The Quickest Way to Burnout (And 3 Ways To Beat It Even When Budgets Are Tight)
Last week, I found myself out at one of my Airbnbs with a mower, weed eater, and gloves in hand.
The landscaper I had scheduled fell through, and I had two choices: leave the lawn messy or handle it myself. So I mowed, edged, and weeded until it looked great.
Here’s the thing - I didn’t mind doing the work. But by the time I drove out there, loaded everything up, did the job, and drove home, half my day was gone. And I was exhausted.
That lawn was a $100 job that cost me hours of my energy.
And it reminded me of something I see all the time in property management: the quickest way to burnout is wearing every hat.
Why Burnout Happens Faster Than You Think
When ownership cuts budgets, it feels like every “extra” gets stripped away.
No vendor for landscaping? Step in.
No budget for marketing? Make something yourself.
Short on staff? Fill the gap.
Of course, sometimes you have to step in, that’s leadership. But when it becomes the default, you’re trading short-term savings for long-term exhaustion.
Burnout doesn’t happen overnight. It builds in small ways: too many hats, too many late nights, too many “I’ll just do it myself.”
Before we jump into how to avoid the black plague (aka burnout)… think about this: what if we swapped “I’ll do it myself” to “I’ll invest in myself”? 🤯
Investing in yourself doesn’t always mean spending a lot. It means spending wisely. Tools like Spark can help you save hours and focus on your highest value work (you’ll hear more about this further down).
“Because of Sprout, I finally feel put together and have direction in my marketing strategy!”
-Kristen Guel | Director of Marketing
(Here’s what’s coming in the October Spark drop…don’t tell anyone 👀)
Three Ways to Beat Burnout
Even when budgets are tight, there are strategies you can use to protect your energy and keep yourself effective.
1. Know Your Highest Value Work
Ask yourself: What are the things only I can do?
Building relationships with residents.
Touring and closing leases.
Keeping a pulse on team culture and property performance.
That’s your highest value work.
If you’re spending two hours designing a flyer or rewriting the same resident letter for the fifth time, that’s two hours you’re not leading.
Burnout happens when you live in the weeds instead of your zone of impact.
“Thanks to Sprout, I finally get to take a lunch break! Normally, I'd spend 45 minutes just coming up with a theme for our pool party, creating a flyer, and shopping for supplies online.
But this time, I hopped on Sprout and found a ready-made pool party flyer-complete with fun Amazon finds and decoration ideas. I plugged in our details and had it posted to the resident portal in under 15 minutes. Huge thanks to the Sprout team for making it so easy!”
-Terri Richey | Marketing Director
2. Invest in Yourself to Magnify Your Time
Investing in yourself doesn’t always mean spending a lot. It means spending wisely.
The smartest leaders aren’t the ones who cut everything - they’re the ones who know where to invest for the biggest return.
Take Spark, for example. For $7 a month ($0.28 per individual resource), you suddenly have flyers, captions, graphics, event ideas, notices - all built for you and ready to implement. The hours you would’ve spent creating? Freed up.
One $0.28 marketing flyer in Spark could mean a $1,500 lease. A simple renewal reminder could save you $4,000+ in turnover costs. That’s a huge return for a small investment.
It’s not about doing more. It’s about multiplying what you already have.
(Psst - here’s a peak at October’s marketing and renewal flyers… both only cost you $0.28. How? Because Spark is a $7 Monthly Resource Kit that’s packed with resources that we know property managers desperately need.)
“Because of Sprout, I finally save time while creating meaningful renewal gifts and engaging events for two unique communities!”
-Jamie Robinson | Leasing Consultant
3. Work on Recurring Frustrations Weekly
Here’s the sneaky part of burnout: it’s not usually the big problems that take you out - it’s the small frustrations that pile up.
The same notice you rewrite every month.
The event you scramble to plan last-minute.
The renewal you forget until it’s almost too late.
Alone, they’re small. Together, they’re exhausting.
Here’s my challenge: once a week, pick one frustration that keeps showing up and solve it for good.
Create a template. Build a system. Or use a resource that already exists.
Do that every week, and by the end of the year, you’ll have solved 52 little frustrations that no longer drain your energy.
“I finally get to have cute flyers & events, without the headache of coming up with ideas. Gaahhleee! ☺️”
-SJ Jensen | Residential Property Manager
Here’s Your Takeaway
Burnout is real, and the quickest way there is trying to wear every hat.
But you can fight it by:
Knowing your highest value work.
Investing in yourself to magnify your time.
Tackling recurring frustrations one by one.
You may not control every budget cut, but you do control how you show up, where you put your energy, and which tools you use to lighten your load. You don’t have to do it all. And you’ll be a stronger, more effective manager when you stop trying.
And if Spark is part of that solution for you, even better.
It’s one small investment that can give you hours back and thousands in ROI.
For $7 a month, it’s a small step that can help you get hours of your life back and thousands of dollars in results.
“Over the past six months the use of Sprout’s Marketing and Retention resources have definitely had a positive impact on business efficiency and profits. The Sprout staff is knowledgeable, friendly, and inspiring.”
-Kathleen | Happy Sprout Member
