Step 1: Write down what a normal week really looks like
Take one ordinary week and track it honestly. Note when you start, when you stop, how often you check messages after hours and how many evenings you lose to work. If you lead a department at Utah Tech University, which its About page says enrolls more than 13,000 students across over 300 programs, mark where the semester calendar squeezes you. If you supervise people at an around-the-clock site such as St. George Regional Hospital, which Intermountain Health lists as open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, note how often coverage problems land on you.
The goal is not to judge the week. It is to give a coach something real to look at.
Step 2: Name what you want to be different
Pick two or three changes. "Stop answering email after 9 pm." "Take one full day off each weekend." "Hand off the scheduling I keep doing myself." Concrete targets make coaching conversations far more useful than a general sense of being tired.
Remember that burnout coaching is non-clinical. It focuses on workload, habits, boundaries and rest.
Step 3: Build a rest plan you can reach
Recovery time works best when it is easy to get to. Utah State Parks lists Snow Canyon State Park at Ivins, among lava flows and sandstone cliffs within the 62,000 acre Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, with more than 38 miles of hiking trails plus paved walking and biking paths and equestrian trails. From much of St. George it is roughly a twenty-minute drive.
For a full day away, the National Park Service says SunTran's Zion Route links St. George, Washington, Hurricane, La Verkin, Virgin and Springdale, and that Zion's South Entrance is on the north end of Springdale. Driving takes about an hour each way. These drive times are approximate, so check conditions before you go.
Pencil in one short outdoor block each week and one longer day each month before you even speak to a coach. If summer heat makes midday hikes unpleasant, move the short block to early morning or early evening. The point is a habit you will actually keep, not an ambitious plan that falls apart by the second week.
Step 4: Find two or three coaches
Use this directory to find independent coaches who serve St. George. Look at who each coach says they work with and whether they meet by video, in person or both. The directory does not check credentials, so think of the listings as a starting point.
Step 5: Hold a short call with each one
Ask each coach:
- What kind of leaders do you usually work with?
- How long is a typical engagement, and how often do we meet?
- How would you help me change my workload, not only manage it?
- What do you expect from me between sessions?
- How will we know whether this is helping?
Notice whether the coach asks about your week from Step 1 or jumps to a generic plan.
Also pay attention to practical details. Ask about rescheduling, how messages between sessions are handled, and what happens if a busy season at work forces a pause. A coach who has thought through those details is more likely to fit around a demanding job than one who has not.
Step 6: Choose and set a fixed time
Pick the coach whose questions were sharp and whose style fits you. Then set a recurring session time and put it on your calendar like any other standing commitment. If your schedule shifts with the academic year or with staffing rotations, agree with the coach in advance on how to reschedule.
Step 7: Use the time between sessions
Coaching moves faster when you try things between meetings. Test one boundary, delegate one task, or take the Snow Canyon walk you planned in Step 3. Jot down what happened and bring it to the next session.
Step 8: Review after a few months
After eight to twelve weeks, compare your current week with the one you tracked in Step 1. Are you working fewer late nights? Are you taking the rest you planned? If the answer is yes, keep going. If it is no, talk it through with your coach, adjust the plan, or try someone else from your list.