Beyond the Hustle: How Intentional Living Can Prevent Burnout and Restore Your Energy

Why going more analog might be exactly what you need to overcome digital overwhelm, prevent burnout, and finally create the work-life balance you've been craving

I'm so glad you're reading this today. Whether you found this in the very first week of January or somewhere in the middle of the year, this is exactly the right place and the right time for you to get started.

Why I'm Hitting the Brakes on Digital Life (And Why You Might Want to Too)

My life has been 100 miles an hour since I was a kid. Whether I'm walking through the mall or for a workout, if I'm working on a project or to-do list, I'm a do-er. Procrastination isn't a problem for me.

It's the opposite. I rush. I go as fast as I can so that I can get on to the next thing.

For much of my life, that came without a lot of strategy and without a lot of pausing to actually solve problems. And honestly, it's been fine and it's worked. I've been multitasking and balancing like a champ for most of my life.

So why am I choosing to hit the brakes in 2026?

Because it's not working for me anymore,

and maybe it's not working for you either.

I spent most of this past year, and maybe the past few years taking a long hard look at what's important to me, what I want to achieve, how I want to feel about my life, and how I want to make an impact, and what I learned is that fast and furious might be the way corporate America wants it to be, but it's not sustainable, enjoyable, or inevitable.

Rethinking Success: Intentional Living for Burnout Prevention and Authenticity

I don't have a new word of the year or a resolution. Honestly, I've never been big on resolutions. In all actuality, resolutions don't work out for very many people because we tend to drop them by the middle of February.

Last year, my word of the year was intention, and that served me well. It's still growing and changing how I look at my life so I'm not ready to shed that word.

Even going into a new year where influencers, marketers, and coaches are shouting,

"Let's get to it! Let's go! Let's hustle! Let's make these resolutions happen!", action doesn't have to mean frantic and it doesn't have to mean forced.

"My actions are going to be intentional. They're going to be values-based and they're going to be grounded in authenticity because they're going to come from me."

The AI Dilemma: When Moving Fast Means Losing Your Self and Purpose

So what about AI? You might feel like It's taking a lot of your plate, and it is.

As somebody who has always moved fast, AI has been a dream. I can move fast, type without thinking, and make it happen. (Whatever "it" is in the moment.)

However, AI is also making me start to wonder if I actually can think anymore. Part of stepping back has reminded me that I am creative, and I have great ideas without having to use AI to create more content, to organize my thoughts, and that what makes my podcast, my teaching, and my coaching great is that it's intuitive and legitimately ME.

While I believe there are benefits to AI and I hope that we use it for the betterment of the world I don't need or want it to speak for me.

I'm going back to my creative roots. I'm trusting myself, growing my confidence and I'm teaching other people just like you to do the same thing through intentional living, thinking, and nervous system regulation.

The Real Cost of Digital Overwhelm: What Constant Scrolling Is Doing to Your Brain and Body

Several circumstances brought me to the decision to return to a more analog lifestyle. One was reading Gen Z Unfiltered, where the author, Tim Elmore, speaks to the impact of scrolling and social media on Gen Z. While I knew much of what I'm reading, the reprecussions of helicopter parenting, giving kids ipads and phones, and not allowing them to experience hard and uncomfortable situations struck me. I saw myself in some of these situations.

And while the author focuses on Gen Z kids, I'd argue that this impact reaches adults in different but equally destructive ways. The repercussions of adults constantly scrolling, working ungodly hours, and what that's done to the family unit, to society as a whole, and to our brains and our bodies and how much chaos it's causing are astounding.

Here's why this matters: Adults and kids are unable to focus, to think for themselves, and to manage their emotions. They're overstinulated, overworked, anxious, lonely, and have lost hours of time in an imaginary world, missing out on the life that's waiting to be lived, and that's not all.

Additionally, the health impacts from back and neck issues, sleep disruption, etc deserve an entirely seperate blog post. It's to much. For now, you can read more about it in this Harvard Health article.

What a More Analog Lifestyle Looks Like (And Why It's Not Extreme)

Life is about balance. Work-life balance, nutritional balance, relationship balance - it's all important. This is true for slow living by returning to a more ananlog lifestyle as well. Returning to screenless brainstroming and activities can increase focus, bring back your authentic voice, and lower your stress and anxiety level. Instead of chasing the algorithm and scrolling to prevent boredom, it's welcoming the stillness and creativity that boredom allows, allowing yourself time to rest and recharge, and balacing that with intentional action that is guided by your intuition.

Creating a more analog lifestyle is returning to a balanced life where your nervous system's calm, where you're not chasing your next dopamine hit through a screen. It's not no digital, but less digital.

Breaking Free from Social Media Addiction: Client Story

Recently, I was coaching a client on their love-hate relationship with Facebook. This person came to me, exhausted and angry, wondering why they felt compelled to share their personal life with people they barely knew. They wanted their relationship with their spouse and children to be stronger than the pull social media had on them.

They mentioned how guilty they felt when their daughters were playing or talking to them and they were face down, scrolling Facebook. They felt shame that their spouse repeatedly asked them to put the phone down and be with the family.

And still, that dopamine was running the show. The phone wound up in their hand without knowing how or when it got there. And truthfully, this isn't the only person I've coached on this topic with the same sadness and story.

After learning why they felt so compelled to scroll and creating new habits around their phone that included more screenless activities and a return to analog activities they loved in the past, they are spending more time their spouse and kids. Taking walks, meeting friends for dinner, reading paper books, and loving their life, they're not compelled to scroll anymore and feel more grounded, confident, and present.

Where To Start: How To Be More Intentional

Intentionality can be uncomfortalble if you're used to mindlessly flying through life like I was. It means stopping things that might feel necessary but that are stealing your time, energy, and success and that's okay. I assure you that once you've kicked the habit of doing more and find balance in your life, you'll wonder why you waited so long to change.

Each month I host Success Without Stress. This 90 minute workshop teaches the foundations of nervous system regulation, helps you create a balanced life, and set goals that work for you instead of keeping you trapped in your current reality.

You can join me the 2nd Tuesday of each month from 1:00 - 2:30 pm Eastern.

I can't wait to see you there.