Saying No to Them = Saying Yes to Me
When you attend a professional convention, sometimes people go to certain sessions solely for the continuing education credits. Maybe they’ll get something out of the session, but they’re often pretty skeptical. So when I stood up to lead a session on conquering burnout at the NJCPA Convention last week, I knew I had an uphill climb.
A few people were genuinely curious. But a lot were just…there. Hoping for a break from the technical sessions, expecting the usual reminders to “take care of yourself,” and maybe a few stats. Nothing too uncomfortable.
But my goal wasn’t to deliver a soft talk with forgettable tips. It was to get people thinking—and acting—differently. Because burnout in high-pressure, analytical fields like accounting, finance, engineering, law, and tech doesn’t usually start with breakdowns. It starts with identifying patterns, developing stronger habits, and even with a great big pause.
It looks like:
Letting your personal needs take a backseat for one more deadline
Forgetting what brings you energy outside of work
Losing your sense of direction—while still hitting your goals
And nowhere is that more visible for accountants than during busy season. In accounting, it’s the biggest burnout driver of all. And by June, most professionals are just starting to feel human again. That timing made this session different. People were more open, more reflective, more ready to talk about what they don’t want to repeat next year.
Still, the room was quiet at first. No one was sure what to expect. But as we worked through the session—grounding the conversation in real data, hard truths, and leadership psychology—something shifted. Participation picked up. Heads started nodding. People spoke up.
And then one woman bravely shared her story, which changed the entire tone of the discussion. She told us about how she’d pushed herself too far, for too long, until her body gave out. She had to stop working for an extended period—not because she wanted to, but because she had to.
Her courage took the conversation from interesting to urgent. The shift was real. One attendee reflected on a relevant saying he recently heard: “Saying no to them means saying yes to me.”
Another told me after the session that when I asked what he’d do with five extra hours a week, he froze. He couldn’t remember who he was outside of work. Unfortunately, I’ve heard that sentiment way too frequently in my coaching work.
A story that resonated deeply with my audience helped us gain momentum. We reframed the idea of busy season, not as a fixed reality, but a tradition that’s long overdue for evolution. We challenged the outdated mindset that “burnout equals commitment.” We talked about how leaders set the tone, not just with what they say, but with how they model behavior.
By the end, people weren’t just listening. They were building plans. Asking better questions. Challenging their own assumptions.
Here are some of the takeaways they left with:
Burnout isn’t a badge of honor—it’s a warning sign
Energy matters more than just efficiency
Reflection during pressure is more powerful than waiting for things to calm down
Culture change starts with one small, consistent action—done well
And that’s not just for CPAs.
If you’re in a high-performance field, here are three questions I’d challenge you to ask:
What invisible pressure am I carrying right now, and where did it come from?
What assumptions am I making about what “good leadership” looks like?
What kind of leader do I want to be next busy season, next quarter, or next week—and what’s one small step I can take today to become that?
The smartest, most successful professionals I know aren’t just meeting expectations. They’re redefining them. They’re not chasing burnout—they’re building careers that are energized, values-driven, and sustainable.
Let’s not wait for burnout to catch up to us. Let’s proactively run to meet it at the door—and show it we’ve already moved on.
Be energized. Be sustainable. And always, be Inspired by LIFE.
