When I was in my 20’s, I always gave 200% at the jobs I worked at. I was young and naive and believed I would eventually be rewarded for all the hard work I put in, even on weekends and night shifts.
Then I got burnout, because I was working at a pace my body just couldn’t sustain anymore.
It changed my life drastically. I learned to value my health and free time and to prioritize that over the needs of my employer. I learned that hard work doesn’t neccessarily bring you any benefits, it mostly benefits your employer. I also learned that nobody cares when your health is fucked up - for your employer, you’re just a cog in the machine that can be replaced.
Nowadays I only work four days a week and I don’t give a shit about what happens on Fridays anymore. Server is down? Not my problem, get someone else to fix it.
I also learned to stand up for myself. I’m not getting paid like a monkey anymore and if you promise me a raise and then pretend like that never happened afterwards, you’ll have my resignation on your desk, printed out by the company printer right in front of you.