I have been selling online for a few years now and even though I really do enjoy it (especially the shopping for the inventory part), it is physically exhausting and sometimes, mentally and emotionally draining. I recently wrote an article about feeling lost and anxious and one of the reasons that I think caused it is burnout. I figured that I might as well share some things that I’m doing to turn this feeling of burnout into an opportunity.
Photo by Marko Horvat on Unsplash
Why Online Selling Can Be Exhausting
The whole process of online selling can be exhausting because of a lot of things. In my case since I’m an online seller of second-hand goods, I do a lot of physical tasks such as:
- Visiting various thrift shops in different cities/provinces and even to other neighboring countries (sometimes)
- Finding items to sell from heaps and heaps of clothes
- Washing and disinfecting clothes
- Steaming clothes to remove creases
- Taking pictures of clothes on a mannequin
- Packing clothes for storage
- Posting items to multiple selling websites
- Re-packing items once sold
- Bring sold items to the courier
And it can also be mentally and sometimes emotionally draining because you respond to queries on a day-to-day basis and sometimes, you also get to deal with a challenging customer.
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Why I Love Online Selling Even if it’s Tiring
Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t itemize my tasks to complain. I itemized the task to give you an idea of what’s it like in case you’re wondering or in case you’re thinking of starting an online selling business (of preloved clothing) too.
I do love online selling, especially the shopping part. It’s like not knowing if you’re going to hit a jackpot or not whenever you visit a thrift store. I also love seeing a variety of clothing styles and silhouettes.
And besides, all businesses, jobs, etc are also tiring at some point. I figured I might as well get tired of something that I enjoy doing.
However, since I was processing a lot of clothes in the past few months, plus the ongoing stresses caused by the current situation (pandemic), I felt that I have reached my tipping point and got burned out.
I took a break from online selling for almost two months and I’m just slowly getting back to doing it again in the next few weeks.
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How to Turn Burnout Into an Opportunity
I took a break from online selling and used this time as an opportunity to:
Take a Breather
I was hustling continuously even during the pandemic and it got a bit too stressful for me. Looking back, I was actually doing similar things prior to the pandemic but I didn’t get this much stressed.
The thing is, because of the current situation that we’re all in, everything that we do now seems to be a bit more stressful, maybe because, for the time being, we couldn’t do the activities that we used to do to relieve the stresses of day-to-day living.
We can’t just simply travel nowadays, and even if we could, the fear of contracting the disease and passing it on unknowingly to our family and friends scare the hell out of us.
We weren’t able to go out for as much as we did in the past as well because a lot of places that we used to go to just hang out with our friends were closed (they’re slowly opening up now).
We also didn’t meet our family and friends for a long time.
Having said that, I used this opportunity to take a breather and relax and clear my head. I am using this time as an opportunity to think about the cards dealt with me by the current situation.
Catch Up with My Pending Deliverables
I also used this time to catch up with my pending deliverables. Prior to taking a break, I have a lot of things on my to-do list that piled up.
Some of those things are related still to online selling such as clearing out dead stocks, cleaning the storage room, sending unsold items to my family and friends, etc.
I also used this time to catch up with some of my pending stuff related to blogging such as updating old posts, interlinking relevant blog posts to each other, etc.
Work On Other Projects
Writing is one of my refuges when I’m stressed out and fortunately, because I do have a blog, I used this time to write as much as I can.
I was able to produce a number of articles for the last two months that I hope can help this blog pull its traffic up again. Blog traffic took a nosedive this June and I’m writing new content to attract new traffic to this blog.
I’m also planning on building a small vegetable potted garden at home and I already bought my supplies. I’d probably start working on it soon.
Reconnect with Friends and Family
Sometimes when we’re busy, we forget to spend time talking to our family and friends. I also used this time to chat online with my family and friends and just talk about anything under the sun.
I miss doing this. I’m someone who really loves to hang out at cafes with friends just to talk about anything.
Watch Tons of Netflix and Youtube Videos
I love watching movies on Netflix. I think I’ve seen all apocalyptic and zombie movies already. Even prior to the pandemic, I’m really fond of similar films (zombies, etc). I also love watching Japanese animes and other cartoons.
With Youtube, I have been watching tons of gardening videos to learn stuff. I’m new to gardening and don’t have much idea about it.
Luckily, I live in a tropical country with very fertile soil and lots of rain. Growing vegetables here is not as difficult compared to other countries with extreme weather conditions.
Re-assess and Re-design
I’m also using this time to contemplate my online selling business. It’s a very physical job and I’m not sure how long I can sustain this given that I have some lingering lower back issues.
I’m also using this time to think about what kind of life I’d like to live in 5 – 10 years’ time and from that, to draw a mid-term plan on how I can achieve it.
It’s a scary thought but there’s no other way to deal with it but to face it.
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Final Thoughts
Burnout can be a disabling feeling most of the time. And depending on the gravity and level of emotion that you’re feeling, you can turn the situation around if you really wanted to.
However, sometimes, the feeling can overpower us and in this case, I suggest that you seek the help of your family and friends.
How to Turn Burnout Into an Opportunity Click To TweetHow about you? Have you ever been burned out from what you’re doing? How did you turn things around?
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