We were lucky to catch up with Andujar Brutus recently and have shared our conversation below.
Andujar, so great to have you with us today. There are so many topics we want to ask you about, but perhaps the one we can start with is burnout. How have you overcome or avoided burnout?
Burnout was a challenge I dealt with for some time. It was especially tricky to deal with because it is difficult to distinguish at what point a person’s work ethic and resilience becomes burnout. I was living the sorites paradox: a paradox that deals with the difficulty of drawing a precise line or a clear distinction. There is a popular idea that a person’s weaknesses are the shadows of their strengths. In my case, my ability to push myself beyond my limits and remain consistent despite my energy level was a strength that eventually led me to the doors of over-productivity (i.e. grind culture). Unfortunately, I failed to properly navigate a delicate balance and crashed head on with burnout. I was working a part-time job, in college full-time, running a business, consistently posting to social media, working out often, and doing modeling/acting work with what was left of my free time. I hardly rested. After a while, my burnout turned into some serious physical symptoms and could not be ignored any longer. When you fail to avoid something, all that is left to do is overcome it. My backlog of injuries and constant activity required months of healing and bed rest.
After experiencing the drawbacks of intense burnout, I now prioritize rest above productivity. Though I have accomplished many of my goals, I now remind myself that my value as a man is not decided by my accomplishments. It has been just over a year since I began taking my rest seriously and I feel like a brand new person.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
As a man balancing the intersection of modeling, creative direction, and computer science, I found it challenging to discover my focal point. I enjoy modeling because it allows me to play with self-expressive themes while exploring visually appealing mediums. Creative direction offers a way to showcase how my experiences have shaped my perspective, while computer science, a seemingly unrelated addition to my toolset, has surprisingly proven to be a perfect fit for developing creative projects through digital means.
Throughout this journey, I’ve learned that perfection is impossible to attain. Each of us has our own perspectives and set of life lessons we’ve gathered. Creative endeavors speak to each of us differently, and it is this diversity that enriches the collective experience.
My journey is one of continuous evolution, where each project is not only an opportunity for personal growth but also a way to explore and shed light on important topics like mental health, spirituality, and how individuals are affected by society, all while staying true to my core values of integrity, well-being, and love in everything I create.
For this next chapter, I’m going to be focusing more on the little everyday things and my perspectives of them. I want to integrate my creative pursuits seamlessly in a way that is natural yet intentional. Since I am recovering from intense burnout, I seek to continue my creative pursuits in a way that is in harmony with my lifestyle.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The three things that were most impactful on my journey are: community, adaptability, and love.
Community is important because a person truly does become like the people they surround themselves with. They will learn their habits, accept the communities truths as their own, and draws their self-worth from the communities opinions. Find a community that is growth oriented with a value system that promotes healthy wellbeing. Avoid communities whose sole purpose is to oppress.
Adaptability is impactful because it is important to adapt to many environments to continue one’s journey. The world is full of differences. Of course a person should avoid changing their value system simply to fit in. Unless that value system promotes the well-being of oneself and others, it is a non-factor; however, a person should be mindful to treat others as they themselves would like to be treated.
Love is the most valuable quality and skill in my opinion. Love makes up for a multitude of flaws. To love the journey. To love the people met on the journey. To love the work being done. When everything is done with true love, we stop seeing the road and simply enjoy our next step. We stop seeking to control the outcome. Sometimes the destination we set for ourselves is not where the journey is meant to take us.
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
My biggest area of growth in the past 12 years has been my health and well-being. I’ve studied healthy habits for years and have worked to integrate them. I’ve practiced waking up & sleeping early, being productive, etc. I knew what to do to increase productivity but I put little emphasis on rest and recovery. After beginning my rest to recover from burnout, it felt like everything I’d been holding up was finally allowed to relax. It wasn’t until I began resting did I realize that my nervous system was dysregulated as well as other aches and pains. In the past 12 months, I’ve felt things healing that I didn’t know were injured.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andujarbrutus/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@andujarbrutus
Image Credits
Dabel Brutus
Andujar Brutus
Timi Faderin
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
