AIBU to stop overperforming at work?

Do your job. Don't do anymore than that unless you are getting paid for it or working towards a promotion for example.

Your feeling you are letting people down is just a story you are telling yourself. Are you a people pleaser generally? Why do you have to do more than everyone else to feel professional pride, there’s no pride in being a martyr? You need to work out why you are doing it to stop doing it.

The main thing is to stop doing the overtime. Then if anyone asks why X hasn't been done you can say you don't have enough time to get to it. You can still do you job well but you don't need to be doing so many extra hours. Employers will always take the piss if they find someone willing to work themselves to death for the company or organisation. It's on you not to let them get away with it.

Providing high volumes of work in the public sector isn't valued. They like slow and steady. As soon as you make a mistake they'll say it's because you're working too quickly and not paying enough attention.

Look on the intranet for career development opportunities and apply for them.

When I was asked to do to much, I would say, 'ok I'll add it to my list of things to do but I probably won't be able to get it done until next week / month'.

With one demanding boss, I even left my TO DO list written in large letters on my desk so he could see it.

Then you leave the office at the same time as all your other colleagues.

Theres an obvious way to walk the middle line between underperforming and overperforming - do what you are paid to do, for the time you are contracted to work, to the absolute best of your ability....no more and no less.

So if youre a part time worker, then say from 9-1 you work at a good pace and with urgency and high standards for the full part time shift, but at 1 you shut down, step away and leave for the day, and pick it all up again the next day. That way you are not selling yourself out or behaving without integrity by doing less than what you know you are capable of, but you are also not being a mug and giving away your expertise, time and effort without recompense.

part-time, junior public sector
part-time, junior public sector

they are getting full time private sector gold for part-time, junior public sector money. Stop.

Work to your wage. First off, start and finish on time, thats just basic.

Second, stop accepting work, its not professional pride, its stupid, you practice in the mirror saying "I don't have capacity for this, unless you want me to deprioritise XYZ"

Start watching Veronica videos on tictok... she has many about worth...

When you say they won’t promote you, have you actually applied for jobs at a higher grade?

otherwise yes, just slow down. You’ll get no thanks for killing yourself.

Just slow down a bit!

Also you could invest time to reflect on this How do I actually do that without feeling like I’m letting people down and experiencing a big dent in my professional pride? because this is your ingrained thinking, that's what needs to change.