Baus, who used to work in an advertising agency, recalled hitting a “proverbial rock bottom” before leaving his job.<\/p>\n
\u201cAng akin, \u2018yung parang proverbial rock bottom ko before I decided to quit was sobrang daming tasks, sobrang daming deadlines, ang daming apoy na kailangang patayin… I remember telling my partner, \u2018You know what, sana himatayin na lang ako now, or magka-nervous breakdown na lang ako\u2019 because I think that is the only way I can temporarily escape work,” he lamented. “It was that dark, and I guess, painful for me.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Echoing what Baus said, Raco added, \u201cIf you\u2019d rather be sick than work, I think you\u2019re working in the wrong place.”<\/p>\n
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According to psychiatrist Kathryn Tan, experiencing burnout not only manifests physically, but also emotionally and mentally.<\/p>\n
“If you’re just tired, rest would usually help. But if you’re burned out, even after resting, you still feel emotionally unmotivated, irritable, overwhelmed. It’s not just the physical exhaustion\u2014it’s also emotional and mental exhaustion,” she said in a video.<\/p>\n
Luchi noted the difference between the thresholds of older and younger generations, “Kami kasing matatanda, matataas na ang mga threshold namin. Feeling ko, pagod na pagod din kami, pero hindi option mag-quit. Ganoon kami noon. It\u2019s just not.”<\/p>\n
Baus, meanwhile, reflected on finding a middle ground between both generations, noting that the older workers can learn from the younger ones when it comes to wellness, mindfulness, and setting boundaries. “But at the same time, I do feel the younger generation really has a lot to learn from the ones that came before them in the sense na grit is developed over time, and you cannot master something if you quit right away,” he added.<\/p>\n
Raco likened work to a relationship, stressing the importance of self-awareness. For him, people should stay long enough to see if a job is working for them, rather than staying in denial or \u201cself-gaslighting\u201d themselves into thinking they are in the right place.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to like see how your co-workers are dealing with their job and [think], ‘Am I in a healthy environment? Or am I gaslighting myself?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
On quiet quitting<\/p>\n
Angel questioned whether quiet quitting<\/a> is an effective response to workplace fatigue. She stressed that while this may help manage workload, it is “not the solution that my generation thinks it is,” especially if it affects the quality of their output.<\/p>\n Baus echoed this, saying that while quiet quitting may begin as a way to protect one\u2019s peace, it can eventually become limiting.<\/p>\n “It might not be a healthy thing to subscribe to if you are not pushing yourself to your full potential,” he said. “You’re bound to fail in some things, and you’re bound to not get what you want, but you have to understand that that is part of the deal if you want to pursue what you love and be great at something,” he mused.<\/p>\n Having worked as a manager for years, Luchi pointed out that employees work for the company, not for themselves.<\/p>\n “We hired you because you’re supposed to help us meet our goals… so if you quiet quit, we would rather you quit. Quit already,” she said.<\/p>\n At some point in the podcast, Angel talked about the tendency of others to hold back from being good at their job to avoid taking on more tasks. For Baus, this reflects the culture of productivity, where people aim to be valuable at work but, in doing so, can also become vulnerable to exploitation.<\/p>\n Touching on overtime work, Luchi shared her thoughts on when it becomes problematic. “I think that exploitation comes when the company does not hire more people to do the growing volume of work tapos they just make people go OT. ‘Yun mali talaga ‘yun for the record.”<\/p>\n Drawing boundaries\u00a0<\/p>\n There are times when people love their work so much that they forget to take a break. Angel, a freelance Gen Z writer, recalled struggling to set boundaries during the pandemic as she kept taking on more work despite already feeling physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted.<\/p>\n Similarly, Raco noted that freelancers and content creators rarely experience real downtime, as they are often thinking about how to turn everyday moments into content.<\/p>\n To draw boundaries, Baus suggested knowing what environments are motivating yet manageable, and being confident enough to communicate their needs to others.<\/p>\n From an expert\u2019s perspective, Tan said addressing burnout starts with acknowledging that something is wrong: “We have to acknowledge that there’s a problem and we have to set boundaries for ourselves by having rest, proper sleep, some self-care, exercise in support of what we are experiencing mentally and physically. And sometimes, it would also require professional help when dealing with burnout.”<\/p>\n Angel noted that addressing burnout should involve a systemic solution, not just individual effort. “If after all of that, mataas pa rin ‘yung presyo ng bilhin, hirap ka pa rin to get to work, hindi pa rin sapat ‘yung bayad sa ‘yo, no matter how much you recharge internally, if the outside factors don’t change, you’re still burnt out,” she said.<\/p>\n Raco suggested opening up to friends, saying it helps to have a \u201cvoice of reason.\u201d Luchi added that it’s important to be sensitive to people who carry responsibilities as family breadwinners.<\/p>\n On whether walking away takes bravery, Baus said it depends on the person and their situation. \u201cI think every resignation is a heavy decision to make,\u201d he mused, describing it as a deeply personal decision shaped by many unseen factors.\u00a0<\/p>\n But whatever one’s reason for leaving, Raco suggested figuring out the next step. \u201cNo matter how brave you are, you can\u2019t just have no backup plan. Don\u2019t just quit.”<\/p>\n Watch the full episode below.<\/p>\n Follow PhilSTAR L!fe on YouTube<\/a> and Spotify<\/a> to catch new episodes of Generations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"How do you know if you\u2019re experiencing burnout or just feeling really tired? 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\nMillennial content creator Raco Ruiz, veteran journalist Luchi Cruz-Valdes, comedian and Dogshow Divas host Baus Rufo, and Gen Z columnist Angel Martinez explore work burnout in the 14th episode of\u00a0Generations.Screenshot from PhilSTAR L!fe’s Generations podcast<\/p>\n