Coffee was the Best Part of my Day
This is supposed to be a post about burnout. I was trying to find a metaphor for how it feels. Then it clicked: drugs. My hot, frothy, delicious drug of choice. Coffee.
I think this is my third post where I talk about coffee. You have to understand—I was raised Mormon and lived the religion until my late 30s. Joseph Smith said no coffee or tea, and that was that. No Mormon can properly explain why. It makes zero sense, which somehow makes sense when applied to Mormonism as a whole.
Okay, back to my metaphor for burnout. Earlier this year, when I was still working for a Silicon Valley startup, I started feeling the first signs that I might be heading for burnout.
Sign 1
I was getting the Sunday Scaries.
Sign 2
I started getting the Sunday Scaries every single night.
Sign 3
I lost interest in things I used to love doing outside of work.
Sign 4
My morning cup of coffee was the best part of my workday.
I’m not kidding. On workdays, I went to bed at night looking forward to that first hot cup of coffee. I love coffee, but even I had to recognize that’s not normal.
Then, while doom-scrolling, I came across this quote:
I love tech. What I didn’t love was working for another SaaS startup selling subscriptions to a platform nobody needs. How many fucking CRMs does the world really need? That question was answered after I left, as the company has now pivoted to AI. Gotta get that sweet, sweet venture capital somehow.
Is work always going to be sunshine and lollipops? Of course not. It’s about finding overarching goals you believe in and surrounding yourself with people you respect. I have no idea if I’ll get there, but being in the unknown beats being so beat down that coffee is the best part of your workday.