Tired as F*ck: Burnout at the Hands of Diet, Self-Help, and Hustle Culture

Blogger Dooner (The F*ck It Diet) returns with a snappy and empathetic guide to combating burnout by purging “the guilt.” Dooner encourages readers to drop “the shoulds. The comparing ourselves to other people. The forcing ourselves to stay in jobs or relationships that we don’t love, but that we don’t think we deserve to leave.” The “accidental” impetus of Dooner’s revelations was her introduction to Marie Kondo’s advice on decluttering her apartment; she determined she could extend the principle of chucking anything tangible that didn’t “spark joy” to relationships and career paths. After a lifetime of trying to become a successful actor, Dooner declares she got “sick of everything,” especially the heightened anxiety auditions caused, so she just quit going to them. She also stopped making any foods off-limits (and dropped dieting), allowed herself to rest, and stopped forcing herself to go on second dates with men she wasn’t attracted to. As a result, she forged a better relationship with her body, learned she doesn’t have to work 80 hours a week (after hiring a part-time assistant for her blog), and created space in her life to welcome new jobs, new friends and new ideas. By boldly sharing vulnerabilities, Dooner’s account should go a long way in helping others accept their own. It’s a brave and bracing manifesto that will be welcomed by any reader living in the aftermath of burnout—or trying to avoid it. Agent: Susan Raihofer, David Black Literary Agency. (Feb.)