28/04/2026
Most people think burnout comes from working too hard.
I'd like to suggest it's slightly more specific than that.
Fuel is the work that lights you up. The creative problem, the bold idea, the work that sends you down a rabbit hole at 11pm because you actually want to be there.
Ballast is the work that grounds you. The reliable deliverable, the trusted process, the thing you can do well even when Zoom decides to update itself at the exact moment you're already late for the meeting.
Both matter. Neither is enough alone.
Fuel without ballast and you're brilliant but chaotic. Full of ideas that somehow never quite land.
Ballast without fuel and you're impressively productive but quietly going dark inside.
The people I've watched sustain genuinely great work over time have, consciously or not, designed their work to contain both.
The question worth asking: what is your fuel and when did you last have enough of it?
# OSA