With so many changes, uncertainty, and the unknown, burnout is at an all time high. Here are all your burnout questions in case it’s helpful.
- What is burnout? Although there is an official definition of burnout for medical purposes, I don’t like giving a definition, because if you’re feeling burned out or feel like you’re on your way to burned out, then you are. It’s not about comparing it to a definition of it, but more about how you feel.
If you do want an official definition, The World Health Organization says, “Burn-out is a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It is characterized by three dimensions:
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- feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion;
- increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job; and
- reduced professional efficacy.
- Is burnout real? Yes, it’s absolutely real and, according to our research, 79% of the workforce is in burnout. It’s an organization’s #1 operating expense, yet most companies have nothing in place to prevent or break through it. In fact, most people can’t identify burnout and many don’t recognize they’re in it until about a year after it’s taken effect on their lives.
- What causes burnout or where does burnout come from? Burnout comes from many contributing factors to burnout. Some of them include too much workload, a lot of changes or big changes, working too many hours, lack of sleep, poor leadership, not feeling in alignment with your job or organization’s mission, toxic or negative work culture, boredom and routines, or too much confinement.
- Who gets burnout? Everyone can get burnout, even if you love your job, what you do, or your life. Burnout has a trickle-down effect, directly impacting everything in its path. When one person has burnout, it directly impacts their work, peers, and families. Even if you’re not feeling burned out, chances are someone in your life, on your team, or in your organization is, which can impact their mood, attitude, productivity, and relationships. You may feel burnout’s impact from others without your even having it.
- What to do when you feel burned out? When you feel burned out, the first step is to acknowledge it. The next things you can do are: Identify what’s contributing to your burnout, talk to someone (a friend, peer, leader), look up resources to help you, do one thing a day to re-energize and replenish you, or take multiple small breaks a day. Once you become aware you’re in burnout, the best thing is consistency. Doing one thing every day to help yourself. Otherwise, you’ll easily go back into burnout, and it’ll be hard to get out of.
- How does burnout affect you? Burnout can affect you in many ways: mentally, emotionally, and physically. Some of the signs are: exhaustion (mental or physical), negativity or a negative attitude, disengagement, feeling like you don’t know how you’re going to do it again tomorrow, physically feeling spent, or frequent bad moods.
- How does burnout feel? How burnout feels can be different for different people. You can feel exhausted, unmotivated, not wanting to do things like go to work, participate in activities, or connect with others. You can disengage, and in extreme cases, it might be hard to get out of bed.
- Why does burnout happen? Why burnout happens is often due to experiencing long periods of stress, where you don’t find relief or you don’t see an end to the stress.
- What do you do when burnout hits? Or how do you recover from burnout? When burnout hits, the first thing to do is acknowledge that it is burnout. The more aware you are about burnout, the quicker you can implement things to help you through it. Being in denial or ignoring it will prolong its effects on you, your work, family, and team. Awareness, acknowledgement, and identification are the key factors in getting started to help with burnout.
- Can you get burnout at home or when working from home? With so many people working from home, managing kids, and endless Zoom calls, you can absolutely get burnout working from home. Similar things that can lead to burnout in the workplace, transfer over to home when you’re working there. Add in even more things that have your attention, not setting boundaries and answering late emails or staying up later to get the work done you weren’t able to do during the day, and it can be challenging not to feel burned out at home. You can also get burned out at home with tasks, responsibilities and duties.
- What are the symptoms of burnout? Burnout symptoms can vary.
According to mayoclinic.org, they mention, Ask “yourself these questions.
- Have you become cynical or critical at work?
- Do you drag yourself to work and have trouble getting started?
- Have you become irritable or impatient with co-workers, customers or clients?
- Do you lack the energy to be consistently productive?
- Do you find it hard to concentrate?
- Do you lack satisfaction from your achievements?
- Do you feel disillusioned about your job?
- Are you using food, drugs or alcohol to feel better or to simply not feel?
- Have your sleep habits changed?
- Are you troubled by unexplained headaches, stomach or bowel problems, or other physical complaints?
“If you answered yes to any of these questions, you might be experiencing job burnout.”
Whether you answer “Yes” to these questions or not, if you’re feeling burned out, then you are burned out.
- What does burnout cause or lead to? Burnout can lead to physical, mental, and emotional issues. Just for a few examples–Burnout will impact your mood and attitude, how you perform at work, how you interact with others, your ability to share your ideas and thoughts, your confidence in leadership, in conversations, or with your team. Burnout will impact how you engage with your family, whether it’s doing activities, being present, or spending quality time with them. It also affects your physical health, eating habits, and desire to move or be active.
- How does burnout affect the brain? Burnout and the brain are directly linked to each other. Here’s how burnout impacts your brain…
a. It enlarges the part of your brain that controls your emotional reactions, which increases moodiness, irritability, frustration, or impatience
b. It thins the part of your brain that’s responsible for cognitive functioning, impacting your memory and attention
c. If you are chronically burned out, your brain shows similar damage as people who have experienced trauma
d. The connectivity between different parts of the brain are impaired, which decreases creativity and problem-solving skills
- How are burnout and COVID related? Before COVID hit, burnout in the workplace was the only way burnout was really recognized. With so many people working from home, people realize you can easily get burnout at home too, especially when you’re having to manage things in different ways, adapting to change, and dealing with kids around while you’re trying to be productive. You can also have Zoomitis or Zoom burnout with all the Zoom meetings or get social media burnout.
- Where can I get burnout help? As a burnout researcher, it’s fantastic that you’re wanting to get help with burnout. There’s lot of help on this page with the provided answers. You can also reach out and let me know how I can help your group or organization prevent and extinguish burnout.
- What are burnout effects on health? As mentioned above, burnout affects a variety of areas of your health. It doesn’t just impact your physical health but also affects your mental and emotional health. From your attitude and disposition to your physical motions and movements to acknowledging and being in tune with your feelings. Burnout creates a trickle-down effect starting with one thing and then continuing to impact every area of your life, sometimes one area at a time.
- Can you get burnout from work? Work can often lead to burnout. Why? Because work can easily stress you out, especially depending on the type of work you do and how long you’ve been in the industry. The longer you’re in an industry, the more burnout hits, the longer it stays, and the harder it is to get out of. Often when you’re in an industry or job type for a long time, you tend to have a routine or certain ways you always do things, which is one of the biggest contributing factors to burnout.
- Do you get burnout at work? Yes, you can get burnout at work. Why? Because there are so many factors that can lead to continual stress at work. Think of the things that stress you out. Often times they have to do with work—your boss, the hours you work, how long you work, not enough pay, expect to do more with less, doing the same things, doing the job of multiple people, feeling like the company/boss doesn’t care, or not feeling appreciated. It’s enough to feel overwhelmed on a good day. There are variety of things that lead to burnout at work, whether you work on-site or at home.
ABOUT JESSICA:
Jessica Rector’s mission is simple: transform lives. With a BBA, MBA and BS, Jessica started, hosted, and produced her own TV talk show in Los Angeles with just an idea to help others launching her first company jessICAREctor International. Having worked with clients such as NBCUniversal, the Dallas Mavericks, and American Airlines, she uses first-hand research, experiences, and strategies, to ignite your brain, extinguish burnout, and ignite your people through her process called Blaze Your Brain.
As a talk show host, keynote speaker, and #1 best-selling author, Jessica consults with companies, trains teams, and speaks at conferences, conventions, and organizations helping you change thoughts, change your outcomes, and ignite the power within. She has shared the stage with Michelle Obama and worked with Fortune’s #2 Best Company to Work For, NBCUniversal and the Dallas Mavericks. Jessica is a Contributor for The Huffington Post and has been seen on ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX for creating change. Get Jessica’s recent book, Blaze Your Brain to Extinguish Burnout: 52 Tip to Prevent, Break Through and Eliminate Burnout at jessicarector.com. Connect with her on LinkedIn by CLICKING HERE.
