I have learned over the years about what this means and how you can change it to increase productivity and keep crushing it.
While having a military background and being a business owner, I’ve experienced this myself. I wanted to identify why this happens to increase my output in all the work.
So the next step I took was to seek out some of the most successful entrepreneurs who have made a HUGE impact across the board and paid to be coached by them. As it turns out, they, too, have had these burnouts at one point, BUT they’ve learned to change that. Here are some of the takeaways on how to solve that.
1. You're not sold on “IT.”
At the start of a new goal, you were motivated and full of energy. You were crushing it, even without all the experience. At first, you were sold on either the idea, the service, or the product, but as you gained more experience and got more feedback, you started to doubt yourself slowly.
What happened is broken down into two things:
- Someone told you to do something that no longer aligns with your agreements about what you consider morally right or wrong.
- Your lack of confidence in your product, service, or mission is causing you to be influenced by outside sources.
The solution?
You have to be SOLD on what you're doing truly. This will take a lot of effort because if others' opinions easily persuade you, you’re bound to change your own opinion, even if it’s not factual. If it’s a service, the best way to be sold on what you’re doing is to use the service yourself if you provide a service. If it’s a product, buy it and use it. The point is, be a customer of your product.
2. You’re not planning your goals appropriately.
Some individuals get into burnout because they tend to take on a HUGE project but don't break it down into mini-projects. Not doing that will exhaust you mentally because you feel overwhelmed. Next thing, you want to quit on it.
An excellent book about a system that helps individuals and teams avoid burnout is the 12 Week Year by Brian P. Moran and Michael Lennington. This book takes on the idea that instead of working on a goal spaced out over a year, you actually break it down into weekly tactics that you can do for 12 weeks vs. 12 months. It is statistically proven that people are bound to get stuff done faster with a smaller timeframe versus a long one.
Conclusion
There are many reasons why someone may burnout when starting a new project or goal. The critical takeaway is to go back to the basics. Be sold on what you are doing. The most successful people I know are entirely sold on their mission. While there are many solutions, find out what resonates with you and your work ethic. Don't try to multi-task. If you stay true to your single foundation, then you will achieve all that comes after.
