Consultant Zen

Consultant Zen

consulting burnout

The Expanding Waistline, the Skipped Gym, the Third Coffee: How Consulting Quietly Destroys the Physical Habits That Protect You

Consulting schedules systematically eliminate the physical habits that protect your mental health. Here's the minimum viable recovery protocol that works inside an 85-hour week — no willpower heroics required.

The Stress Isn't a Sign You're Failing. But These 5 Things Are.

Junior consultants: learn to tell the difference between normal consulting pressure and actual performance warning signs — with a simple triage protocol you can use tonight.

consulting burnout

The 1.5-Year Trap: Why So Many Big4 Analysts Hit a Wall at Exactly This Stage (And Why It's Not About You)

If you're ~18 months into a Big4 consulting role and hitting a wall, this isn't weakness — it's structural. Here's why this specific moment is the hardest, and a clarity exercise to help you see your situation without the noise.

consulting burnout

The Language Gap: How to Explain Consulting Exhaustion to People Who Have Never Worked 85-Hour Weeks

Struggling to explain consulting exhaustion to your partner or friends without sounding dramatic? Here's a practical communication framework — including a copy-paste analogy that actually makes people understand what 85-hour weeks do to your brain.

The New Consultant Survival Map: What the First 90 Days Are Actually Testing (It's Not What You Think)

Think you're being judged on slide quality? You're not. Here's what MBB firms actually evaluate in the first 90 days — and a concrete milestone tracker to see where you really stand.

consulting burnout

The Consulting Culture of Shame: Why 'I Should Be Able to Handle This' Is the Most Dangerous Thought in Your Head

MBB and Big4 consulting firms systematically produce shame around burnout — and that shame keeps consultants trapped long past the point of genuine harm. Here's how the loop works, what it costs, and how to think clearly about your situation.

consulting burnout

Why Your Body Is Breaking Down at 1.5 Years In — And Why That Timeline Is Not a Coincidence

If you're 1.5 years into Big4 or MBB consulting and your body is breaking down, the timeline is not a coincidence. Here's what chronic overwork actually does to cortisol, sleep, and anxiety — and why the 12-24 month mark is when systems fail.

consulting feedback

What 'Be More 80-20' Actually Means: A Translation Guide With Worked Examples

Got feedback to 'be more 80-20' and had no idea what that means in practice? This guide breaks it into four observable behaviors and three worked examples you can use on your next deliverable.

consulting burnout

Why You Can't Explain Consulting Exhaustion to Anyone Who Hasn't Lived It (And What to Say Instead)

Can't explain consulting burnout to your partner or family? Here's a practical communication framework — with three real scripts — so you feel less invisible and more understood by the people closest to you.

The 85-Hour Week Is Not a Badge of Honor — It's a Medical Warning Sign

Averaging 85-hour weeks with a preexisting anxiety disorder? This is not a personal failure — it's a physiological event. Here's what chronic overwork actually does to your body, and a 10-question self-assessment to tell the difference between a rough patch and a real breaking point.

consulting burnout

The Burnout Diagnostic Consultants Actually Need: A 10-Point Self-Assessment (No Fluff, No Wellness Speak)

A no-fluff, 10-point burnout diagnostic built specifically for MBB and Big4 consultants grinding 80+ hour weeks. Rate yourself, interpret your score, and figure out whether you're in the Yellow Zone, Red Zone, or already in crisis — before your body makes the decision for you.

You're Not Bad at Consulting. You're Playing a Game Nobody Explained to You.

Feeling like an imposter in your first year of consulting? You're not bad at the job — you're missing the unwritten rules nobody explained. Here's the framework to decode them.