My Motivation to Coach

Capitalism is driving an epidemic of burnout and disconnect.

Burnout is pervasive in our society and continues to be normalised, perpetuated, and exacerbated by grind culture.

By definition, grind culture is a mindset that pushes us to keep working harder to be as productive as we can possibly be. So many of us are pushing ourselves so hard to keep up with this race that we’re going beyond our capacity to meet unrealistic deadlines, get that promotion, avoid disappointing others, or to be the best at everything all the time, and it’s driving us to sickness and exhaustion. When seemingly everyone else is overworking and conforming to the grind, it makes it that much harder to go against the grain. We’re left feeling like there’s something wrong with us, feeling ashamed that we’re struggling with exhaustion when others seem to be getting by.

I am here to tell you that there is nothing wrong with YOU. It is the system that is messed up. Once you know and truly believe this, you can start re-writing the programming the system has imposed on you your whole life. Then you can start shaping your life to suit your needs, instead of the needs of patriarchy and capitalism.

Patriarchy has programmed us to be subservient, people-please, to take responsibility for things we aren’t responsible for, and to seek our worth externally through the things we achieve. So many of us were raised with this achievement-based worth instead of the innate knowledge that we’re worthy just for being. It’s not entirely our parent or guardian’s fault though. It’s the fault of the system that programmed them to raise their kids that way, and so on, back through the generations of our ancestors since the beginnings of agriculture when patriarchy began.

This programming is then what the system takes advantage of through shaming and guilt-tripping - manipulating us via the emotions tied up in these core beliefs around our worth and rights, to ensure that we conform and keep working on and on, even when it means compromising our own well-being.

We are programmed to ignore the early warning signs of illness and burnout that our bodies try to communicate to us.

We are shamed into thinking we have no right to rest with words like “lazy”, which were created by capitalist society purely to make people work harder.

Being depressed isn’t lazy. Procrastinating due to mental health or ADHD isn’t lazy. And having burnout sure as hell isn’t lazy.

It is our birthright to rest when we need to, and capitalism stripped away the belief that we even have that birthright, many years ago. It stripped it away so that we would feel like we have no right to rest when we need to. So that we would just keep working.

The thing is, for Highly Sensitive People (HSPs), the grind hits harder. HSPs are one step ahead of the game when it comes to tuning into our bodies and our surroundings. We feel things more, which is our superpower, but it also means that we’re affected by things more if we don’t have the appropriate protective boundaries in place. HSPs are super-sensors, but in capitalist society we have to be careful not to get worn down, bled dry, and driven to burnout by sensing and absorbing too much of the unnatural intensity that surrounds us. We are more easily overstimulated and we feel the energy of others more intensely. So when we’re in an overpopulated city, trying to commute during rush hour, working in a brightly lit and overcrowded office for too many hours, where everyone is grumpy, dissatisfied, and many are even narcissistic and sociopathic…we HSPs are at our most vulnerable in terms of absorbing our surroundings. It is a toxic environment for everyone, especially HSPs and empaths.

As being a HSP is not a recognised, diagnosable “condition” according to western medicine, it is difficult to set boundaries around our well-being in the workplace and be taken seriously. That is, until we get to the point of actual diagnosable physical and/or mental illness. Employers only grant you leave or reduced hours if you have a note from a western medicine doctor. Western medicine operates reactively, rather than preventatively. So we have to get to the point of burnout or some other “tangible” illness before we’re given a doctor’s note to take a leave of absence and rest. In fact, I’ve never even been granted a note like this for saying I have burnout. I had to complete surveys to prove I was depressed and anxious, which are both symptoms of burnout, and actually recognised by western medicine as “worthy” of time off.

This leads me to the effect of capitalist regime on our health, in general. The system of capitalism requires the masses to be indoors, without direct natural light, for ALL hours in the day where sunlight is optimally available. (FYI, sitting on the other side of a glass window pane is not true sun exposure!) Sunlight is our primary source of energy and healthy well-being. It is the only reason there is life on Earth at all, after all. We literally need it to sustain us. Yet capitalism prevents us from getting this essential sustenance by insisting we work from 9–5 (or longer).

Without optimally timed sunlight exposure we develop all sorts of illnesses that stem from the misalignment of our circadian rhythms - the basis of ALL of our internal cycles. Without alignment of these cycles, our internal environment becomes accommodating of dis-ease. The epidemic of physically and mentally unwell people today is in part due to our disconnect from our natural cycles. Capitalism, grind culture, prevents us from acquiring this necessary and FREE medicine. We must stay at our desks while the sun’s energy blasts away and meanwhile we don’t benefit from it at all. Employers doll up their offerings with benefits packages and bonuses and, if you’re lucky, generous salaries. But you wouldn’t need those health benefits if you weren’t trapped in a system that forces you to ignore your natural rhythms in the first place.

But that’s just it. You’re not trapped. You’re just programmed to think that you are. Capitalism wants you to believe that grind culture is the best and only option for your survival, so that you keep being "productive". So that you remain a cog in the lucrative and ever relentlessly growing machine.

That was me. I was a pawn in one of the most notoriously patriarchal systems in the world, for 13 whole years: academia. Once the wool was pulled from over my eyes, I had to get out. I said goodbye to a 17-year career in marine biology because I was done with research and done with full-time work. The whole experience burnt me out so brutally I was inspired to help others “see the light” as well. So, here I am. At your service. Ready to help you re-wire and re-write, just like I did.

Here’s the thing: You can still exist in a capitalist world without completely buying into it. There are ways to earn enough money to live comfortably without sacrificing your needs. You can truly thrive as a Highly Sensitive Person, even living in a city, and without compromising your need for a fulfilling career. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not easy. It requires going against the grain, and that takes courage and determination. But once you’re free from grind culture programming, you can start to appreciate the things that really matter in life and you can reconnect and find your centre. You can prioritise your well-being, structure your life around your natural cycles, and feel truly well and happy. You can thrive. But not as long as you keep prioritising work over your own basic needs.

Just because everyone else is doing it, doesn't mean it's right.

If you’re ready to re-write the narrative and start prioritising your well-being and the things that really matter to you over nonsensical regime, then I’ve got you. I’m in the process of launching my new coaching package: The Burnout Boundaries Blueprint, which is designed specifically so that you walk away with: 

• ⁠Confidence and clarity to say no and ask for what you need
• ⁠Empowerment to prioritise your happiness and health over work/other responsibilities
• ⁠Energy to feel good and do the things you love
• Tools and resources to keep setting and maintaining healthy boundaries around your well-being to prevent burnout in future

As it’s new, I already found 3 people to gift this package to for free. Now, I’m offering this package to the next 5 people who contact me at 50% of the true value.

That’s $475 + tax (instead of $950 + tax) for:

• 9.5 hours of 1:1 coaching
• 30 minutes of additional coaching per month if needed between sessions
• Unlimited email communication between sessions
• Worksheets, meditation recordings, and more
• And unlimited:
  • • • • • • Validation
            • Empathy
            • Compassion
            • Safe container
            • Accountability

You can reach out via email, Instagram, Facebook, or the contact page on my website.

Take care xo