How do you avoid career "burnout"?

Plan your work, then work your plan.

Change MOS, in my 20yrs I picked up 4.

Do something that has a purpose. Take your vacation days. Guard your calendar and time. Work at a balance of fun, work, and family.

CPT (Join to see) That is a good question. I started on the Space Shuttle Program, three years before the first flight and stayed until one month after the last Space Shuttle flight, Atlantis in July 2011. During my 33 year career, I had two or three years that were 40 - 45 hour work weeks. For most of my career, I worked 50 to 60 hour weeks. I loved my career which helped but there were bad times. At the eight year point, I seriously considered looking for other work, but I could not find anything that was more challenging, interesting, and that I strongly believed in. After we lost Space Shuttles Challenger and Columbia, the program was shut down for a combined total of five years while we discovered the causes, and worked to fix them and generally make the Shuttles as safe as possible. For me, having challenging work that I believed in, kept me interested, and I always looked forward to a successful launch, mission goals accomplished, followed by a successful landing. For most of my career, I was left to do my job the way that it needed to be done, and this helped. Believing in Space Flight kept me going in the good years and bad. Even though I knew the Space Shuttle Program was ending, years in advance, when it did end, I was out of sorts for a couple of years afterward. Having challenging work that you believe in, and are passionate about will help prevent career burnout.

It's much easier for Officers since you have mandatory staff slots between Command time. NCO's have to be more versatile in holding those type slots.

Every career has its downside. At 17, we all think we "know" what we want to be when we're "grown up", and believe (somewhat irrationally) that we have a "plan" for how that's all going to pan out. By 27, we've been trying to make that plan work amidst the realities of both that career, and all the things life throws our way we didn't count on. By 37, we've reached a point where we "expected" to have it figured out and be making measurable headway...but probably still find ourselves in what seems like a never-ending wash-rinse-spin cycle. I think the most important thing to be is patient and periodically look back on how far we've really come. Sometimes, I sit and take stock...and it is amazing, gratifying and inspiring.

I also avoid the "grass is always greener" disease like the plague.

We can all look back and say, "if only" or look forward and say, "what if?"...neither are particularly useful. The potential and experience curves are pretty much directly related, and "jumping ship" can be risky. For myself, I try to focus on what my career allows me to do outside of the job...rather than consider all the things that my career "might" be preventing me from doing.

Never seemed to think about that. PCS’ bring new people, new challenges, and new places. Plus, I was lucky to get pulled out for a couple of jobs that were different; BFV Systems New Equipment Trainer, CDEC/TEXCOM, and Advisor/Trainer.

My answer is geared toward reservists, but could apply to RA as well. Burnout is a real thing if you don't keep giving yourself fuel. This fuel can be in the way of time off, sure, but that's not always the answer or a reality depending on your job. I trave domestic and international M-F for work and have found that being "off" when you're OFF is important. What does that mean? Set expectations that when you get home, you're home. When you're off on the weekend, your phone is in the nightstand drawer. In my case, I stop answering work emails after 7p in the hotel.

Every job is different, but you have to give time to yourself and your family. Only once you've done that can you make an honest and calculated choice as to whether or not your chosen career is what you actually want to do. Careers don't have to last for 40 years. You can do one job for 10, one for 3, and one for 27. The key is giving yourself and your chosen profession the time and attention that both deserve.