Let’s stop glamorizing burnout and start rethinking the way we lead

What if burnout isn’t a symptom of hard work, but a sign the system is broken?

In a Gallup survey of 10,000+ workers, 63% said they’ve been asked to take on more responsibilities, up from 47% just a year ago. The average employee now handles 117 emails and 153 chats every single day. And 30% of meetings span multiple time zones, bleeding into sleep, family time, and any chance at balance.

This isn’t sustainable. And it’s not a scheduling issue. It’s a leadership crisis.

I remember working at Intel in my early 30s, logging early mornings with Asia and late nights with the U.S. all in one day. I wasn’t just tired. I was asking myself, how could I ever be a working mom in a system like this? That experience shaped everything. You can’t deliver standout customer experiences when your employees are drowning. People don’t burn out from doing work they love. They burn out from a lack of control.
For me, the answer was entrepreneurship. It gave me creative freedom, ownership of my time, and the ability to build a life that worked, not just a career.

Let’s stop glamorizing burnout and start rethinking the way we lead.