Episode 257: Beyond Resilience: How to Recover from Burnout and Build Bounce Back Ability with Cait Donovan

About the Guest Cait Donovan is a burnout recovery expert, acupuncturist, speaker, and host of Fried the Burnout Podcast. With a background in Chinese medicine and a deep understanding of resilience, Cait helps high performers recognize, recover from, and prevent burnout by cultivating self-awareness, setting boundaries, and redefining success. About the Episode: In this episode, host Steve Mellor sits down with Cait Donovan to explore the concept of bounce back ability—a broader and more sustainable approach to resilience. Cait shares insights on burnout recovery, the importance of interoception (internal self-awareness), and how high performers can create a more sustainable path to success. She also explains why asking for help is the key to true resilience and why burnout prevention isn"t always realistic. Key Takeaways: ✅ Resilience alone isn’t enough. True growth-ready individuals cultivate bounce back ability, which includes resilience, self-trust, surrender, grit, and agility. ✅ Many high performers miss early signs of burnout due to low interoception (body awareness). The focus should be on recovery, not just prevention. ✅ Foundational self-care (listening to your body"s signals) is crucial. Simple habits like “pee when you need to pee” are game-changers. ✅ Resentment highlights where your boundaries are being crossed and where you"re neglecting yourself. Recognizing it can help you reclaim energy and focus. ✅ True resilience isn’t about pushing through alone; it’s about increasing your resources through asking for help and building a strong support system. ✅ Success isn’t just about productivity; it’s about maintaining energy, presence, and balance in all areas of life. Links and Resources 🎧 Listen to Cait’s podcast: Fried the Burnout Podcast 🌐 Learn more about Cait: https://www.caitdonovan.com/ 🔗 Connect with Cait on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitdonovanspeaks/ 🔥 Rate & Review – If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. It helps us grow and reach more listeners! 📩 Subscribe – Don’t miss future episodes of GrowthReady! Hit subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. 💬 Join the Conversation – What was your biggest takeaway? Share your thoughts on social media and tag us! Send us a textThe Balance of Gray God, doubt, and proof walk into a podcast... it goes better than you’d expect! Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify Sign up for the monthly newsletter with Steve and GrowthReady (formerly known as Career Competitor) by providing your details here - Request to become part of our community Also be sure to give him and the show a follow on Instagram @coachstevemellor