The first sign of burnout isn’t fatigue. It’s accelerated aging in people who still outperform.

I’ve worked with executives in New York, LA and across Europe long enough to see the same pattern repeat: the highest-functioning people aren’t unbreakable. They’re just calibrated. They detect drift early - in mood, sleep, inflammation, cognitive sharpness - and course-correct before the cost shows up on the balance sheet.

Last week a 32-year-old founder told me his joint pain was “probably age”. It wasn’t. When someone in their early 30s is aging biologically like someone in their 50s, it’s never age. It’s accumulated load: stress, toxins, micronutrient deficits, circadian disruption. The silent wear that still passes as “normal” in most health checks.

What erodes people isn’t crisis. It’s the decade before crisis.

If HR wants to prevent burnout, absenteeism and churn, the window is not post-symptom. It’s pre-symptom. The phase where everything still looks fine on paper, but biology is already moving in the wrong direction.

If you want the biomarkers that predict burnout 6-18 months before it hits, reply with BURNOUT and I’ll email you the Stress Test guide.