Inside A Candid Conversation About Creative Burnout

Burnout is an epidemic in the American workforce. A recent study showed that 77% of workers reported experiencing burnout in 2024—but at the same time 86% of people still feel passionate about their jobs. This is a dichotomy that many in the architecture and design industry are all too familiar with, and it’s the topic of the latest episode from the Once Upon a Project podcast, hosted on the SURROUND Podcast Network.

To discuss the idea of “creative wellness,” host AJ Paron, EVP and Design Futurist at SANDOW Design Group, was joined by Shannon Crider Langley, director of marketing for Shaw Contract, Kaley Decker, a workplace wellness consultant, and Ashley Olson, design director for Workplace and Hospitality Studios at Shaw Contract. As the show’s partner for this season, Shaw Contract helped facilitate this conversation, held in June at NeoCon.

Talking Burnout And Creative Wellness With Shaw Contract

“Creative wellness is really an antidote to preventing burnout,” Decker says. “Creative wellness is a strategy that blends this beautiful intersection of who we naturally are and activates our capacity to feel like we’re in more control of our own destiny. This is giving us control back where we really need it, to be able to feel better.”

Crider Langley, who was a designer before pursuing sales, saw that people in the industry were constantly stretched thin. It came up time and again when she spoke with designers, so Shaw Contract decided to act on it and embark on helping the people behind the designs. They created a continuing education course that focused on sharing tools and resources for staying mentally and emotionally well.

Shaw Contract Embarks On Achieving Balance

A key tenet of this creative wellness program is to look within, just as you pour your heart and soul into design work. “One of the pieces of creative wellness is committing to ourselves, to practice returning to ourselves throughout the day,” Decker says, who recommends practices such as breath work and meditation to recenter.

To learn more about creative wellness, listen to the entire conversation in the full episode—created in partnership with Shaw Contract—and explore all Once Upon a Project episodes on the SURROUND Podcast Network.

Unlock Creative Wellness Strategies