127. You’re Not Burnt Out - You’re Bored

Everyone seems to be burnt out right now.

And here's the thing - some people genuinely are. Burnout is real, it's serious, and if that's you I am not here to minimise it for a second.

But some of the people telling me they're burnt out?

They're actually bored.

And those are two very different things with two very different solutions. Getting clear on which one you're actually dealing with - that's what this episode is about.

This time of year is prime boredom territory. The new year energy is long gone. You're not quite at the finish line yet. 

And that flat, restless, going-through-the-motions feeling has crept in for a lot of people.

In this episode I'm breaking down what burnout actually looks like, what boredom actually looks like, and exactly what to do if you suspect it might be boredom that's been the problem all along.

Before you quit your job. Before you call it burnout. Have a listen to this one first.

🎧 If this episode made you think, laugh, or question something - send it to someone who needs a little permission to do life differently. 

📲 Screenshot, tag me @candiceharvey__, and let me know what hit home.

Oh and check out my FUN website for all my services: www.candiceharvey.com 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

We are over the hump, my friends. Yeah, we are. July is nearly done. I can smell August approaching, which by the way is my birthday month, the 8th of August specifically. So feel free to write that down, make a big deal of it on the day. Thank you so much. But here's what else approaching August means. We are five months from the end of 2026, which you absolutely know, five months, that's it. But I've actually noticed something lately. And I've had quite a few people reach out in my DMs after workshops in conversations, and they're telling me that they feel like they're burnt out. And here's the thing: some of them absolutely are. Burnout is real. It is a legitimate, recognized, serious condition. And if that is you right now, I am absolutely not here to minimize that or to tell you to cheer up. That is awful and annoying. But what I am going to talk about is what burnout actually is and what it isn't. Because I want to make sure that you really do know the difference. Because some of the people that I've been speaking to, they're absolutely not burnt out. They're bought. And I say that with love. Deep, genuine, you deserve more love. Because boredom and burnout can actually feel surprisingly similar on the surface. Like the lack of motivation, the dragging yourself through the day, the Sunday dread, the general feeling of just meh, but they are very different things with very different solutions. And if you try to fix boredom by resting, it won't work. And if you try to fix burnout by finding a new challenge, that won't work either. So getting clear on which one you're actually dealing with, that's the whole point of today. And honestly, this time of year is prime boredom territory. I hate saying it, but it's actually true. I mean, the year started with like big energy, didn't it? You know, like January. Remember January? Oh, January's so cute. You know, you're a little bit full and you're a little bit tired from Christmas, but it's like exciting. And you set the goals, you had the plans, you were fired up, and now it's nearly August. And if you're being really honest, the year has felt a little bit like flat. You know, it's not terrible, it's not falling apart, it's just flat. And flat doesn't mean that nothing's been going on. It's been full. There's been a lot going on. But that restless, uninspired going through the motions feeling that nobody really talks about because burnout sounds a lot more valid, but boredom is valid too. And more importantly, boredom is fixable today. So let's figure out which one you're dealing with, and then let's do something about it. Welcome to the Shake Up Podcast. I'm at Candace Harvey, speaker, author, workshop facilitator, and also known as a People Shaker. I spent 15 years in HR, and in 2018 I started my own business with a simple switch. I stopped helping companies manage their people and I started helping people manage themselves. Because I get it. Working life in 2026 is a lot. It's meetings that rob you of 45 minutes that you're never getting back. It's an inbox that feels absolutely relentless. It's personalities that have you deep breathing like that. And that 3 p.m. crash that hits like clockwork is real. And no, I don't think quitting your job is the answer. However, I do know that shaking things up every now and again absolutely is. So if you're ready for a nudge, a reset, or a loving kick up the bum, you're in the right place. So let's start with burnout today. Because I want to be really clear on this before we go anywhere else. Burnout is not just being tired. It's not having a hard week or a heavy month. Burnout is what happens when you have been running on empty for so long that your body and your mind eventually just stop cooperating. It's cumulative. Oh, that was a big word. Cumulative. Oh, you try and say that. Stops cooperating, it's cumulative. It actually builds. And by the time most people recognize burnout, they're already deep in it. That's the really crap thing about burnout. Burnout looks like, I don't know, waking up really exhausted even after a full night of sleep. It looks like sitting down to do a task that would normally take you 20 minutes and just staring at it. It looks like not being able to care, like about your work, about your performance, sometimes about the people around you. There's a real cynicism that creeps in, like a flatness, an emotional numbness that is genuinely hard to shake. And the cruel thing about burnout is that even rest doesn't fully fix it in the short term. You can have a weekend away and come back and still feel completely depleted because it's not about the hours. It's actually about those hours have cost you over time. I have been burnt out multiple times in my life. And if I'm honest, it feels different at different times. 2024 was probably the biggest time in my life where I was absolutely burnt out. And there was such a flatness, there was such a numbness. It was really hard to shake. And I'm a shaker-upper. It was really, really tough. And it was a very hard thing to come out of. And even since then, and I have seen friends, I have, you know, clients as well who come to me after they have just been, or when they're actually in the thick of it with complete burnout. And it's a really uncomfortable feeling. And like I said, there is this real cynicism. There is a real negative spin on it. And it starts to feel like I just don't give a shh about anything. It's still July, by the way, so I'm still in my swear-free zone, right? But there is this, I really don't care about anything around me. If that is actually you right now, please hear me when I say that it is real, that it is really serious. And the answer is not to push harder or find your passion or give yourself a pep talk. The answer is rest, support, and probably a conversation with someone who can actually help you through it. But here's where I want to get really honest with you, because burnout is not the only thing that feels like burnout. Boredom feels a lot like burnout on the surface. The dragging through the day, the lack of motivation, the sense that something is off, but underneath it, it's a completely different story. Boredom doesn't feel depleted though. Boredom actually feels restless. So there's actually energy there, but nowhere to put it. So you're not exhausted, you're uninspired. You're not actually falling apart, you're just not being stretched. Work feels predictable, your days feel repetitive, like hello groundhog day. You scroll more than you used to, you procrastinate on things that used to excite you. And there's this low grade dissatisfaction, like sitting in your chest that you can't quite name. And here's the way I think about the difference. Burnout says, like I have nothing left, and boredom says this isn't enough for me. Right? So there's two things. Burnout is like I have nothing left, and boredom is this isn't enough for me. One is about being completely emptied out, and the other is about being completely underused. Like they need completely different things. Now, here's the bit that I think is really, really important and also a little bit confronting. A lot of people right now are calling what they feel burnout because burnout sounds valid. It's a little bit popular as well. Burnout also sounds serious. Burnout gives you permission to stop. And I'm not saying that to be harsh. I'm saying it because I think it's actually doing people a disservice. Because if you're bored and you treat it like burnout, so you rest, you step back, you wait for the feeling to pass and it doesn't. Because rest is not the cure of boredom. Challenges. And this time of year, late July, heading into August, is honestly prime time for boredom. Like that whole new energy thing, like we talked about, it's not there anymore. Like you're not quite at the finish line yet. You're in the middle of the year, and this is where momentum quietly dies for a lot of people, and nobody really talks about it. So that's what we're gonna do today. We are not curing burnout on this episode. That's a way bigger conversation and for people way more professional in that area than I am. But there is a chance that what you're feeling is actually boredom dressed up in burnout's clothing, and it doesn't actually fit them properly and it feels a little bit uncomfortable, but they're wearing it because they don't know what else to wear. And I want to help you shake it off, not shake the clothing off, but I want to help you get out of boredom. So this is how we are going to do it. Again, if you are, and I want this to be this really, really clear disclaimer, if you have seen your GP and you are really convinced that burnout is where you're at at the moment, please continue to do all the things to look after yourself. Burnout is no joke. However, if you have been feeling a bit off, and as you're listening to this, you're like, oh my God, I think Candace is right. I thought I might be on the edge of burnout, but I think I'm just bored. We are gonna go through how to unbore yourself. And this is gonna be super fun, but this is absolutely where you're at. Because if you have been feeling a little bit restless, if you've been feeling like I'm uninspired, if you've been feeling like I'm just not stretched, this is so repetitive, you are probably bored. So we are gonna go through how many things did I write down? Three, four, five. Cute. Five things. How to unboard yourself. Are you ready for this? Number one, ask for more, not less. I know. Every instinct when you're feeling flat is to actually pull back. Like do less, coast a little, wait for the feeling to pass, call in sick, not go to work for a few days. But if what you're dealing with is boredom, pulling back is the worst thing that you can do because you're already understimulated. So less is not the answer. More is. Now, I don't mean more of the same. I mean go and ask for a new project. Put your hand up for something outside of your usual scope. Tell your manager that you want more responsibility. Most people sit quietly, waiting to be noticed, and then they wonder why nothing actually changes. You are allowed to ask. In fact, you have to ask because nobody is sitting in a boardroom somewhere thinking about how to make your job more interesting. That is your job. I remember I had this absolute legend who worked for me in one of my corporate gigs and corporate gigs. Isn't that funny how I just use that term? I never would have said that when I was in corporate, but now that I talk now in my business about speaking gigs, I just chucked gig on the end of it. Anyway, and she literally came up to me and she was such a legend. I'm still in contact with her now. I love it at absolute pieces. And she said, I need more. Like I actually want to do some other things. Like I'm pretty on top of everything. Is there anything that you're currently doing, Candace, that you don't want to do that you can offload to me that I can learn that's different? And I was like, you are amazing. Like, firstly, I knew that she was on top of all of her work, but I didn't know that she wanted to do other things to be stretched. And I remember saying, I remember, I remember saying that I'd just been given this new project that I wasn't excited about. It required a spreadsheet, it required a lot of data, and she was all over that. She still absolutely is as she continues to climb the corporate ladder. Absolute legend. And I gave it to her and she gobbled it up, and it was the best because it got off my list and went on to her. Amazing. But that is just such a great example of it's not up to your manager or the person who, you know, is your boss to kind of go, I think we need to give this person a challenge. I think we need to give her or him more creative work. No, that's up to you. That's up to you. The shift I really want you to make here is this: like, stop thinking about what you can get out of work right now and start thinking about what you can bring to it. Because the second you actually do that, something shifts. And I've seen it happen over and over again in coaching. The people who are most engaged at work are not the ones who got lucky with a great role. They're the ones who decided to show up like it mattered and then made it matter. Right? So you don't actually need a break, you don't need something exciting to dig your teeth into. You really just need to be able to lean in and ask for more, not less. See what else you can get your hands involved in. So that's number one to unboy yourself. Number two is create a personal standard. This one is underrated and I love it. Create a personal standard. Your job right now might feel repetitive, right? And I feel like you might be listening to this going, yes, Candace, like I've been in it for however long. It's just the same all the time. The tasks might be the same. The meetings might be the same. God, the reoccurring meetings, don't we love them? We love them. The emails might feel like you've written them a thousand times because you probably have, and you cannot always control that. But here's what you can control: the standard that you bring to it. What if you tried to do it faster than you did it last month? What if you tried to do it better? Not because anyone asked you to, but because you decided that that was your standard? What if you approached a task that you've done a hundred times, I don't know, as if you were doing it for the first time and asked, like, is there a better way to do this? You know, the amount of tasks that I remember being given when I worked in corporate where it was just handed over from the person before, so you just did it, as opposed to really creating a personal standard and go, why do we do it this way? Is there a better way to do this? Is there a better format? Can I make it easier for the person to read, to digest, to learn from? Is there a better way to do this? Now, this isn't about working harder for someone else's benefit. I just need to, I feel like I need to put a disclaimer on that. This is about making the game a little bit harder, I guess, for yourself, which sounds a little bit weird. That's why I just paused there. I was like, do we want to make it harder? And I was like, no, we actually do. Because when there's no challenge coming from the outside, you actually start to create it from the inside. I feel like I need to say that again to make sure that really drills home. When there's no challenge coming from the outside, you create it from the inside. And this is a skill that will serve you everywhere, not just in this job that you're in now, not just this year, but everywhere. It is really important to understand that the most bored people I've ever met are the ones who stopped caring about their own standard. And the most engaged people I've ever met are the ones who hold themselves to something, regardless of whether anyone else notices. So you almost want to make the game harder for yourself. It works. Look at everything that you put your hands on, every reoccurring task, everything that feels get it out, Candace. Repetitive, big word, and make it better. Improve it. Like if there is, even when we were saying reoccurring meetings before, if there are meetings that every single bloody week is bloody a swear word? What do we call that? I don't think it is. Let's let's hope it's not. That every single week that you have to actually turn up. Oh my god, sorry, tea time. Hold please. Cold tea. Always cold tea. Why don't I drink it on time? Oh my gosh. But if there is a recurring meeting that you go to and you dread it and you feel like it's a pointless waste of time, how would it be better? How could you make it better? And sometimes it can be the smallest tweaks. It's like I'm actually gonna go in, I'm gonna ask more questions, or I'm gonna make sure I greet everyone. I'm gonna check if everyone's okay. I'm gonna see if there's anything that I can do after the meeting to make next meeting better. Think creatively. Create a personal standard for you, which means raising the bar. That is number two to unbore yourself, right? Yes, it requires effort. Make the game harder for yourself. It absolutely works. Number three, to unboard yourself. Start something outside of work. Okay, this one is big, and I feel strongly about this, and I just like sat up very differently in my chair. So bear with me. We have somehow collectively decided that work should be the primary source of our fulfillment, our purpose, our identity, our sense of achievement. And when work stops delivering that, we feel lost. We feel flat. We call it burnout. But work was never supposed to do all of that alone. It's like how we think our partner should be our best friend, our lover, our shopping buddy, our cheerleader, our business assistant, our taxi driver, our whatever. They are not meant to be everything to you. And work is the same. If work isn't lighting you up right now, stop expecting it to be your only source of fulfillment. Start something else, something that is completely yours, a fitness goal, a creative project, a podcast. I mean, clearly I'm a fan, right? Learn something new. Sign up for something that scares you a little bit. Like I did with my dancing. When did I start my dancing? Over a year ago. It was terrifying and also the best thing that I did outside of work. Like maybe you want to start a side project that maybe it goes nowhere, but it gives you something to think about other than your inbox. I started this podcast while I was still building my business from scratch, and it wasn't really a strategy. It was actually an outlet. You know, something that was mine and it gave me energy that then fed back into everything else that I was doing. When you have something outside of work that excites you, work becomes less loaded. It doesn't have to be everything anymore. It just has to be work. And somehow that actually makes it easier to show up for. So if you've been sitting on an idea, a thing that you keep saying that you want to start, this is your sign. Start it scrappy, start it small, just start. But do something outside of work. I am such a big believer in this. Work does not have to be everything. And we put so much focus on it because we feel like it takes up so many hours of our week and of our day. And yes, it does. However, there is also a lot of time outside of it. I will we're talking about this actually on last week's note, the week before episode with Lachlan Stewart. And he was really talking about how passionate he is. And I loved it because it when it when we were having the interview, we were both on Zoom, but he kept looking up at his yearly calendar and he kept getting super excited about it. And we were talking about it in the episode. If you haven't listened to it, go back. It was absolutely awesome. Episode 125. And he was talking about how his yearly calendar doesn't just have work commitments all through it, like his speaking gigs or workshops or whatever it is. It also has his weekends away with the boys, it also has his date nights with his wife, it also has all other things that he is really excited about that he also thinks no one else would be excited about by him, which was quite interesting. Um, but it's all colour-coded, it excites him, right? But it's not all work-related. I remember even getting off that call with him, and I was like, I love that. Like my online calendar, and I was saying this to a girlfriend this morning when I went for a walk. I have it all colour-coded, everything's on there on my online calendar, as in, so when I'm working at my desk, I've got it open for the week. I can see the work, I can see my personal stuff, I can see all different bits and pieces. It's beautiful. It's colour-coded. I can see my friendships, I can see my family time. Love it, all there. However, he does it in this one big 12-month poster-looking thing that's on his wall. And visually, that makes him so much happier because he can just see it. And I was like, that's a really great idea. But it also helps me see that my big calendar that I've got on my wall is not just work-focused. Because work is actually only one part of our life. I say this all the time. I love work. I love that people get so much joy from work. I love the impact that we can create from work. I love the ripple effect, the joy that it can bring, the conversations that created. Work is amazing. My husband even said to me the other day, if we won 40 mil, would you continue working? I was like, yeah. I mean, I'd probably be a little bit picky and choosy with what I do as opposed to now. But yeah, like I absolutely love it. However, that being said, even as someone who's obsessed with their job, it's not everything. I want to have weekends away with friends. I want to have my date nights with my husband. I want to spend time with my family. I want to go out in the garden, which I've never been a gardener before. I actually got this house and now all of a sudden I just want to be a gardener, which is still hilarious and it just doesn't sink in. But I'm going to be a green thumb. Oh my God, who am I? Can't even believe that. I just said that. Can't even believe it. But start things outside of work. Maybe that's why my friend Sophie actually loves her garden as well. Like she's just become, like, we're in our 40s now and she's become obsessed with the garden. I couldn't really get it. I'm starting to get it though now. Um, but it's her outlet. It's outside of work, which I love. Number four, to unbore yourself is change your environment. This one sounds almost too simple. Change your environment. But I talk about this in my Happiness First workshop, and people DM me about it all the time because it is simple and it also changes everything. Boredom thrives in sameness. Same desk, same route to work, same coffee order, same playlist, same everything. And when everything around you is exactly the same every single day, your brain actually switches off. It stops looking for new things because there are no new things. And that flatness you feel, a lot of it is just your environment reflecting back to you. So you do not always need a new job. Sometimes you just need new energy. Like work from a different spot for a week, take a different route, change what you listen to in the morning, find a new coffee shop and sit in it for an hour with your laptop, rearrange your desk, change the order of your day. None of this sounds revolutionary and it's not, but small environmental shifts create mental shifts, and mental shifts create momentum. As we all know, I moved house recently, and as you probably know, if you follow me on social media and even just like I just know that being in a new space has done something for my energy and my thinking. Like new space wakes up your brain. So if a new house isn't on the cards this week, start smaller. Like just change something, anything. Like today, I even got a stand-up desk recently, and so I'm standing and uh sounds so funny. I got a stand-up desk, so I'm standing. Yeah, well done, Candace. But oh my gosh, I love it. Like, change your environment, move your desk around. It's crazy the differences that that can actually make. So if you are serious about unboring yourself, change your environment. Stop doing the same thing all the time. Stop wearing the exact same clothes, stop doing your hair the same way, stop eating the same thing for breakfast. I don't care if you love it. I know that sounds really weird, but you might I really love my overnight oats. Great. Pick something new. You might love that even more. And if not, you can go back to it, but just change the way that you are doing certain things. I love that one. It's really important. I could bang. On it for a while, but did you see myself? I was like, go on to the next one, Candace. That's enough. Number five of how to bore yourself. Do something that scares you a little. Please do something that scares you a little. I saved this one for last because I think it's actually the most powerful. And here's what I know about boredom: it disappears almost immediately when discomfort enters the room because you cannot be bored and uncomfortable at the same time. They don't coexist. And as the fastest way out of boredom, it's actually to do the thing that you've been avoiding. Speak up in the meeting that you've been sitting quietly in. Share the idea that you've been sitting on. Put yourself forward for the thing that you don't feel ready for. Send that email. Make that call. Pick up the phone and make the call. I know that's very weird in 2026 that a lot of us don't do that, but pick up the phone. Have the conversation. It doesn't actually have to be enormous either. Like if you are really thinking about doing something that scares you a little bit, sometimes it is really small. Like it just has to be slightly outside of your comfort zone because the moment you do that, something wakes up, your brain gets interested again, your nervous system fires up, and that restless, flat going through the motions feeling, it's gone because you're in it now. Like you're playing. You know, even um a couple of weeks ago, I when I first let everyone know that I was going in my swear-free month, I actually had someone message me back saying that she got this feedback from the workshop that she hadn't actually shared with me. And it was all about how people found me very relatable in the workshop and that I timed my swearing really well and it kept me really real, basically arguing against that I should be having a swear-free month, that it was really appreciated, that she really liked it. And I sent her a message, actually sent her an audio message back and said, Oh, I really appreciated getting that message. Like it was really lovely. Thank you so much. You've made my day. It was it's always really nice to hear that the it landed, that people enjoyed the way that I delivered, the way that I am, because it's it's so me. And I've worked really hard on making sure that I am delivering in a way that is true to who I am, right? Um and she wrote back and she's like, Oh, I um den art about sharing that feedback with you. I'm so glad it made your day. I think what I'm gonna do for the month of July is I'm gonna really start speaking more about what I'm thinking instead of just keeping it to myself because she went through the speak up shake up workshop as well. And she's like, I I really need to do that, not holding back. I need to speak up more. And I was like, absolutely. Like, yes, it might scare you, you know, to come forward and and get in contact with people and it might sound like nothing, but it can be a big deal for some people to actually speak up, but to realize that this is something that is going to help other people potentially or make other people's day. So, yes, it might make your heart race, but it is something that is gonna be a really great thing and it will absolutely unbore you. Like it is really hard to be bored if you are making someone else's day as a result of you speaking up. So I'm I'm a big advocate of that. It was actually how I was raised as well. Like, if you are, you know, um grateful of some of something or of somebody or something, tell them, right? Like sending thank you cards was always a big part of when we were brought up. Like my brother and I used to hate it as well. It was like, make sure you send a card to Anie Patricia and thank her for the oh mum, but we would always have to do it. And now it's a big thing. If I'm spending time with friends, I'm always sending them messages and I'm letting them know that that was amazing. I really appreciate it. Thank you so much. It's really, really important to let people know that they matter, right? Speaking up. Confidence also doesn't come from comfort, right? It comes from doing the thing that you've been avoiding, and boredom is just comfort that's gone on way too long. So pick one thing, just one of these five that I have just gone through, these five things that will unbore you and do it this week, not next month, not when things calm down this week. Because if you're waiting like to feel less bored, or even if you're feeling like it is burnout, which is what you might think that you have, try taking action. Like you might have it backwards. Action is what creates the inspiration, not the other way around. And if you're, you know, bored before you quit your job, like make sure that it's not burnout, but ask yourself, have I actually challenged myself lately or have I just been coasting? Maybe you don't need to escape your life. Maybe you just need to engage with it again. You know, isn't that a really nice feeling to think about? Like I don't actually need to escape. I don't need to go on holidays. I just need to get back into my life again. And with all of the ones that I just went through where they're really quite basic to unboy yourself. Like, number one was ask for more, not less. So put yourself in situations, put your hand up, ask for something more interesting to be involved in. Number two, create a personal standard. Look at the way that you are working at the moment and up it. Make it better. Improve it. Do something that impresses the pants off you. Number three, start something outside of work. Work is not everything. Look at how you can have some fun outside of work. Number four, change your environment. Look at how you're setting yourself up every day. Are you doing the same routine? Do you need to shake it up and do something different? And number five, do something that scares you a little bit. Do something that shakes up that cute little heart of yours. Do something that even makes your mouth dry. Do something that makes you feel a little bit numb because you're like, oh my God, this is unfamiliar. Like I say on repeat, when you get that feeling in your body, it is not your body saying abort mission. It is your body saying, we haven't done this before. This is new. This is gonna lead to growth. Keep at it, right? So go have fun and absolutely shake things up. And if you love this episode, please send it to a friend. Tag me in, share it with your colleagues. It might be the best thing they've heard in a long time, and they may have really needed it. So you are welcome. Until next time, go have fun and shake things up.