Every college graduate enters their first career in the professional world with a mindset ready to take on any obstacle they face, what they don’t account for is burnout. So the real question most business professionals are plagued with is how long until they reach a point of burnout in their career? Meet Luke Cervino, Founder of A1A Media and Alumni of William Paterson University. Luke has built his career by building one of the most sought after athlete/Influencer Marketing agencies on the east coast, and although he’s experienced tremendous success so far, the habits he’s held in place to avoid burnout and stress can be attributed to his rampant growth.
Luke’s Advice on Avoiding Burnout / Stress
Have Hobbies – One of the first and most practical pieces of advice that Luke has implemented in his career was making sure to have hobbies outside of work. This practice can help distinguish a clear work/life balance from the very beginning. If you step into the financial world, you will most likely be staring at spreadsheets all day so having something that disconnects your brain from those work activities such as a basketball after work can make a world of difference in the longevity of your career.
Keep Learning – The second piece of advice that can be a simple addition to your day is to add a few ways to continue learning and educating yourself. According to Luke a lot of stress he’s experienced in his career came from not knowing what to do and lacking confidence, so he recommends always picking up a good self-development book. Regardless if the books are new or old, as long as they have or you believe they can make an impact in your life; reading will always be a good practice to carry in your career.
Take Breaks – The last piece of advice Luke recommends which is probably the most overlooked is just taking a break. The mentality that has come out of “Hustle Culture” implies that in order to be successful you have to work every single second of every day when in reality the highest performing individuals will tell you how far off that is from the truth. When the goal is productivity, Luke recommends a few 15-20 minute breaks throughout the day rather than just going through the motions and procrastinating tasks from daily burnouts.
The Importance of Real Productivity in your Career
Nobody ever spends 4-5 years in college getting a degree to be an average employee or start an average business, with that in mind how far can you go with average productivity? For Luke Cervino real productivity is an essential part of his business success which is identified from how serious he takes being able to unplug from work when he needs to and being completely zoned in when it comes down to his work life. For example, a few ways Luke chooses to unplug are by playing basketball, working out, and spending quality time with family and friends. By establishing the distinguishing factor between work/play, he is now able to work 10 hours a day and get more done than someone working 15 hours a day. When the goal is productivity, identifying what work habits can cause burnout and having a plan to avoid and replace those habits will be one of the smartest moves you can make in your career early on.