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In her keynote at RailsConf 2022, Vaidehi Joshi explores the theme of burnout in the tech industry and its impact on engineers. She uses her personal experience and reflections during a 67-mile hike on the Wildwood Trail in Portland, Oregon, to illustrate her journey. Joshi emphasizes the importance of curiosity and joy in a programmer's work, acknowledging how burnout often diminishes these feelings. Throughout her talk, she outlines several key points:

- **Career Development**: Joshi narrates her journey from writing her first lines of Rails code to experiencing burnout in a leadership role, highlighting the evolution of her interests over the years. 
- **Burnout Explanation**: She provides a detailed account of her burnout experience, noting the signs she missed and the resulting emotional and physical toll. She describes burnout as a syndrome caused by chronic work-related stress, and emphasizes that it is not a temporary state but one that lingers. 
- **Contributing Factors**: Joshi discusses how her imposter syndrome contributed to her exhaustion and stress, explaining that her desire to prove herself often led to an unsustainable work ethic. 
- **Recovery Process**: After recognizing her burnout, she takes four months off, during which she reflects on her experiences, engages in joyful activities, and contemplates how to avoid future burnout. 
- **Importance of Curiosity**: The talk centers on the idea that curiosity is vital for a fulfilling career in technology. Joshi asserts that nurturing curiosity can help maintain joy in work amid challenges. 
- **Strategies for Avoiding Burnout**: She concludes with strategies for protecting curiosity and addressing burnout, including paying attention to personal well-being, maintaining work-life boundaries, and understanding the long-term nature of careers.

In essence, Joshi's keynote serves as both a personal narrative and a call to action for engineers to prioritize their mental health and stay curious about their work, which can help them navigate the complexities and challenges of their careers while fostering joy.

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