Coping with burnout, figuring out the purpose of Snap and surviving a Taliban kidnapping
Need a break from work? Prolonged exposure to stress in the workplace is causing a rise in mental and physical health problems. Meet the paramedic, the advertiser and finance director in our top story, who hit the reset button and are now thriving. Emine Saner talks to workers that have experienced and coped with cases of extreme burnout by completely changing their occupation. This listen from The Guardian reveals that there are many solutions that can help to restore a sense of balance in turbulent times.
In the rest of this week’s edit, we uncover the uncertain fate of Snapchat, we find out how an education professional survived a Taliban kidnapping, and we discover why self-driving cars might not be the future of automation after all.
Wishing you a safe and restful weekend.
Happy listening.
Our Top Story
‘A career change saved my life’: the people who built better lives after burnout
Chronic stress at work can lead to listlessness, fatigue — and a much higher risk of stroke and heart disease. Effective tools can combat this: including walking away. Emine Saner talks to people living happier and healthier lives after experiencing some extreme side-effects from the high-pressure working world.
3 stories to spark your curiosity:
How Snapchat became the forgotten social platform
In this weekend’s long listen, explore the rise and decline of one of the biggest social media apps. Is strategic confusion the source of the cultural decline of Snapchat? Vox explores why users and investors have such differing ideas about the future aims of the platform.
I’m haunted by my night of vodka and reefers with the Taliban
Sasha Kassam recalls the night that she was kidnapped by the Taliban. In this captivating listen from Pysche, she reflects on the profoundly intense situation where it’s impossible to enter a flight or fight mode of survival.
COVID’s ‘lost generation’ may be more resilient than we think
It’s time to stop worrying about what the younger generations have ‘lost’ in lockdown: they've shown an incredible aptitude in adjusting to difficult situations. Lucy Foulkes, an adolescence psychologist, argues that plenty of teenagers have managed to navigate the pandemic with remarkable strength.