Burnout is characterized by emotional exhaustion, cynicism and ineffectiveness in the workplace, and by chronic negative responses to stressful workplace conditions.
While not considered a mental illness, burnout can be considered a mental health issue. According to the Journal of Applied Biobehavioral Research (cited below), it is having a growing impact on workplaces, in particular in advanced economies and during times of economic downturn.
Burnout is more likely when employees:
- Expect too much of themselves.
- Never feel that the work they are doing is good enough.
- Feel inadequate or incompetent.
- Feel unappreciated for their work efforts.
- Have unreasonable demands placed upon them.
- Are in roles that are not a good job fit.
Because it can be chronic in nature, affecting both the health and performance of employees at all levels of organizations, prevention strategies are considered the most effective approach for addressing workplace burnout.
Consider workplace factors
Several of the organizational factors described in the National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace and Guarding Minds @ Work as impacting psychological health and safety in the workplace, are the same factors that may contribute to workplace burnout.
For example, employees may have greater instances of burnout when they feel that they are not making an adequate contribution to their organization (Involvement & Influence, Engagement). Employees who are making a contribution but do not feel their efforts are appreciated (Recognition & Reward, Organizational Culture) are also at greater risk of burnout. Role conflict and work overload (Psychological Competencies & Requirements, Workload Management) can both potentially contribute to burnout, as can the lack of predictable and clear expectations (Clear Leadership & Expectations).
Organizations can find ways to reduce workplace stressors that may contribute to burnout by considering implementation of a psychological health and safety management system or reviewing guides such as Towards a Psychologically Safer Workplace: An employer's guide and Check List for a Psychologically Safe Workplace. Frontline management can have significant influence over the factors that impact burnout. For this reason, individuals in management or support positions should become aware of the signs and symptoms of burnout, as well as what they can do to prevent or respond to burnout.
Recognize signs and symptoms
The majority of employees experiencing burnout will remain at work. Being aware of changes in attitudes and energy can help with early identification. Employees may not realize that they are dealing with burnout, and may instead believe that they are just struggling to keep up during stressful times. Stress, however, is usually experienced as feeling anxious and having a sense of urgency while burnout is more commonly experienced as helplessness, hopelessness, or apathy.
Employees may not be aware of the negative impacts on their performance that this can have, such as increased errors or lower productivity. Employers and co-workers may attribute the changes to a poor attitude or loss of motivation. The negative effects of burnout can increase significantly before anyone recognizes or addresses the problem and unaddressed burnout can increase the chance of developing clinical depression or other serious conditions.
Some of the signs and symptoms that an employee experiencing burnout may exhibit include:
- Reduced efficiency and energy
- Lowered levels of motivation
- Increased errors
- Fatigue
- Headaches
- Irritability
- Increased frustration
- Suspiciousness
- More time spent working with less being accomplished
Severe burnout can also result in:
- Self-medication with alcohol and other substances
- Sarcasm and negativity
- Debilitating self-doubt
Left unaddressed, burnout may result in a number of outcomes including:
- Poor physical health
- Clinical depression
- Reduced job satisfaction
- Decreased productivity
- Increased absenteeism
- Increased risk of accidents
- Poor workplace morale
- Communication breakdown
- Increased turnover
Management prevention strategies
Strategies that can help reduce workplace stressors and prevent burnout include:
- Providing clear expectations for all employees and obtaining confirmation that each employee understands those expectations.
- Making sure that employees have the necessary resources to meet expectations.
- Providing ongoing training to employees to maintain competency.
- Helping employees understand their value to the organization and their contributions to the organization's goals.
- Enforcing reasonable work hours, including, if necessary, sending employees home at the end of the workday.
- Helping assess workload for those who feel pressured to remain working beyond normal business hours. See the Productivity Review
- Setting reasonable and realistic expectations. Organizations should be clear as to which activities require the highest standards and when it is okay to lower the bar and still meet business needs.
- Encouraging social support and respect within and among work teams.
- Supporting physical activity throughout the workday.
- Strongly encouraging the taking of breaks away from the work environment.
Supporting recovery at work
Developing a Workplace Plan is a practical strategy to support an employee who may be experiencing burnout.
- As part of the plan, intentionally recognize successes and victories. This may help as employees experiencing burnout may have a significant loss of confidence in their overall competency.
- Provide opportunities for the employee to help or support others. By taking the attention away from what they are not doing well, and instead mentoring or coaching someone else, you can help reduce apathy and cynicism.
- Help organize and prioritize work into manageable and clear expectations. These changes can help rebuild energy over time and aid in the recovery from burnout.
Many of the approaches found in Accommodation Strategies may also help support employee productivity to avoid burnout.
Recovering from burnout
The following questions were asked of participants at a Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace Roundtable on Recovering from Burnout. Participants had all personally experienced burnout and were either recovering or already recovered. Their practical strategies and insights can help those at risk of, or currently experiencing burnout.
What did you do to recover?
Recovery was anywhere from 6 weeks to 2 years, with an average of 6 to 9 months. Most described recovery as a life-long journey that continues. Many people benefitted from talk therapy including group counselling and addiction counselling. Some were prescribed medication that they felt was helpful. Most made significant life changes around how they took care of themselves, how they thought, how they did their work, and how they engaged in relationships. Some of their strategies follow.
Improved self-care strategies:
- Minimize or eliminate alcohol and caffeine.
- Develop and follow a healthy eating plan.
- Take time away from work if the burnout is resulting in impairment in the ability to function or requires treatment, but then include a healthy approach to work as part of the recovery process.
- Walk in green space.
- Find a creative outlet such as painting.
Change the way you think and live:
- Focus daily on your accomplishments.
- Avoid criticizing yourself unnecessarily.
- Give yourself a gift on your birthday or other holiday event.
- Create a space in your home that feels serene and peaceful to you.
- Keep your environment organized and tidy.
- Write daily in a gratitude journal to help refocus your mind on those things that are positive in your life.
- Post a list of what is valued, enjoyable or precious in your life on your fridge or somewhere you will see it daily.
- Nurture your spirit using quiet reflection, meditation, or prayer..
Change how you think about and do work:
- Stop multi-tasking – focus on one thing at a time.
- Work at a reasonable, steady pace.
- Break down seemingly overwhelming tasks and projects into smaller achievable parts.
- Recognize and celebrate your small steps along the way.
- Tell your manager you want to be successful at your job and ask them how they would measure that.
- Take regular assigned breaks.
- Resist working unnecessary overtime.
- Even if you must provide contact information in case of emergency, try as much as possible to stay disconnected from work during vacation time.
Improve relationships:
- Set boundaries for yourself in terms of what you will and will not do – be okay with saying no.
- Avoid toxic people and situations.
- Learn to be comfortable with saying, “ I don’t know” if you don’t know.
- Shut out media that includes disturbing images and messages.
- Became more involved and connected with friends, family or the community.
What do you do differently now in order to stay well?
Everyone in the Roundtable discussion had a plan to stay well which was an extension of the way they recovered in the first place. Many added strategies to detect early signs of stress or deterioration of mental health. As soon as they recognized the potential for burnout, they would begin to take preventive action.
Elements of a self-care plan to prevent burnout:
- Develop a list of self-care strategies, which could include journaling, meditation, massage, yoga, reading, music, mindfulness, stretching, tai chi, dancing, breath techniques, etc.
- Each week assess where you are at in following through on the strategies you have chosen.
- Tweak your list as needed for the upcoming week.
- Determine your priorities for the week, month and year – make them reasonable – write them down and review them regularly to keep yourself focused on what matters to you.
- Use the principles of mindfulness, scanning your body for areas of tension at least once a week – address the areas of tension by considering the source and if necessary, seeking support or treatment.
- Take time to become centered and grounded through quiet reflection, prayer or meditation – remind yourself that “the silence within me is not at war with chaos around me.”
Detect early signs of deteriorating health and take action:
- List what burnout looks like for you (anger, frustration, exhaustion, etc.) so you can identify it early and take steps to prevent a downward spiral.
- If you are feeling overwhelmed ask for help, delegate tasks or reset priorities.
- Connect with people that care about you.
- Enlist support of people you trust.
- Learn to verbalize your feelings to prevent future episodes of burnout.
- Minimize or eliminate exposure to negative and toxic people in your life.
- Attend relevant seminars and talks on mental health.
From: workplacestrategiesformentalhealth.com
