🔌 Time for the recharge

On going from 🪫 → 🔋 in 2025

To all five (ok, 20) of you reading this, THANK YOU.

Starting a new project always seems a little silly. It’s like a tree falling in a forest if no one’s there to hear it. Ultimately, you’re creating something for yourself, not an audience—which feels equal parts futile and liberating. But I hope that with time, this Substack will find its people, and they’ll find comfort in its content.

So, why the recharge? And why now?

Because 92%¹ of the friends, former colleagues, and acquaintances I’ve spoken to in recent months have shared a similar sentiment: They feel utterly drained, burned out, and on edge all. the. time.

Why? Cue Carrie Bradshaw’s “I couldn’t help but wonder…”

• 🪫 Maybe it’s because current events keep our nervous systems in a constant guessing game or because this country just elected a convicted felon-slash-reality TV star to the highest office… again.

• 🪫 Maybe we’re finally processing everything that happened during Covid and are coming to terms with this new (but also not-so-new) pace and what it means to return to the rat race.

• 🪫 Maybe my friends and I are just getting older, and the pace that seemed so doable in our 20s now feels daunting.

• 🪫 Maybe we’re all acutely aware of how exhausting capitalism is but feel like there’s no escape—like we’re inextricably linked to this hamster wheel we want to pause but can’t.

• 🪫 Or maybe we’re just navigating broken systems and structures that make us feel like we’re the problem—when, in fact, it’s that these systems weren’t built for us in the first place.

Whatever the reason, the collective exhaustion is real—and worth reflecting on.

I couldn’t help but wonder why we’re all so burned out… [Photo: E! News]

Emily in Your Phone

summed it up better than I ever could in a recent edition of her newsletter, “Why are we all feeling broken?”

Two of my favorite passages from Emily's recent Substack

When so much feels broken, I find myself turning to writing… which brings me to reason #2 for the recharge.

I know what it’s like to be in the burnout-recharge loop.

I first experienced burnout near the tail end of my five+ years at WeWork. At that point, I’d closely woven my identity and sense of self-worth into the very fabric of my career and needed some serious time to recalibrate and figure out who I was outside of work.

I was terrified.

But the six months that followed were some of the most formative, challenging, freeing, and meaningful of my life. I know what a privilege it was to be able to take that kind of time away from work, and I’m incredibly grateful for it. (More on this chapter in another post.)

When I started a new role in January of 2022, I was refreshed and ready. I promised myself the burnout wouldn’t happen again—I knew better this time around.

But what’s that saying… man plans and God laughs?

I found myself in another extreme state of burnout last June. Despite loving my job in so many ways (again, more on that later), I was running on empty and knew I couldn’t continue to show up for myself or my loved ones from a place of depletion. I was living in a constant state of anxiety and “not enough”-ness—neither of which feels manageable when you’re already spread thin.

I thought of it this way:

Imagine someone came to you and said, “You’ve been doing high-intensity workouts for 15 years straight, and you need to switch to low-impact exercise or you’re going to hurt yourself permanently.”

Would you do it?

Of course, I would. No question. So why was I so hesitant to do the same when it came to my mental health? It felt like there was no choice but to take a pause and recharge—again.

I recognize that I’m offering my perspective from a place of privilege and that it’s not as straightforward as, “Quit your job! You’ll figure it out!” That’s a luxury that I don’t take for granted. I can’t reiterate enough how grateful I am for the support of my family and husband throughout this process. They’ve been incredibly generous emotionally and financially—another “more on that later” topic—but I wouldn’t have been able to navigate this time without them. It truly takes a village, and I’m so thankful for mine.

(You can read more about the background of the recharge here.)

So, what can we expect with the recharge?

Great question. To be honest, I’m still figuring out the format, structure, cadence, etc. What I do know: I’d love your input to inform it as it evolves so that the content provides as much value as possible.

Ultimately, I want the recharge to be the resource I wish I’d had six months (or six years) ago. I hope it can help others who are *going through it* and provide some comfort and solidarity during a stressful time.

What I’m envisioning:

• 🔋 A weekly digest you can read in 10 minutes or less

• 🔋 100% free for now—no paid version

• 🔋 Favorite tips, resources, and exercises for navigating burnout (and anxiety)

• 🔋 Real Q&As with folks (especially women) who’ve experienced burnout and uncovering their tips for recharging

• 🔋 Potential interviews with experts on topics like burnout, creativity, realistic work-life balance, and self-care

• 🔋 Reflections on ways I’ve learned to fill my cup

Let’s see how this goes.

Thank you for reading.

🤍,

Lia

1. Again, a total estimate. Math’s not my thing.