The Daily Drip
In Adam Grant's book "Give and Take," he distinguishes different peoples' styles of work.
Some people are givers and others are takers. Givers want to actively help others, even if it costs them something. Takers want others to give to them while contributing as little as possible. There are also matches, who keep a tally of their giving and taking and try to make sure they are living a balanced life.
In the end, Grant breaks down who tends to succeed (I know, tricky word, but stick with me) and who doesn't.
I don't know about you but I tend to be a giver--which puts me at risk for burnout and over-giving. Grant calls this "selfless giving."
Instead, the most successful givers were the ones who practiced the following:
Said "No."
No one is able to say "yes" all the time and no one expects this. In fact, if you're saying "yes" all the time, then you're falling into the trap of "superhero thinking." I wrote a Medium post on this recently.
Asked for advice.
You don't always have to be the one giving. If you partner up with other like-minded people, you can help coach/mentor each other along the way. Givers are at risk for burnout if they don't practice asking for help when they need it.
Focused on the small things.
Successful givers figured out what they could do that took the least amount of effort or time but still made the most impact. The proverbial 80/20 rule. Inadvertently, this also is a signaling tool that helps others value and respect your time more.