Some symptoms of burnout
- Feelings of dread when you think about work
- Having trouble making decisions
- Working longer hours but getting less done
- Becoming more easily distracted
- Becoming more cynical about your industry and life in general
- Physical tension – Back and neck pain, headaches, tooth grinding
How to deal with burnout in your staff
- Encourage side-projects and upskilling: Even if your employees are passionate about their work, that passion can diminish under constant grind. Allowing them to work on something different – either their own side-project, or on becoming skilled in a different aspect of their job – can help prevent burnout.
- Time with the kids: This is particularly important for men, who are expected to do more of the work outside the home. A father who feels that he’s missing important moments in his kids’ lives because he’s always at work is going to become rapidly disenchanted. Make sure your employees have adequate family time, particularly dads with new babies.
- Protect employee time off: If your employee is taking a holiday, make sure you encourage them not to do any work while they’re away. That includes answering emails, fielding questions, or taking calls. Step in as the boss and tell your employee to properly relax so when they return they’re at full speed.
- Consult staff when drawing up shift rosters: Plenty of businesses are open seven days a week. But it can be hard for employees to always be working when it feels like everyone else is having fun. Consulting staff and always trying to be fair when creating rosters can help your employees feel more empowered. And you never know – you may find someone who prefers to have their “weekend” on a Thursday.
Ways of dealing with burnout in yourself
- Focus on achievements rather than tasks: Your to-do list is a mile long and even after a long day you feel like you’ve done nothing. Instead of structuring that list as tasks to be done, try to put them in the context of steps towards a goal. That way you can look at what you’ve done and see how they’re building to achieving their goals.
- Learn to delegate: Taking on too much is a sure-fire way of burning out. Learning to delegate is thus an important skill. Whether that’s bringing in someone else or trusting more of your job to your existing employees, letting go a bit will help your mind stay fresh.
- Stop “multitasking”: What people tend to think of as multitasking is actually just rapidly switching between tasks – and human brains aren’t very good at it. By trying to multitask you actually get less work done, it’s of a worse quality, and your brain gets stressed out doing it. Instead focus on doing one thing before moving on to another.
- Take some time off: As above, taking a few days completely off work can help you prevent burnout. But it’s not enough to just not be at work. You have to get your mind out of your workplace too. If you spend your holiday stressed about the work you’re not doing, you haven’t actually taken a break.
- Get some sleep: Being sleep-deprived is a constant state for some business-owners, and it’s not good. Getting enough sleep will lift your mood, help your decision-making, and make you less stressed.
Address the real cause of your burnout
It can seem pretty easy to identify why you’re feeling burnt-out. You’re working too hard for too long. But while that might seem to be the cause, there’s usually something deeper going on. People who define themselves by their job and their monetary success are more likely to burn out, and when they do it hits them right in the self-image. Being in a toxic workplace can also cause burnout – so while you may love what you do, you’re struggling with your work environment. And particularly for people who have made their passion their job – your passions will change over time. Perhaps what you’re feeling isn’t temporary, rather a signal that you need to change your career.