As the end of the year approaches, many business people, employees and students find themselves feeling mentally, emotionally, and physically depleted. Deadlines, performance reviews, holiday obligations, and the general pressure to “wrap things up” create a perfect storm for what’s commonly known as end-of-year fatigue.
My wife spent 35 years teaching and describes this time as a time when “fuses become shorter” and people can get “snappy”(hence the need to guard our words!)
If you’re finding it harder to focus, feeling increasingly irritable, or simply counting down the days until a break, you’re not alone. This type of fatigue is both common and completely valid — and while rest is essential, there are also deeper strategies that can help you move through this period with greater resilience. One of those strategies is adopting a growth mindset.
Why end-of-year fatigue happens at work
Mental and choice overload
By the final quarter of the year, you’ve likely made thousands of decisions — from small day-to-day choices to major strategic or personal ones. These choices accumulate, and over time, the brain’s ability to focus and prioritize begins to wear down. This is known as decision fatigue, and it can lead to reduced productivity, irritability, and even burnout.
Your calendar may help you keep track of increased activity at this time of the year.
Increased Workplace Pressure
Year-end is often a period of heightened pressure in many industries. Budgets need to be finalized, goals reviewed, reports submitted, and targets hit. Reviews and team evaluations can add an additional emotional load. For some, it’s also a time when job transitions or organizational restructuring take place, which adds uncertainty and stress.
For students at Tertiary institutions, end of year exams can be very taxing.
Lack of Rest and Work-Life Boundaries
As deadlines intensify, work hours often stretch. People begin skipping breaks, answering emails late at night, and pushing rest to the bottom of their to-do list. At the same time, personal responsibilities increase during the holiday season, often creating tension between work and home life. The result? Feeling like you are running a marathon with no end in sight.
Emotional Reflection and Self-Criticism
The end of the year often prompts reflection. While this can be valuable, it can also lead to self-criticism — especially if goals weren’t met or projects didn’t go as planned. When you’re already exhausted, this kind of reflection is seen through a skewed perspective and can be harsh and unproductive, leaving you feeling stuck instead of motivated.
How the Growth Mindset can help….
A growth mindset, a concept developed by psychologist Carol Dweck, is the belief that your abilities and performance can improve over time through effort, learning, and feedback. It’s a way of thinking that emphasizes progress over perfection, and resilience over results alone.
Adopting this mindset doesn’t mean ignoring the pressure or pretending everything is fine. It means shifting how you interpret stress and setbacks — and giving yourself the space to grow, even when things feel difficult.
Here’s how it can help at work during this season:
It Encourages Self-Compassion Over Self-Criticism A fixed mindset says, “If I’m struggling, I must not be good enough.” A growth mindset says, “Struggling is part of growth — what can I learn from this experience?” This shift is essential during high-pressure times when it’s easy to become overly self-critical.
It Reduces the Fear of Falling Short When you believe your performance defines your worth, the year-end becomes a test of your value. But when you believe your skills and contributions are always evolving, there’s room for mistakes, learning, and improvement. This reduces anxiety and allows for more honest reflection.
It Promotes Sustainable Goal Setting Rather than rushing to check off every goal or complete every task before the year ends, a growth mindset helps you set priorities based on what’s meaningful and sustainable — not just what’s urgent.
It Makes Space for Recovery A growth mindset values rest as part of the growth process. It acknowledges that reflection, restoration, and stepping back are necessary to return stronger. For professionals, this can be the permission needed to set boundaries, take time off, or simply pause. Simply put, rest and recuperation is good!
Moving Through Fatigue with Awareness
If you’re feeling the effects of end-of-year fatigue, the most important thing to remember is that you’re not failing — you’re responding naturally to months of sustained effort. Your body and mind are not designed to run at full speed without pause.
Here are a five supportive steps you can take now:
Pause and reflect on what you’ve learned this year, even if it didn’t come with perfect outcomes.
Identify your most important priorities — what truly needs your attention before year-end, and what can wait? (Don’t sweat the small stuff)
Communicate your limits when possible, especially if expectations are unrealistic.
Schedule intentional rest, even if it’s just 15 minutes of undisturbed quiet during the day.
Reframe your internal dialogue from “I didn’t do enough” to “I’ve done my best with what I had this year.”
A Final Thought
See end-of-year fatigue as a signal — not a weakness. It’s a sign that you’ve been showing up, working hard, and navigating complexity for a long time. The question is not whether you hit every target or goal, but rather that you’ve grown in ways that may not be immediately visible.
A growth mindset doesn’t ask you to ignore your exhaustion. It asks you to understand it — and to use it as a stepping stone toward greater clarity, resilience, and self-awareness as you prepare for the year ahead.