How to Stop Year-End Burnout and Find Contentment Instead

I once sat through four hours of Shakespeare starring Kevin Spacey — and I didn’t see a single thing. Yes, really.

Not just because of the very tall bloke in front of me. Oh no. Because I was so wiped out I couldn’t even be bothered to ask to swap seats. That sounds really sad when I say it out loud, doesn’t it?

It was the first day of the Christmas holidays, last day of term and I was running on fumes. I’d hacked my sleep, my food, my commute - all just to keep going. I looked fine on the outside (because when I say “survive,” obviously I mean “nailed it!”). But inside? No way. I was silently screaming, struggling to breathe.

So even a surprise trip to London - the kind of thing that should have felt joyful - just felt like another demand. That’s what year-end stress does. It robs us of our ability to enjoy the very things we’ve worked so hard for.

And if you’re reading this because you’ve typed “year-end burnout” or “Christmas overwhelm” into Google, you probably know that feeling all too well.

Why the End of the Year Feels So Overwhelming

The last quarter of the year is predictably chaotic.

• Darker mornings and shorter days.
  
  
• Deadlines and year-end reports piling up.
  
  
• Family demands.
  
  
• A surge of social events and expectations as Christmas edges closer.
  
  

It’s A LOT.

We tell ourselves, just push through, it’ll be fine in January. But let’s be honest - later never really comes. December hits and instead of winding down, we roll into January already exhausted.

That was my old pattern: push, survive, collapse.

When Burnout Steals the Joy from Life

I’d like to say that night in the theatre was a turning point. That I realised survival mode had cost me too much. It took me repeating that pattern many times before I realised it had stolen my capacity for joy.

The thing is - traditional success actually rewards us for this behaviour. Push harder. Work later. Sacrifice your evenings and weekends. Look like you’re thriving, even if inside you’re hanging on by a thread.

It works. Until it doesn’t.

A Different Way to Measure Success

I call the alternative Deep Heartfelt Success.

It doesn’t throw away the good bits of traditional achievement - you can still have goals, promotions, projects, progress. But instead of paying for it with your health, your joy, your relationships, - you measure success differently:

• How content you feel when you pause to notice rather than the fleeting satisfaction and relief at each achievement.
  
  
• How you feel on waking.
  
  
• Whether you can still switch off and laugh easily.
  
  
• If you can feel proud of how you approached the day, regardless of how many boxes are ticked.
  
  

That’s the path I’ve chosen. And it’s what I help my clients discover too.

5 Ways to Practise Contentment During Chaos

Here are a few small practices that help me (and my clients) stop chaos from stealing everything that matters:

1. Micro-pauses: pause at the end of a task and feel the completion and achievement (however small) before leaping into the next.
   
   
2. Messy journaling: drop your attention into your body and then list the things you feel good about, however small (especially the small stuff).
3. Neutral Noticing: see what’s happening without judgement, just information.
   
   
4. Tiny intentions: set one word or phrase for how you want to move through your day (ease, enough, steady).
   
   
   

None of this is about perfection. It’s about practising, in the middle of the mess.

From Chaos to Contentment: A November Invitation

This November I’m running a live course called From Chaos to Contentment.

Four Sunday mornings for 90 minutes. A small group. A calm, well-held space to practise contentment and self-discovery right in the middle of the busiest season.

Because contentment isn’t just for Christmas.

And you deserve more than getting through.

FAQs

Why do I feel so stressed at the end of the year?
Because the final quarter combines shorter days, heavier workloads, family demands and holiday expectations. It’s predictable - and survivable - but you can have so much more than surviving.

What causes year-end burnout? A mix of overwork, emotional load and ignoring your body’s signals. When you rely on adrenaline to “get through,” you eventually crash.

Can contentment really be practised?
Yes. Contentment isn’t passive - it’s an active choice to slow down, notice small wins and measure success by how you feel, not just what you achieve. And in doing so, it becomes easier to stay focused on what matters most to you during the chaos.