OperationsDesign Leaders Share Their Tips for Banishing Burnout in the New YearCaught in a pandemic-inspired crush of work, designers are evolving ways to help themselves—and their colleagues—carry the load while maintaining mental balance

By Kyle Hoepner

December 30, 2021

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The COVID-19 pandemic, despite causing so much global turmoil and suffering, has resulted in at least one distinct upside for residential architects and designers: Many have never been busier, as quarantined clients have rushed to upgrade their personal spaces. It may feel awkward to complain about a surfeit of business, especially when other industries have been hit hard by lockdowns and other assorted disruptions, yet too much of a good thing tends to bring its own set of challenges.

On top of the personal challenges of navigating school closings and keeping pantries well-stocked during supply shortages, designers find themselves grappling with professional pressure as they work on more projects amid a welter of Zoom meetings and shipping delays. Becoming painfully aware of the toll that sleepless nights and too much worry can exact on their own well-being, some frazzled professionals have taken action to secure a more pleasant quality of life both personally and for their employees.

The most basic methods for self-care are hardly a mystery. Everyone knows that taking the time to eat properly and getting good sleep are wise moves (if not always so easy to implement in practice). Hitting the gym or indulging in a yoga class are tried-and-true stress relievers. But what else can help?

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Write it down

Philadelphia designer Angela Toledo has found a real benefit in regular journaling. Every day starts with three “morning pages.” Toledo describes this morning exercise as a “stream-of-consciousness reflections, written longhand” that she likens to “a brain dump that enhances clarity.” The habit, picked up from author Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Way, “helps me filter through and get rid of those extraneous and unhelpful thoughts that we all have,” Toledo says. What ends up on paper isn’t necessarily pretty: “A lot of it is complaining,” she continues, “and whining about circumstances beyond our control.” But “if you keep doing it day after day, eventually you get tired of writing the same thing, and you start to come up with solutions and ways to cope that are much more healthy.”

Keep communication open

Tavia Forbes and Monet Masters report from Atlanta that they’ve made it a priority to check in with their coworkers about keeping the right attitude toward their job. “We always encourage our team to prioritize their mental health, especially as we deal not only with COVID-19, but also the effects that are reverberating throughout the design community,” Masters says, adding: “I purposefully make time to do things that bring me joy—from working out to taking a morning during the week to go be in nature before coming into the office.”

Set and enforce boundaries

For Annette English the pandemic has been “a reminder to prioritize holistic well-being” for her whole company. Changes instituted at her Los Angeles studio over the past two years have included a serious push to promote (enforce is the word she uses) flexible work hours and telecommuting, as well as a restructuring of the firm’s procedures to let employees work around childcare schedules. “Allowing everyone the legroom to do what they need to do to balance work, personal, and family time results in a much stronger and more productive team,” English says. (Savvy bosses understand, as well, that a happy staff is a staff that stays with you.)

Find your people

Informal counsel from her peers has also helped English get through recent months. “We would call each other to exchange ideas, compare notes, and find ways to keep up with the changing landscape,” she says. The mutual support network proved so useful that the group is now formalizing their arrangement as a designers’ roundtable for the L.A. area that will meet regularly, going forward. “Part of it is to make up for lost time… But we also aim to discuss better working environments within the industry and our respective firms. People’s needs have evolved so much in the past year or so [that] it’s important to keep that conversation going.”

(When it comes to trading advice with fellow pros, Angela Toledo mentions that Facebook groups, such as the platform’s Interior Design Community, are “a great way to process some of the scenarios we deal with.”)

Cultivate calm

Peter Feinmann is best known around Boston as president of the design-build firm Feinmann, Inc. For the past 13 years, however, he has quietly been exploring the benefits of mindfulness meditation, with an eye toward eventually opening his own teaching practice. The pandemic offered a chance for him to complete his teaching certification while reaching out to assist colleagues in design and construction who were feeling overwhelmed.

Partnering first with a local remodeling group and then with the New England chapter of the International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA), he began offering a free, six-week introductory course geared specifically toward the needs of the home industry. “I think it’s an immensely valuable tool in two areas,” Feinmann says. “How do we more effectively lead in our businesses, how do we more effectively work with those that we’re in business with, and how does that ultimately bring more presence to our personal life?” The goal is to become “less reactive, less anxious” and emphasize behaviors that advance “our ability to support and sustain and feel good about ourselves,” Feinmann explains.

Taking concrete steps to avert burnout became more critical than ever in 2020 and 2021. It may feel like the wrong time to pamper yourself, but simply gritting your teeth and pushing ahead is unlikely to lead anywhere beneficial in the long run. Luckily, designers are reminding themselves that happiness and productivity don’t have to be mutually exclusive. As Anne English puts it, “I’m so much more conscious of bringing more empathy and humanity to the workplace and providing my team with an environment that makes us all feel safe, supported, and cared for.” Be assured that those feelings will pay off.