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A designer’s guide to burnout, and recovery

Burnout in design isn’t talked about as much as it should be. Every day around the world, designers use their creative energy to solve problems or execute a vision (which in many cases may not be their own). The process can be both hugely rewarding and draining. In times of change and economic uncertainty, designers feel additional pressure for their creations to succeed, and over time this pressure can become overbearing and lead to burnout.

As a designer who has been in the industry for over 20 years, I want to share my experiences of burnout - both the causes and the recovery process - so it might help others who are going through similar issues.

It’s worth mentioning at this point that everyone is different and my experiences and circumstances may be very different to your own. Regardless of this, getting support is important if you feel you need it. I’ve included some links at the bottom of this article that you may find useful.

The signs of burnout

I have been a self-employed freelance designer for most of my career, occasionally taking on long-term contracts and employed positions. For me, burnout happened when I was working in a full-time employed position as a user experience designer for a company based in London. Here are some of the symptoms I experienced:

  • Not being able to cope, being out of control
  • Self doubt
  • Feeling trapped
  • Not enjoying the work like I once did
  • Feeling like my efforts amounted to nothing

I’m sure most designers will recognise some of these symptoms. They can pop up at any point in your career. Feelings of not being able to cope have been a recurring theme for me, but I’ve been able to suppress these feelings by keeping my personal and work life as organised as possible. However, I knew I was burned out when these feelings became all-consuming and inescapable, and I couldn’t continue working in the way I was. Difficulties in my personal life compounded the issues I was struggling with at work. This peaked in 2024 with an emotional breakdown while working from home, resulting in a period of time off work.

The most unfortunate aspect of my story is being made redundant shortly after the burnout reached its peak. It was almost as though the redundancy confirmed the negative thoughts already floating around in my head. The internal signals of burnout were amplified by the external signals of redundancy, resulting in thoughts of “I’m not good enough” that I wasn’t able to shake off. The redundancy offered a release from the work, but I was 43, unemployed, and burned out, with a family to support.

Navigating the recovery process

Recovery Attempt #1: Take a break

I took five months off, went on a holiday with my family, and did some things to remind myself I was still capable of creating something (made a gate for my garden, built a workbench in my garage). Numbness, guilt, and worthlessness dominated my emotions during this period. Minor mistakes or setbacks became overwhelming - I recall a time when I paid too much to post a letter, and I beat myself up for that mistake. It seems silly in hindsight, but clearly my head was not in a good place.

After a stressful few months worrying about finances, I landed a small project with a startup followed by a larger corporate project. The two projects were within my skillset and offered a degree of challenge. But it soon became apparent that even though I was rested, I had not recovered. Feelings of not coping and not enjoying the work resurfaced. I was working, but the difficult memories of the previous year persisted and I was heading towards burnout again.

Recovery Attempt #2: Expanding horizons + Getting help

During my recovery journey, I realised that I had become very one-dimensional - relying on one method, one type of work to satisfy all my professional, emotional, and creative needs - and this approach was falling well short. I started pottery classes and suddenly my mind opened up, and it didn’t feel like I was driving down a cul-de-sac any more. Having a creative and social outlet helped massively, and it kick-started the real recovery process for me.

If you’re experiencing burnout then finding that ‘thing’ is worth the effort. Whether it’s pottery classes, joining a running club, yoga, or something else, the combination of an activity you think you might enjoy + social exposure is highly beneficial to the recovery process. You will most probably be amongst people like yourself. It took a lot of courage to try something new and break out of the ‘I can’t do it’ mindset, but it paid off.

Beyond this new interest in ceramics, I started to learn more about arts & crafts, design, and architecture. This helped me realise that it was possible to expand my narrow world view with a little curiosity. However, this wasn’t helping me get back to work, and the longer this went on, the more I felt like I had no purpose. At this point, it had been two years since the burnout began.

I began counselling sessions with a therapist, and they helped me untangle the events that led up to becoming burned out. I gradually began to accept that I had value beyond my work, especially as a father and husband, and returning to the way I was working before might not be the right choice for me. This is what led me to the idea of mentoring - supporting people like myself and sharing my experiences, while at the same time still taking on projects for clients and helping them realise their goals.

Recovery is iterative and non-linear

My recovery is ongoing. I tried things that didn’t work. Some days are better than others. But what I do know is, I’m in a much better place than I was. Self-belief is returning and my efforts to heal are compounding over time. My life is richer.

I think designers are so finely-tuned to solving other people’s problems that they sometimes neglect their own, or don’t know how to visualise a solution for themselves when burnout happens. In an ideal world, we would all have the strategies to cope with our own problems and avoid burnout entirely, but this does not reflect reality.

I’ve found that recovery from burnout is an iterative process - much like the process of designing a product or service - you need to try things without there being any guarantee of success. Instead, use each step as an opportunity to learn more about yourself and what is important to you.

Useful links