13 | SUPPORT

Burnt Out

Goldie Chan is a top LinkedIn Video Creator and a global social media strategy and branding expert. She is the Founder and Head of Creative at social media agency, Warm Robots, where they run strategy and content creation for large B2B and B2C startups and corporations. She serves on the PGA's New Media Council and has been featured as a fresh voice on strategy, branding and pop culture in Inc. Magazine, Huffpost, Fast Company and Buzzfeed.

Check out Goldie's LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/goldie

The Burnt Out Experience

Goldie got a degree in biology (mostly pre-med) from Stanford. It was incredibly tough and looking back at her time, she had many creative outlets that kept her going, which now makes her see that she was probably in the wrong major. She and a friend were always at the bottom of the grade curve among the genius-level students; those students who were all battling their way to the top of the class and be the best. Goldie said, "my friend and I were just going for average." It was a struggle, and the burnout was real, but she made it through.

Right out of college she jumped head first into the fashion industry with her own fashion line. What?! Such a crazy transition. A couple years into her fashion career, a big box store wanted to carry her line of clothes and it was all too much. Goldie wanted to go for it, but she needed a partner to make it work. When she couldn't find a good fit for a business partner, she had a nervous breakdown.

She started watching a lot of HGTV and Law & Order SVU - apparently when you watch the two shows together for a long period of time, your dreams can get strange. Goldie was playing SIMS at the time, but her character didn't want to do anything except lay on the floor and cry. Her friends saw what was going on and their advice was to go get a job, any job at all.

So, she did.

How did she deal? Support / In Person Interaction

For someone who focuses on social media for a living, it means a lot for Goldie to say that you need to turn off your devices and get away from screens.

In-person interactions are so important and so much more so than any version of digital interactions. It's important to hear, know, and feel love from your people. Not romantically, but in a familial sense whether that's your actual family, your friends, or whoever is in your support system. The support that comes from human interactions is incredibly important and helped Goldie through her phases of feeling burnt out.

Take Time Off

Goldie acknowledges that not everyone has the opportunity or financial means to take a full day off, but if you can, do it. If not, take a couple hours, one or, or even 10 minutes to meditate. Relax, clear your mind, turn off your technologies. If you can, go into nature and enjoy the fresh air and lack of nagging from your life in the digital world.

What is Leadership

Leading with love: Encourage people to grow Finding someone's truest motivation in life and offering that to them (or at least understand it) Understanding and reaching the most important goal Problem solving

Notable Quotes

“In person interactions are so much more powerful than just a text.”

"If only we could reach out our hands and just have love."