Tag: how to deal with burnout

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Job burnout is a special type of work-related stress.

It’s a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that also involves a sense of fatigue and lack of motivation.

Whatever the cause, job burnout can affect your physical and mental health. It’s important to consider how to know if you’ve got job burnout and ultimately, what you can do about it.

If I’m being honest with you, I was burnt out from my job 1.5 years ago.

Seriously exhausted, stressed, could barely get out of bed.

The LAST thing I ever wanted to do was go to work. In fact, the thought of work made me sick.

What was the cause of my burnout? Being understaffed at work and being worked to the bone. There was 2 people in my department for 5 people worth of work.

It was crazy, and I was turning crazy.

Here are some job burnout symptoms (that I know all too well):
-Cynical or overly critical at work
-Dragging yourself there and having a tough time getting started
-Being impatient or irritated with coworkers
-Finding it hard to concentrate
-Waking up in the middle of the night thinking of work
-Having a tough time getting to sleep from work items
-Using alcohol or other drugs to cope
-Feeling a lack of care towards work
-Feeling a low sense of satisfaction towards work

… and ultimately, feeling like you want to hand in your resignation every second day!!!

Here are some possible causes of job burnout:
-No job description or clear expectations
-Dysfunctional culture
-Lack of strong leadership
-Lack of work life balance (hello constant long hours)
-Extreme workload, unrealistic expectations
-Vacation/time-off guilt

Do any of these speak to you?

I hope not, but burnout DOES happen!

What I ended up doing to help my burnout was immediately take 3 weeks off work.

I was honest with my manager that I was feeling the symptoms of burnout and really needed to go take care of myself.

So, what CAN you do to relieve job burnout?
-Discuss your symptoms and concerns with your manager.
Be honest! Sometimes, a real conversation explaining how you’re feeling can open their eyes and kick in reality. It can be a major white flag… a sign that you need help. You CAN’T keep going the way you’ve been going and that something needs to change.

-Seek support. Talk to a counsellor, a friend you trust, parent or career coach. They may be able to provide coping mechanisms.

-Take the time off you need. I’m not taking 1 day. Honestly? Probably not even 2. True burnout may require 1-4+ weeks off to relieve. Make sure you are using your much needed time off in a way that will help you heal and recover.

-Get quality sleep and exercise time in. This may seem obvious but 8 hours per day of sleep, and 30 minutes (minimum) per day of exercise will do wonders. This is what I aim for everyday.

-Practice mindfulness. My boyfriend is a Vancouver Firefighter and let me tell you… he sees some crazy things as I’m sure you can imagine. He practices mindfulness REGULARLY! Even 3 minutes per day makes a world of a difference for him. He’s been teaching me the mindfulness ropes and I can really say it works. You focus on your breathing and being aware of what you’re feeling + sensing in the moment. There’s no doubt that you feel much more calm after mindfulness. I’m no pro at it just yet… but truly, try it for yourself.

Remember, your health = your wealth.

Take care of yourself.

Every, single, day.

-Courtney

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It’s okay to admit, “I can’t take this anymore….this is enough.”

 

If you are feeling this way, you may be experiencing career burnout.

 

What is career burnout? By definition, burnout is a reaction to prolonged or chronic job stress and is characterized by three main dimensions: exhaustion, cynicism (less identification with the job), and feelings of reduced professional ability.

 

Some symptoms of burnout can feel like:
-Viewing your job as increasingly stressful and frustrating.
-Increased impatience, irritability and annoyance.
-Difficulty concentrating and a lack of creativity.
-Increased headaches, migraines, muscle aches.
-Unable to keep up with work demands, feeling of wanting to give up.

 

I hear a lot of women feeling extremely guilty admitting that they are exhausted, burnt out and really don’t want this insane ‘work hard today, work harder tomorrow, no time for play’ life.

 

Now that we know what burnout is and often feels like, I want to speak some encouraging words to you:

 

⭐️IT’S OK TO TAKE A BREAK AND NOT WANT TO SELL YOUR SOUL FOR YOUR JOB.

 

It doesn’t make you any less of a professional.
Any less accomplished.
Any less of a business person.

 

It means that you are taking a stand on your mental health and saying enough is enough.

 

– Stop guilting yourself.
– Stop shaming other people if they need a break.
– We all want to enjoy our life outside of work too.

 

Congrats, you’re a human that’s ALIVE!

 

Have you felt major pressure and guilt when admitting you just simply need a break?

 

Now, here are some ways we can cope with career burnout:

 

1. Recognize the potential signs and signals (above) and be honest with yourself.
   Are you showing up in the best way you can or are you truly burnt out? Ask the people around you like coworkers you trust, friends or family to see if they have been noticing a change in your mood or tone of voice. Sometimes we can’t see how we are truly coming off so we need to get a pulse check from the people around us.
2. Take. A. BREAK!
   I mean this. The best way to deal with career burnout is to simply tune off, rest and recharge. I know we often feel guilty about taking time to ourselves or it can be viewed as not committed in the corporate world, but this is simply necessary. You need to use that paid (or unpaid) time off to recharge or else things will only get worse. Take a week! or 2 weeks! A month? Even better! Often we need more than a day off to truly reset ourselves and come back stronger than ever. You owe it to yourself.
3. Get back to things that bring you JOY.
   This may seem simple, but it’s extremely effective. What makes your soul truly happy? Working out? Hiking? Biking? Playing sports? Yoga? Date nights with your partner? Make a list of the top 10 activities that make you forget about the world. Then, do those things daily for the next 1 month! You will feel alive and reenergized again.
4. Eat healthy and exercise daily.
   When we are under extreme prolonged stress, our clean eating habits tend to spiral downwards. Next thing you know, we are eating granola bars, chips and cereal all day long because they are quick and easy. However, you and I both know this kind of food is not nutritional and does not fuel our body well. Same goes for exercising. We need to get that 30 minutes in per day! Make time to go for a walk, run, stretch, yoga or whatever make you sweat. This is so key to overcoming burnout and endorphins provide a lot of remedy to stress.

 

I hope this helps! Reach out if you need any help dealing with career burnout. I am on your team.

 

Courtney