Oak vs Olive
Both are exhausted. Olive has stopped. Oak is still going, and that is the whole problem.
We earn a small commission if you buy through this link, at no extra cost to you. How this works
Why they get muddled
The same exhaustion, with the same long stretch behind it. Ask either one how they are and you will hear that they are tired. What differs is what they do about it.
The differences
What you do with the tiredness
Oak
You carry on. Stopping is not something you allow.
Olive
You have run out. The tiredness already made the decision for you.
How you talk about it
Oak
You say you are busy and change the subject.
Olive
You will admit you are exhausted, because it is fairly obvious.
What rest feels like
Oak
Like letting people down.
Olive
Like a necessity that has stopped working properly.
How it usually ends
Oak
Something gives out and forces the stop.
Olive
It already has.
Which one to pick
Choose Oak if
- You keep going long after you should have stopped
- You work through illness and vacations
- Resting feels like letting other people down
Choose Olive if
- You are worn out after a genuinely long or hard stretch
- Sleep no longer leaves you feeling recovered
- Things you usually enjoy feel like too much effort
What if both sound right?
This is one of the most common pairings in the system, and taking both is the usual advice rather than the exception. Olive for the depletion, Oak for the refusal to stop.
Common questions
Which one comes first?
Usually Oak, then Olive. The Oak habit of pushing on through is what empties the tank in the first place, so by the time the exhaustion is undeniable both pictures are often true at once.
Is the Oak pattern a bad thing?
Not at all. It describes people who are reliable, strong and genuinely relied upon, which is exactly why they are so hard to persuade to stop. The remedy is traditionally associated with keeping the reliability and letting some rest in alongside it.
Keep narrowing
The pairs closest to this one, if neither of these two turns out to be it.
OlivevsHornbeam
Olive is tiredness after the effort. Hornbeam is tiredness before it. If rest genuinely helps, it is Olive. If you feel fine once you get going, it is Hornbeam.
ElmvsOak
Elm is a wobble this week in somebody who normally copes well. Oak is years of pushing on. If the feeling is recent and out of character, it is Elm.
Crab ApplevsRock Water
Crab Apple is about how you feel about yourself. Rock Water is about the rules you keep. One wants to be clean and the other wants to be good, and they do not answer to the same remedy.
ClematisvsHornbeam
Clematis has gone somewhere else. Hornbeam has not gone anywhere, it just cannot begin. If the work looks heavy before you start, that is Hornbeam. If you started and then vanished, that is Clematis.
Still not sure?
Read both profiles in full, or start from the feeling and let the quiz narrow it for you.