How to Recognize the Hidden Signs of Burnout with Leah Weiss

The One You Feed

Eric Zimmer, The One You Feed

Buddhism, Education, Self-improvement, Religion & Spirituality, Health & Fitness, Mental Health

4.6 • 2.5K Ratings

🗓️ 13 June 2025

⏱️ 58 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What if the very thing that gives your life meaning is also what's burning you out? That's the paradox. Leah Weiss found herself in teaching compassionate leadership at Stanford. Working with organizations inspired by the Dalai Lama. Doing the kind of work most of us dream of. And yet she was falling apart. In today's conversation, we unpacked the silent erosion of self that can happen even when everything looks right on the outside. Leah shares how burnout crept in under the guise of purpose, why discernment can't be done alone, and how the small act of knitting helped her find her way back to herself. This episode is a map for anyone wondering is it me? Is it the job or is it the world we're trying to survive in? Key Takeaways: The issue of burnout, particularly in the workplace. Personal experiences and challenges related to burnout. The importance of recognizing signs and symptoms of burnout. The concept of discernment in addressing dissatisfaction. Distinction between burnout and compassion fatigue. The role of community and support in navigating burnout. Factors contributing to burnout at individual, team, and organizational levels. The significance of psychological safety and team dynamics. The search for meaning and alignment of personal values in work. The impact of entrepreneurship on well-being, particularly for women founders. If you enjoyed this conversation with Leah Weiss, check out these other episodes: Embracing Emotions at Work with Liz Fosslien How to Deal with Burnout Through Self-Compassion with Kristin Neff For full show notes, click here! Connect with the show: Follow us on YouTube: @TheOneYouFeedPod Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Follow us on Instagram The Tao Te Ching is one of those books I keep coming back to. Ancient wisdom, wrapped in poetry, that somehow feels more relevant every year. Like this line: “If you look to others for happiness, you will never be happy. If your well-being depends on money, you will never be content.“Simple. Clear. Actually useful.I’ve teamed up with Rebind.ai to create an interactive edition of the Tao—forty essential verses, translated into plain, everyday language, with space to reflect, explore, and ask questions. It’s like having a conversation not just with the Tao, but with me too. If you’re looking for more clarity, calm, or direction, check it out here. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	I had just turned 40 when we spoke last time, you know, some of these symbolic ages, I feel like really help us ask the questions around, am I where I'm supposed to be in my life?
0:19.8	Welcome to the one you feed. Throughout time, great thinkers have recognized the importance
0:25.1	of the thoughts we have. Quotes like, garbage in, garbage out, or you are what you think, ring
0:31.3	true. And yet, for many of us, our thoughts don't strengthen or empower us. We tend toward negativity, self-pity,
0:39.4	jealousy, or fear. We see what we don't have instead of what we do. We think things that
0:45.0	hold us back and dampen our spirit. But it's not just about thinking. Our actions matter.
0:50.7	It takes conscious, consistent, and creative effort to make a life worth living.
0:55.9	This podcast is about how other people keep themselves moving in the right direction, how they
1:00.7	feed their good wolf. What if the very thing that gives your life meaning is also what's
1:08.9	burning you out? That's the paradox Leah Weiss found herself in.
1:13.6	Teaching compassionate leadership at Stanford, working with organizations, inspired by the Dalai Lama,
1:19.6	doing the kind of work most of us dream of, and yet she was falling apart.
1:24.6	In today's conversation, we unpack the silent erosion of self
1:28.9	that can happen even when everything looks right on the outside. Leah shares how burnout crept in
1:35.3	under the guise of purpose, why discernment can't be done alone, and how the small act of knitting
1:41.3	helped her find her way back to herself. This episode is a map for
1:45.6	anyone wondering, is it me, is it the job, or is it the world we're trying to survive in?
1:51.9	I'm Eric Zimmer and this is the one you feed. Hi, Leo, welcome to the show. Thanks for having
1:57.8	me. It's great to be here. Yeah, I am happy to have you on. As we were talking before this interview, you were on the show almost four years ago to the day, which is just kind of interesting that we talked at this time and amazing that it's been four years. So I'm really happy to have you back on. I'm really happy to be here and continue this conversation we started many moons ago
2:21.0	and in a very different climate that we're in today.
2:24.5	Yeah.
2:24.7	And our basic topic is going to be oriented around the idea of burnout, you know, workplace burnout
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Eric Zimmer, The One You Feed, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Eric Zimmer, The One You Feed and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.