#177. Beyond Burnout: Reclaiming My Voice, My Purpose & My Passion

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Episode Transcription

Dr Marisa Lee Naismith 00:05

Hi, it’s Marisa Lee here, and welcome to a voice and beyond. Thank you for joining us on this journey. You see a voice and beyond isn’t just a podcast. It’s a movement. It’s a celebration of every voice in each episode. We honor the challenges, the triumphs and the stories that shape who we are through heartfelt conversations and inspiring voices from all around the world, we take you on a journey of connection, growth and empowerment, whether you’re a performing artist, a creative soul, or simply someone seeking inspiration, this space is for you. So if you’re ready to step out of the wings and take center stage in your life. Let your journey to empowerment begin right here, right now, on a voice and beyond you.

Dr Marisa Lee Naismith 01:23

Hi, it’s Marisa Lee here, and welcome to a very special episode of a voice and beyond. This isn’t just another episode. This is a relaunch, a rebirth and a reconnection to what matters most. You see over the past few months, I stepped away from the mic, not because I stopped caring, but because I hit a wall, burnout, exhaustion, a loss of clarity. It all crept in, and I knew I couldn’t keep giving to others until I took the time to press pause, reset and listen to my own voice again. So in today’s episode, I’ll be opening up about that journey, how losing my spark became the path to rediscovering my purpose and how singing, the very thing that gave me a voice as a child, helped guide me back home to myself. This solo episode is an invitation to you, the listener, to slow down, reflect and reconnect with the voice within you too. So whether you’re an artist, a creative, a teacher, or someone simply seeking deeper meaning, I am so glad you’re here. In fact, I’m so very grateful that you’re here. This is a voice and beyond, and let’s begin again together. So without further ado, let’s go to today’s episode. You

Dr Marisa Lee Naismith 03:23

Hi everyone, and welcome back to a voice and beyond. Yes, I am back, and I couldn’t be more excited or happier to be joining you. So whether you’re tuning in for the very first time, or you’ve been with me since the very beginning. I’m so deeply grateful to have you here, and you’re here for a reason, and I’m thankful you’ve found your way to this space. Today’s very first relaunch episode is a little different. It’s a solo, round episode, and it’s going to be just you and me, heart to heart, no guest, no interview, just a deeply honest conversation about why I had to take a break from this podcast I want to talk about something very, very personal with you. I want to share why I needed to go silent for a while, and what I discovered during that time in the stillness, because the truth is, I was totally burnt out, completely and utterly burnt out. And you know, the strange thing is that I didn’t even see it coming at first. And here’s the thing, what most of us don’t know is that burnout doesn’t. Always come roaring in like a storm. It just seems to creep up like a fog, slowly dimming your energy, your passion and your vision. And that was me. One day, I woke up and felt like I’ve been hit by a bus, and I felt very lost in the midst of that fog. I couldn’t see a light at the end of the tunnel, and I couldn’t hear my own voice anymore. My schedule was full. My to do list was never ending. My inbox was overflowing and I felt empty, and this is what happens. Burnout does creep up quietly, especially when you’re passionate about your work, as I was. I loved doing this show. I loved my guests and the audience that I was sharing my work with you guys, but then burnout happened, and it began with small compromises, things like skipping rest and downtime, pushing through even when I felt exhausted, I was setting aside my personal and professional boundaries and my emotions and saying yes to everyone and everything. When my mind and my body was screaming No, I was pouring so much energy into showing up for others, for my audience, my guests, my coaching clients, my students, my husband, my kids and even my cat Charlie, was demanding of my attention, and during that time, I stopped checking in with myself. It was as if I was running on autopilot, fulfilling every expectation, but neglecting my own need for stillness, reflection and healing. What made it even more difficult was that everything look fine from the outside, the podcast was growing. The work was meaningful. The results were there. Heck, I was smashing it. Even when the show hit 1 million downloads and was ranked in the top 5% of podcasts globally, it should have been a time of celebration, but inside, I felt like I was slowly fading. My tank was empty, my creativity felt forced, and emotionally I was completely disconnected from the most authentic version of myself. I felt so lost in that fog that I wasn’t living in alignment with who I truly was anymore. I was simply performing a version of that I had poured so much of myself into everything and everyone else, I had nothing left for me. I looked in the mirror and I didn’t even recognize myself anymore, and there I was. I realized something wasn’t right, because behind the scenes, I realized I was running on empty. Even though I was still showing up with a big smile, still delivering amazing content, still pushing forward, the spark of joy had dimmed. I was creating from exhaustion, not inspiration. The impact was deep, and that was the moment I knew I had to give myself permission to stop I had to honor my own humanity. And so I did something most people fear. I pressed pause. Yes, I hit pause on everything, and I didn’t walk away from the show because it wasn’t successful. I stepped away because of burnout, where I had to pause to take care of my health and realign to what matters most to me,

Dr Marisa Lee Naismith 09:51

even though I was in the midst of success, after reaching 1 million downloads, I gave myself the. Grace to rest, because I knew I had to stop. I had to step away and ask myself the question I hadn’t dared to ask in the midst of that momentum, who am I without all the doing? Who am I when the mic is off, when the inbox is closed, when I stopped trying to hold everything together, who is that person? And it wasn’t an easy decision to press pause at that time, as I said, I had a highly successful show with a guest list of people wanting to be interviewed from all around the world, the momentum was like that of a steam train going downhill. And I admit I was worried, what if I lose that momentum? What if I can’t rebuild that same level of success? What if my loyal listeners don’t return? But what I came to understand is this, true courage isn’t about pushing through the pain. You know, true courage is knowing when to stop. You see, we live in a world that celebrates hustle and glorifies being on all the time. Just look at social media, but pausing, especially when everything is going well, is often one of the most, bravest, most radical acts of self care we can take, but I was so thankful that I did, because taking a break gave me space to breathe, to reflect and to return to my podcast with renewed passion. Yes, I’m back, and now, as I relaunch a voice and beyond, I return with even deeper clarity, a new mission and the joy that I was missing. I have a renewed vision for the show, because as the podcast grew up over the three years it was on, I also had to grow up with it. I had to listen to what my audience was asking for, and here I am excited for what I’m going to be delivering in the next phase of this new chapter. So yes, it takes courage to pause even in the midst of success, but burnout is a real thing, and it’s especially common amongst high achieving creatives, educators and professionals. And it can show up in different ways. Maybe this might be a great time for you to check in with how you’re going, and I encourage you to do that. Maybe lately you’ve been feeling chronic exhaustion, like you feel physically, emotionally and mentally drained no matter how much rest you get, even small tasks may feel overwhelming, or maybe you have a loss of passion or motivation for the work or activities that once really sparked you up and now feel meaningless. You may feel numb, disengaged, or like you’re just going through the motions as I was, and this may be out of character for you. Or have you been reactive of late? Or perhaps you’ve noticed that your irritability has increased and you’re yelling at your partner, your kids, your work team, and your emotions are heightened. You find that you’re more impatient, you’re frustrated, or you’re even more emotionally sensitive than usual over things that wouldn’t normally bother you, things that you would normally have zero care factor for. Maybe you struggle to focus. You’re forgetting things more often, or you feel like you have brain fog, and that was one of the biggest issues I had. Creative flow felt completely blocked for me. And the last sign of burnout that I want to share is withdrawal or isolation. And this was me, for sure, and this was so out of character for me, because I am a social being. But I started avoiding social situations. I stopped responding to messages, and I totally felt disconnected from other people, even people I really. Care deeply about on my days off work, I didn’t even leave the house other than going to do a workout, I felt all these things that I’ve just shared with you, and like I said, it crept up on me, and I didn’t even know it was happening. So I encourage you to take a moment and to check in with yourself. If you’re feeling burnt out and you fear hitting pause, whether it’s in a job or seeking to elevate your business, or it could be in a relationship with someone that you care about. But if you’re afraid to stop even when the world is cheering you on, know this success is not only measured by what you keep doing. Sometimes your greatest success is in knowing when to rest, when to hit pause. Maybe it’s time for you to listen. As I allowed myself the silence to listen to my heart, to my body and to the inner voice I’d neglected for so long. And through that stillness, something beautiful happened. I found my voice again, not the voice trained to perform a song or to deliver the content on this show or to please others, but the voice that came from within, the one that speaks softly at first and then roars back to life when given the space to breathe in the stillness, I remembered the little girl I used to be, the

Dr Marisa Lee Naismith 16:50

one who sang just for the joy of it. It was the voice that couldn’t be silenced through fear cultural expectations as a female, growing up in a male dominant world, or through fear of religious upbringing, singing allowed me to find my voice. It was my escape, my empowerment, my identity. It was where I first discovered I had a voice that mattered. It gave me the confidence to speak my truth in life, not just on the stage, but somewhere along the way, I stopped singing for me. I stopped listening to my own voice. So during that time, I did something I hadn’t done in ages. I sang not for a performance, not for a lesson, but for the healing, for my own healing. I let the sound of my own voice reconnect me to the essence of who I truly am, and what I realized was this, our voice is more than a sound. It’s our unique footprint on this Earth, our power and our presence in this world. And that’s what a voice and beyond has always been about, even if I didn’t actually say it that clearly, it’s not just a podcast. It’s a movement, a sanctuary, a celebration of every unique, beautiful, powerful voice. And as I come back to you now, I come back with the renewed mission to inspire, to educate, to empower, to help you, not just performers, not just creatives, but anyone searching for purpose and clarity to rediscover your voice. So many of us are being silenced by the noise and the chaos and the drama that’s happening around us every day, on the news, on social media, in our daily conversations with others, it’s so hard to shut off from that it’s almost like we as individuals are being silenced and cannot be heard over the noise. So if you’re feeling unheard, unseen, exhausted or burnt out from trying to be everything for everyone, I want to tell you that I see you, I have been you, and it’s time to be reminded that your voice is your birthright, and I want this podcast to be a space where we. Remind ourselves that we don’t have to stay quiet, and we are all worthy of being heard. This is a space where we celebrate the beauty of the human spirit, the courage it takes to rise and the power of speaking and singing our truth. So what’s next? What’s changed, you may even ask a voice and beyond, is coming back with incredible guests and conversations. You won’t want to miss guests who will share their own stories and experiences, all deeply human, wildly inspiring and powerfully practical. You’ll hear more solo rounds like this one, honest, real and unfiltered and Together, we’ll explore how to rise, how to heal and how to thrive, using our voice in life. This is a new chapter. It’s a braver one, a more honest one, and I’m so honored to have you here for it. So before I sign off today. Let me leave you with this. Your voice is your power, your story is your gift, and you are worthy of being heard. So let’s take this journey together. I dare you let your journey to empowerment begin here and now. So look forward to seeing you in the coming episodes of a voice and beyond.

Dr Marisa Lee Naismith 21:53

Thank you so much for listening to this episode of a voice and beyond. I hope you enjoyed it as now is an important time for you to invest in your own self care, personal growth and education. Use every day as an opportunity to learn and to grow, so you can show up feeling empowered and ready to live your best life. If you know someone who will also be inspired by this episode, please be sure to copy and paste the link and share it with them, or share it on social media and use the hashtag a voice and beyond. I promise you I am committed to bringing you more inspiration and conversations just like this one every week. And if you would like to help me, please rate and review this podcast and cheer me on by clicking the subscribe button on Apple podcast right now. I would also love to know what it is that you most enjoyed about this episode and what was your biggest takeaway. Please take care, and I look forward to your company next time on the next episode of A Voice and Beyond.