Burnt Out

A friend of mine posted an article on Facebook the other day that had me intrigued, Why Millennial Women Are Burning Out At Work By 30.  Larissa Faw wrote a blog about women of my generation who are feeling stuck and overwhelmed and underappreciated.  "They excelled in everything throughout their childhood, are making significant progress climbing the corporate ladder, but now find themselves questioning their careers, relationships and wondering, Is this what life is really like?"

Other than growing up perfect and becoming a corporate superstar, I felt like the article spoke to me.  I worked my tail off in high school to get into a good college.  When I eventually set my sights on Washington, I made that happen too.  However, when I got there I was eating beans from a can, commuting in the pouring rain and found my desk job a bore.  That's right, I found the halls of Congress dull.  Egos were big.  People were mean.  And everyone my age spent every night at the bar asking each other "who do you work for."  But I had the job I had dreamed of.  It didn't make me happy and I felt stuck.

I think the day to day drudgery of bills and alarm clocks had me confused and feeling like Washington wasn't for me.  I started pining for Nashville.  Looking back, I think the real problem is for my whole life, I have always had goals and aspirations.  I worked hard to get where I wanted to go and now I'm here.  And apparently, I'm just burnt out.  Thankfully, because of a little article, I learned I'm not the only one. Judging from the comments, tweets and shares, it's an epidemic.

Spending an evening at home with Bennett reminds me that it's not all about climbing the ladder or a big paycheck or being featured in Forbes.  There are so many other aspects of my life that make me happy and keep me grounded.  Those nights at home with a fussy Bennett also remind me how grateful I am to have things that fulfill me outside of the home too.