Here’s what has worked for me over the years to stave off boreout :

Leaning into digressions: Passion projects (like this very one) and side hustles, whether they’re directly related to your work or completely unrelated, create the crackle of energy that boreout can stamp out; rather than be afraid of these things taking time away from your team’s full-time workload, celebrate and encourage them for the inspiration they’ll provide

Managing energy vs. time: Structure your workday around rhythms that feel natural (e.g. tackle deep creative work in the morning over your second cup of coffee, push meetings to later in the day when you mostly need to listen and provide guidance, not create); establish schedule boundaries that work for you and stick to them (e.g. declare you’re not reachable for two hours on evenings during family dinner and bedtime, and leave your phone on silent in another room to hold yourself accountable); build comfort with leaving things unchecked on your to-do list

Relentlessly seeking impact: If you don’t understand your organization’s business model, enough to be able to explain it clearly to a new hire on their first day, keep asking questions (of your boss, of your peers, of allies you make on the finance or strategy team) until you do—then mold your remit and workload around delivering value towards that business model; the more you are tangibly contributing to your company’s existential goals, the less bored you’ll be

Scheduling catch-ups : Keep up with people in your network, while keeping gas in your brain’s tank, by scheduling a few quick Zoom or coffee catch-ups each month; you can be methodical about it (e.g. use a personal CRM like Folk and set calendar reminders for yourself) or simply ping someone when they pop into your head

The OffBeat #60: Boreout vs. Burnout