Unstressable: A Practical Guide to Stress Free Living by Mo Gawdat and Alice Law

There are a lot of books on burnout out there but for me Unstressable by Mo Gawdat and Alice Law one of the most practical and influential books I read.

Understanding Burnout — Simple, Clear, and Practical

Part 1 breaks down what burnout really is and why it happens. It’s written in a clear, almost high-school-textbook style — even featuring mathematical “stress and burnout equations.”

If you’re the kind of reader who loves highlighting key ideas or making notes in the margins, you’ll enjoy how structured and easy to follow this section is.

Why Unstressable Speaks to Working Women

What makes Unstressable stand out is its focus on the emotional and spiritual roots of burnout, not just the physical and mental.

Many women in the workplace have been taught to hide their emotions and rely only on logic to succeed — I know I was. This book reminds us that emotions, intuition, body, and mind are all interconnected, and when one is ignored, burnout can follow.

Reading Unstressable gave me permission to trust my emotions again, reconnect with my intuition, and listen to my inner voice. It’s a refreshing reminder that sensitivity and success can coexist.

The “Soul Slap” — When You Ignore the Signs

One of my favourite ideas from the book is the “Soul Slap.” This is what happens when we ignore the small warning signs from our body or soul — until life gives us a big, undeniable wake-up call.

I think of my own burnout as my personal “soul slap.” I pushed through exhaustion and ignored the signs until my body and mind forced me to stop. Now, I use some of what I learned from this book to create my Anti-Burnout Mindset, helping me stay aligned, balanced and avoid a future Soul Slap.

Practical Tools for Burnout Recovery

Unstressable doesn’t just talk about burnout, it gives you tools to prevent and recover from it. Two techniques I still use today include:

Talking to My Brain — a simple practice that helps manage microstressors and calm anxious thoughts (I explain this more in my post on Burnout and Microstressors).
The Intuitive Questioning Process — a guided way to reconnect with your inner wisdom and rediscover clarity during stressful moments.

These practical exercises have become part of my burnout prevention routine, and they continue to make a real difference in my mindset and energy levels.

Key Takeaways for Working Women

You can’t eliminate stress, but you can change your relationship with it. The authors teach that resilience comes not from avoiding stress but from learning to interpret it differently.
Awareness is the first step to freedom. They offer accessible exercises to identify your stress triggers — from people and habits to self-imposed expectations.
Small daily rituals matter more than major life overhauls. Simple shifts, like conscious pauses between meetings or reframing self-talk, have cumulative power to prevent burnout.
Balance your masculine and feminine energy. Law in particular highlights how many women in professional environments over-rely on “doing” energy (achievement, logic, control) and neglect “being” energy (intuition, rest, compassion). Reconnecting with that softer side isn’t weakness — it’s essential for sustainability.

In Summary

Unstressable by Mo Gawdat and Alice Law is more than a book — it’s a holistic guide to understanding burnout and healing from it on every level: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.

If you’re a working woman looking to recover from burnout or simply prevent it in the future, this book will help you slow down, reconnect with yourself, and find balance again.

Mairi Joyce

19 Oct 2024