A look at workplace burnout – what it is, how to recognize if you might be experiencing burnout and what to do about it.
As we slowly begin to return to normality, some workplaces ask their teams to head back to a centralized hub. Working in an office was something we wouldn’t have given a second thought to a few years ago, however things are a little different nowadays with remote working and hybrid working becoming more commonplace and preferred by many.
A “return to work” as you once knew it has the potential to trigger a range of doubts or concerns, including experiencing burnout – particularly for individuals who adapted to working from the comfort of their own home.
What is burnout?
Burnout has been used more commonly particularly in recent years, with the World Health Organization referring to it as an occupational phenomenon. Burnout is when you experience mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion, and it can have a significant impact on your focus, performance, and enjoyment of work.
Some of the common causes of workplace burnout can be recognized as:
- Excessive or unmanageable workloads
- A lack of clarity in your role or position
- Being treated harshly or unfairly
- Unreasonable deadlines
- Working exceedingly long hours
- Lack of direction from a manager or authority figure
If you regularly experience any of these factors at work, you may notice you’ve been feeling anxious, overwhelmed, frustrated or even on the verge of leaving your job. If that’s the case, here are a few steps to help you prevent burnout from escalating.
Three ways to prevent workplace burnout
A lot of workplaces are taking burnout and employee well-being more seriously than ever before. One report from the CIPD highlights that 75% of senior leaders in 2021 considered workplace burnout to be a major factor for their team-up from 61% at the end of 2020.
If you feel that something needs to change at your workplace to prioritize employee well-being and as such, help you excel in your role, here are some considerations:
- TALK TO YOUR MANAGERS
Communication at work is key. If you aren’t feeling completely comfortable returning to the office, try to speak to your team leader about what measures are in place to support staff. It might feel worrying to reach out and ask for help depending on your relationship with your manager, however it’s important to let them know how you’re feeling as they have a legal duty of care to support you.
Arrange some time to discuss capacity management and explore what steps they can take to make the day-to-day of your role easier; be open and honest. Remember they’re only human, and will have been in your position before at some point earlier in their career.
- FIND TIME TO DO WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY
When working from home, it may feel a bit easier to find time to do things you feel passionate about outside of work. With a large chunk of your day likely to be spent in the office, you’ll now need to plan specific times to dedicate to your passions and hobbies.
Your downtime makes a hard day’s work worth it, so it’s important to allow yourself time to unwind by doing something that brings you joy. Whether it’s chunks of 5-10 minutes or longer where you can, dedicating time to your passions makes a significant difference to your sense of well-being.
- SET LIMITS AND BOUNDARIES
Feeling overloaded with work is one of the main contributors to a challenging working environment. With no clear end in sight, it can leave you feeling overwhelmed, frustrated, and anxious. According to CIPD, around 17.9 million working days were lost to stress, anxiety or depression in 2019/20 – and there are ways to reduce this issue from escalating.
Setting both interpersonal and personal boundaries is one of the most effective ways to stay on top of your stress levels. Whether it’s making time for wellness, prioritizing breaks in your working day, work out a daily routine that suits you and honors the boundaries that you know will help to reduce stress levels. Communicating this with those in your team can also be an empowering way to encourage others to do the same, in turn, role-modeling healthy habits that ultimately boost productivity and well-being.
It starts with one step
Depending on how supportive you feel your workplace culture is, it can feel challenging to consider implementing the above steps – just remember that it starts with one step. Considering the start of your workday, managing stress levels throughout the day, and switching off after work can make a big difference to your experience in and out of work moving forward, and help to balance out any anxieties you may have about returning to the office.
