Why Self-Compassion is Essential for Perfectionists to Recover from Burnout

When was the last time that you were a student?

When I say a student, I mean: when was the last time you were in the position to:

• Learn something for the first time?

• Not be an expert?

• Experience some trial and error along the way?

So many people recovering from burnout are also high achievers who are recovering from perfectionism.

And let's get into, because the pressure to be flaw-free is highly valued in today's world. Not to mention that the rewards and financial benefits from ​perfectionism​ are ones we have become accustomed to and are even conditioned to expect.

With all this being said, it still brings me back to this (unpopular) fact that can get lost in the pursuit of all this flawlessness:

Human beings were just not designed to be perfect.

We were not designed to only do things right. We were not designed to never make mistakes. We were actually designed to try new things and *​take a deep breath here​* not immediately be good at them. The truth is that it is incredibly unfair and ​unsustainable​ to expect yourself to do everything perfectly, all the time.

This expectation of ​perfection​ has proven to cause additional stress, create unrealistic expectations and increase the negative self-talk that gets in the way of having a healthy relationship with yourself.

So on your own recovery journey, embrace thinking of yourself as a student. You're learning, trying and growing through the discomfort of not always being an expert. Give yourself opportunities to swap out criticism with compassion as often as you can Remember that it's natural to not always get it right.

For even more tools to navigate this part of your recovery journey, start my Becoming Self-Compassion journaling course to learn a variety of mindful ways you can become more self-compassionate on your burnout recovery journey.