Knowing when to say ‘no’ in the great rat race of life

There is an old value system in country life about being a good worker. Most of us can’t resist the odd boast here and there about being up at the crack of dawn (although that’s not any great ‘gaisc’ this time of the year) and not finishing our work until very late into the evening, and we’re proud of what we achieve over any 24 hour period.

However there will be the evening here and there when the batteries run out and the start of the nine o clock news quite gently slips into a world of sleep and dreams, before there’s a little sprint made to the bedroom. It’s quite simply our bodies telling us that they’ve had enough for one day, and that a rest is needed. All we have to do is listen and not feel guilty about it.

Last week as I glanced through an edition of the John Deere magazine, The Furrow, a publication that in-between the sales blurbs for the big green tractor giants, also contains some very informative articles, there was a most enlightening piece about finding the right balance between work, play and your private life.

Apparently one of the trends being detected across Europe amongst farmers – and often in the younger age group – is the tendency to suffer burn-out. Family demands, from such things as young children to ageing parents – thrown in with the job of running and developing a successful farm – just prove too much for many people.

The term often used to describe that not so nice place, where everything seems to be getting on top of you is called burn-out, and if not nipped in the bud, can, according to most experts in the field, be a forerunner to more serious consequences such as depression, a nervous breakdown or in extreme cases suicide.

Two categories of people seem to be at particular risk of suffering from burn-out: those who cannot say no when asked to take on extra work and who value their worth almost exclusively on their job ‘performance’ – and the perfectionists who cannot tolerate mistakes of any kind.

The most likely people to suffer from burn-out are those who are highly motivated; who are very good at their jobs and who are generally admired by their colleagues for their commitment and output in the workplace, whether it be a factory floor, an office or a farm.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.