You’re Not Behind: How to Overcome Burnout & Find Your Energy
We live in a culture obsessed with speed. Promotions, milestones, achievements. There is an unspoken race, and it can feel like everyone else is ahead of you. But what if that feeling is a lie? What if you are not behind, but simply on a different path of growth?
The truth is, progress is not a straight line. It is not a race. You are not behind. You are becoming.
A Moment That Stopped Me
Recently I was walking through Green Park London when I saw two trees planted side-by-side. One was tall and full, the other shorter with fewer leaves. Same soil, same sunlight, same water. Different growth rates.
My first thought was, “The little one is behind.”
But then I saw it differently.
The smaller tree was not behind. It was growing in its own way, at its own pace, building roots that no one could see. It reminded me that we all have seasons. Some seasons are for visible growth—the promotions, the new business wins, the achievements everyone can see. Other seasons are for building the foundation that will carry us forward later.
Why You Feel Behind
The sense of being behind often comes from:
Comparison: Measuring your chapter two against someone else’s chapter twenty. This is the fastest way to kill your own energy and focus.
Forgetting your journey: You forget how far you have already come. You focus only on the distance you have left to go.
The need for speed: You expect instant results in a process that takes time. High-pressure leaders can be the worst for this; you want to accelerate to the finish line, but real progress often happens one small, unglamorous step at a time.
Visible achievements: You measure your worth solely by what others can see—titles, salaries, or public recognition. You forget that the most important work is often the quietest.
The Paradox of Becoming
Becoming is the quiet work. It is the late nights spent learning. The small, consistent steps that no one claps for. The choices you make when no one is watching.
It is building depth while the world tells you to focus on speed.
In The Mountain Is You, Brianna Wiest writes: “Your new life is going to cost you your old one.”
Growth is rarely instant. Sometimes what feels like being stuck is actually preparation. This is the core paradox of high performance: the quiet, foundational work nobody sees is what creates the visible success everyone wants. You can’t build a skyscraper on a shallow foundation. The stronger your roots, the higher you can climb.
How to Shift Your Mindset
Stop comparing your timeline to others. Your journey is unique. Your worth isn’t in how fast you move. It’s in your substance.
Focus on the internal work. Your true strength is built in the choices you make when no one is watching.
Celebrate the quiet wins. A moment of courage, a difficult conversation handled with grace, a new skill learned. These are the real markers of growth.
Embrace the seasons. Understand that sometimes you need to focus on building roots, not just growing leaves.
You were made for more. And that “more” is a journey, not a race.
Your Challenge This Week
Write down three ways you have grown in the past year that have nothing to do with titles, money, or recognition. This is the evidence that you are not behind. You are becoming.
If you are a high-achieving leader or professional looking for a keynote speaker who goes beyond surface-level motivation and delivers insight, energy, and real transformation, let’s talk.
I help people ignite their energy and live switched-on lives, specifically in high-pressure environments where attention to detail matters and burnout is a threat.
