What is burnout

The term “burnout” is one we have all likely come across, both within the workplace and in our personal lives. However, what do we mean when we say we are feeling burnt out? And how do we know that we are, in fact, experiencing burnout?

Burnout is defined as a state of complete mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion, often resulting from exposure to prolonged stress. While burnout, in part, can result from chronic stress, burnout and stress are two different things.

Stress is our body’s response to any perceived pressure or demand. When we experience stress, our body becomes flooded with stress hormones, triggering our fight or flight response.

Stress can be helpful at times. It can assist us when under pressure to meet goals and demands, such as deadlines. However, if we are experiencing chronic or ongoing stress that is impacting our ability to function, this might be more indicative of burnout.

Burnout has three main characteristics that differentiate it from stress, namely:

• Overwhelming exhaustion and fatigue;
• Increased feelings of negativity, detachment, and cynicism about your job/task;
• Decreased productivity and professional efficacy.

Symptoms of burnout

Recognising the signs of burnout can assist us in taking action to manage it. Those feeling burnt out might experience:

• Fatigue and exhaustion, impacting their ability to function and do basic tasks
• Difficulties focusing and concentrating
• A lack of motivation around work
• A sense of numbness or emptiness
• Inability to cope with frustrations and issues
• Withdrawals from family and friends
• Physical impacts, such as headaches, stomach issues, and fluctuations in appetite and sleep
• Increased cynicism, particularly around work
• A lack of satisfaction from achievements
• Reduced performance and productivity.

When we look at these symptoms, it is understandable that people often describe burnout as a sense of having nothing left to give to work, others, and ourselves.

Factors that Contribute to Burnout

Burnout is often not caused by any one thing but rather it results from a combination of personal and organisational factors. Understanding the factors that contribute to burnout can help individuals and organisations work towards solutions to mitigate them.

Inadequate Reward and Recognition

If our efforts are not being acknowledged (whether that be through pay or recognition of the work that we do), people can start to feel undervalued and disconnected from the organisation’s mission, which can increase feelings of burnout.

Lack of Social Connections

Poor work relationships and feelings of isolation can contribute towards stress and burnout.

Values Misalignment

If your values do not align with the organisation, your motivation and investment levels can be impacted. This can also negatively impact job satisfaction, which can affect the likelihood of burnout.

Workload and work/Life Balance

Working too many hours is a significant cause of burnout. Excessive hours can lead to fatigue, increased stress and anxiety, and sleep concerns. It also disrupts the amount of time you can place into wellbeing practices and activities, such as self-care and relationships.

Personality Factors

People with traits such as neuroticism (over-worry) and conscientiousness, particularly if there is a level of perfectionism associated with this, can be more susceptible to burnout.

Nature of the Role

Certain professions experience higher rates of burnout than others, including healthcare and helping professions, due to both the nature of these roles and the types of personalities they attract.

Unclear & Unrealistic Job Expectations

If you are unclear on what is expected of you in your role or what is expected of you is unrealistic, this can also contribute to burnout.

Perceived Lack of Fairness

Treatment seen as an unfair (such as favouritism, or poor treatment from a colleague or manager) can also add to feelings of burnout.

Perceived Lack of Autonomy and Control

Feeling like you lack influence and control in your work, particularly around decisions that impact upon your role – such as your work schedule or the type of work – can be demotivating and contribute to burnout.

Address and Manage Burnout

Addressing burnout, given how multifaceted the causes are, is not necessarily simple. Rather, it is about looking at what you can do and taking steps to ensure you have some control over it to mitigate the sources and symptoms of burnout.

Firstly, accept what is realistic to achieve in a day. This may involve speaking with your manager to review your workload, reassign work tasks, and discuss realistic expectations. It may also help to review commitments both at work and home and see if there are things you can try to say no to.

Try to finish work on time as much as possible (or at the very least put some boundaries around start and finish times). Similarly, leave your work at work – avoid checking your work phone or computer outside of your set hours.

Once you finish work, focus on activities that assist you to wind down and prepare you for sleep. Prioritise self-care and stress management activities, by putting time away for things that help you look after yourself and reduce stress. This can be anything, from physical exercise, mindfulness, getting a massage, or even spending time in nature.

Connecting with our social supports can significantly benefit our wellbeing. At work, this might be as simple as asking your colleagues how their day is going or letting a colleague know you appreciated the work they completed.

It may also help to escalate concerns to a manager (or an appropriate person within your organisation) to discuss what you think might be contributing to your burnout and explore potential solutions.

Sometimes when we are burnt out, it can be difficult to see solutions and our options. This is when speaking to friends and family, or even accessing your EAP (Employee Assistance Program) may be beneficial.

Burnout is a complex concern that requires comprehensive and multifaceted solutions to manage and address it. Recovering from burnout can be an extensive process, but by understanding the symptoms and factors, and making a choice to address these, you have already taken the first step.