How to Avoid Burnout

 

Is your stress level rising to the point you’re worried you might burn out? I’m glad you’re here and looking for help. That’s a great start.

Let’s get serious about how to avoid burnout.

What is Burnout?

First, let’s talk about what burnout is. I’m going to get all nerdy and quote the WHO: It’s the syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It’s when you feel you’re consistently unable to meet the demands of the situation.

Burnout has three components:

first, exhaustion, being physically depleted and without the energy to go on;second, cynicism and depersonalization, when you feel disconnected from your work and your colleagues, and you struggle to care;third, inefficacy: that just means when you feel incompetent and like you can’t do anything right.

We often use the term stress and burnout synonymously, but stress is not the same as burnout. The symptoms of stress are actually the opposite. When we’re feeling stress, we tend to lean in versus burn out.

But stress and burnout are closely related.

When you fail to manage stress over the long term, it puts you at a high risk of burnout, and you would not be alone. Large-scale surveys have shown that many people are at risk. In one study, 62% of people reported high levels of stress, loss of control, and extreme fatigue. Those are the big risk factors for burnout.

How to Fight Stress

If you’re experiencing high levels of stress, take action before it’s too late. How?

Listen to Your Body

One, listen to your body. Pay attention to your stress and trust what your body’s telling you. Stop lying to yourself that it’s fine or I’ll be okay, or I have no choice but to work this hard. Your body is full of warning systems and check-engine lights flashing. If your heart’s often racing, you’re sleep-disrupted or your digestive system is on the fritz, don’t ignore them.

Triage Your Workload

Two, prioritize. Audit your workload and priorities and triage what has to get done versus what would be nice to get done. While you’re at it, identify a few things that don’t need to get done at all. Why was I even doing that in the first place? Do what’s most important first, so when you need to take a break, you’ve already accomplished the most critical things.

Set Your Boundaries

Three, set boundaries. Put strict limits on how much you work. Getting serious about only working 40 hours a week now might protect you from having to drop down to even fewer hours if you do burn out.

Manage Your Stress

Four, manage your stress. You probably know what works to manage your stress. There’s great evidence that physical activity makes a huge difference in stress levels. Research says you get bonus points if your physical activity is near trees. I don’t know if you have trees near you, but if they are there, find them and walk amongst them.

And the only thing better for calming you down is if you can see water. Really, watching water lowers your blood pressure. Wow, your stress-reduction strategy might also include reading or doing a hobby like model ship building, crocheting, or meditation. You know what works for you. You’re probably just not doing enough of it. Start now. It’s important.

Strengthen Your Connections

As I mentioned, a big part of burnout is depersonalization and disconnection from others. You need to work hard to prevent that. If possible, find ways to strengthen the connections with your colleagues. Is there someone you like who you can grab coffee with occasionally? Would arriving a few minutes early to a meeting give you a chance for some casual small talk?

If your team can’t provide that kind of human connection, find it elsewhere. Try asking people what they’re most excited about. You’ll see the chance to talk about their passions gives them a little hit of dopamine, and their good mood is likely to spread to you.

Limit Your Exposure to Stress

Also, limit your exposure to stressful situations. There’s no point putting so much effort into charging your batteries if you’re just going to let other activities deplete them. Open your calendar and decide what’s in there that will do more harm than good. What’s going to be the straw to break the camel’s back this week? How can you delete, delay, or distribute it to someone else? At least scale it back to make it less aversive.

And that might not just be at work. Are there activities or people outside of work you need to limit your exposure to as well? I get it. I remember a particularly stressful time in my life; my kids were teenagers, I had a new book out, and way more demands on my time than normal. I wasn’t coping. I was moody and exhausted. Three months later, COVID came along and sat me down on my butt. I’m not sure I would’ve stopped without it.

Now I know better. I’m proactive about managing the stress because I never want to teeter on the edge of burnout again. I hope you don’t either!

More On This

Use Stress to Your Advantage

Practical Advice About How to Prioritize Your Workload

Are You Taking Steps to Prevent Burnout?

Video: How to Boost Your Energy Levels

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