Deciding what "enough" is

AI is the new culprit of burnout. It used to be remote work. Before that, toxic offices. While these factors turn up the volume, underneath them has always been the perpetual sense of not being enough.

People get burned out in every condition.

I see it in the BCG consultant who already made partner, but still worried she's not ambitious enough for what comes next.

I see it in the HBS alum with every accolade on the account, but still refreshing LinkedIn to check who's pulling ahead.

I see it in the entrepreneur who has been building and shipping smartly, but still feeling inadequate because a peer just landed the big exit.

I see it in the newly returned mom who feels she's failing both jobs, not present enough at home, not committed enough at work.

I see it in the remote parents with help at home and the office parents without, both squeezing in more, both still chasing targets that keep moving.

Different lives. Same engine: not trusting themselves to decide what "enough" is.

So they push until there's nothing left to push with.

The culprits will keep changing. The fear won't, until we face it.

Burnout doesn't end when the environment improves. I've seen moms with wonderful nanny support burn out anyway, because now the bar moves to "I should be achieving more."

Some people are truly stretched thin, fighting to make ends meet. That's real.

But for many of us, burnout will be perpetual no matter how far we've come.

For us, burnout ends when we decide, for ourselves, what enough looks like. Otherwise, someone else decides. And their answer is always more.