Why trying to change the world could burn you out
“I miss the fulfillment of doing the work, but I don’t miss doing the work.”
This is how Patricia Singson described her relationship to development work, two years after leaving the sector and transitioning to run two small businesses. It captures what it means to care about development work, portraying the dichotomy between a development worker’s passion and burnout.
Pat and I graduated with the same bachelor’s degree in Development Studies, which instilled in us the desire to “change the world.” The reality is that “changing the world” can only be achieved through competent, dedicated people who do the work with sincere intentions.
What happens when that work gets too heavy to sustain?
Entering the world of development
For some, entering development begins with idealism.
Alysha Magtuto transitioned from corporate marketing into development because it felt soulless to them, especially during the pandemic. This led them to find MakeSense, a global organization that aimed to enable citizens and organizations to come together and address relevant social issues. This promised a sense of purpose to Alysha.
Pat shared a similar motivation. She felt a detachment from the profit-driven theories of Management and shifted to DS in college to pursue her interests. DS trained us to balance social science with empathy, instilling a realistic view of what development work is. She brought that same sense of purpose when she started working in the world of development.
“I felt like my work had meaning, and I had the passion to do good. I felt capable. I was looking for meaning, and felt like I could contribute because I can see the need,” she said.
Entering the workforce, idealism met the complexity of real life. Alysha experienced managing and implementing a nationwide, large-scale program by themselves. Pat navigated having to work against people who were indifferent to—if not against—the interventions they were developing.
“Some believed in the same things you did, and some didn't. Even though you have a strong sense of self and desire to do good, a lot of factors work against you,” Pat reflected.
There may be tangible potential for large-scale impact, but it only ends up getting lost in politics at times.
Nikki Reyes recounted witnessing corruption during her younger years in government. Despite their office taking charge of all operational costs for an event, a partner unexpectedly charged participants a registration fee that had never been agreed upon. Witnessing corruption at this level firsthand revealed to her how selfish interests can undermine development efforts from within.
Some organizations also tend to weaponize passion against development workers. Because work involves life-changing stakes, workers feel morally obligated to give more at their expense—more time, energy, and emotional labor. Some of those that are accountable to funders tend to operate with leaner staffing and high expectations, resulting in the overextension of human resources. When projects do well, credit is diffused; when something goes wrong, responsibility feels personal.
“Passion or conviction is important, but it’s not as important as strategic thinking. It’s hard to run on passion. It’s more sustainable to be strategic,” Nikki said. Competency solves real-world problems in development work.
The reality is that development work is challenging, and its challenges cannot be overcome by passion, even if it’s what draws you in. Development work is work; it’s complex because the problems it presents are wicked, structural problems that require rigor, agility, and patience.
Leave or stay?
Ateneo de Manila University Department of Development Studies professors Kevin Christopher L. Go, PhD, Leslie V. Advincula-Lopez, PhD, and two other professors shared their thoughts on why people leave development, countering with a different question: “How do you define development work?”
“The world of development is constantly expanding,” Dr. Advincula-Lopez said. It’s difficult to define who is leaving and who is staying. People move in and out of NGOs, government, academia, law, corporate foundations, and social enterprises. Some leave formal development roles but continue contributing in other ways. Were people really leaving the world of development?
How was I defining “development work”? Was I defining development too narrowly, as self-sacrificial, exhausting work? Perhaps all this was not about leaving development, but about redefining it.
In the conversations I had with my friends and colleagues, there was a sense of guilt as they reflected on their own journeys in the world of development. They felt guilty about falling short of their goals for impact or not responding as they wanted to when they encountered corruption.
The task is not to solve the world’s problems overnight. It is finding your place in solving them, then steadily contributing, without falling into the illusion that you are alone.
I asked the professors what they made of it. For them, that guilt likely stems from a Messianic complex. They emphasized that it’s important to realize that there’s no straight path to development; approaching the work otherwise would be an unrealistic assessment of what one person can do.
"You cannot solve the world’s problems. If you can solve a little bit or a small part, that should be fine for now. You have to be realistic about what you can achieve, of what you can do, because the problems that we encounter in development or otherwise did not happen overnight, and of course, it follows that it cannot be solved overnight also," Dr. Advincula-Lopez said. "The people who can stay on and on in development have a very realistic sense of what they can contribute to development, be it small or big."
For them, the more important question to ask if one is questioning their place in the world of development is: “Are you looking for reasons to leave, or reasons to stay?”
Dr. Advincula-Lopez said that she still wants to see things change, and enjoys the like-minded people she meets along the way. Dr. Go is still interested in seeing things change, and maintains a curiosity for how and when that will happen, whether or not they would have a role to play in it. One professor shared that they stay because there’s still much to do, and the work gives them the privilege to visit the places they value deeply.
Another said that they stay because it’s intellectually stimulating, and finds wicked problems interesting to solve—something that development work offers specifically.
They stay not because they believe they can single-handedly change the world, nor because of passion. They choose to stay because they believe in what they are doing, and they see that it matters. They are able to stay because they know their limits and contributions.
Finding your place
For some development workers, it’s easy to fall into the trap of trying to find meaning through it. People can end up digging holes that lead nowhere that way, eventually getting carried away and constantly asking, “What should I be doing better to navigate the complex world of development?”
A more useful question, perhaps, is not “How do I change the world?” but “How can I be a contributory part of a collective that addresses the world’s needs?”
Not everyone can take part in this work, for many reasons. The reality is that the world of development will, by nature, work against you; therefore, you must be competent enough to navigate it. Every pursuit comes with a cost, and, at the end of the day, you decide what you are willing to pay.
So, yes, trying to change the world could burn you out—especially if you believe solving the world’s problems depends solely on you. But finding the intersection between your interests and abilities, what the world needs, how you define development, then sustainably persevering towards that won’t work. Development is long-term, collective work, and therefore does not need to consume you. Forgetting that would be egotistical.
It still matters to ask yourself if the work we do or the way we live our lives contributes to building a better world, even while living in the reality of a society that incentivizes self-interest for survival. Recognizing that effective development work—sincerely executed—must be done and is important, and knowing that you have something to contribute and acting on it is the realistic point of view in our world today.
Still, the task is not to solve the world’s problems overnight. It is finding your place in solving them, then steadily contributing, without falling into the illusion that you are alone.