When I say the word “burnout,” what’s the first thing that pops into your mind?
Naturally, you think of work. It’s the common narrative we hear everywhere: people are burning out because they work too many hours, carry too many responsibilities, or fear that AI will eventually take over their jobs.
As an immigrant, that pressure is even higher. You’re often working twice as hard just to prove you’re worthy—to your boss, to your family, and to yourself. But here’s the kicker: while those external pressures are real, they are often just the surface story.
The Stories Our Minds Create
Our minds are incredibly intelligent. They are experts at creating logical narratives to explain our pain. You tell yourself you’re exhausted because of toxic colleagues, the extra shifts, or a boss who doesn’t appreciate you.
While there is often a degree of truth to those things, they are rarely the root cause. Your mind builds these stories because it’s easier to blame a “toxic office” than it is to face the underlying theme that has been haunting you for years.
Why Changing Jobs Rarely Solves the Problem
When you only address the surface level, your solutions become distractions.
You might think that upskilling, changing careers, or moving to a different company will finally eliminate the burnout. But without addressing the underlying feeling, you’re just chasing a ghost. You can easily waste another five or ten years of your life chasing a “better future,” only to wake up and realize you are in the exact same boat, feeling the exact same emptiness.
You aren’t just tired of your job; you are tired of the internal battle you’ve been fighting since you arrived in this country. And maybe even before that.
The Question Behind the Exhaustion
I had a session with a client who felt completely drained of energy. Before we started the actual coaching, we discussed their situation. The client had a list of very logical, professional reasons why they weren’t feeling well and they also had a plan to fix them.
But as we went deeper, the “logical” reasons fell away. We hit the real wall: the emptiness. The questions that had been suppressed for years:
- “Who am I really?” “What am I doing here?” “What is my actual path?”
Getting to the Bottom of the Burnout
Until you experience these feelings viscerally and ask the right questions, you are just scratching the surface.
In my coaching sessions, we don’t just talk about your schedule or your boss. We go to the place where those deep feelings live. My client was shocked at what was revealed once we stopped looking at the “work story” and started looking at what was going on inside of them.
The same revelation is waiting for you. You don’t have to keep living as a stranger to yourself, escaping into work or distractions just to survive the day.