How to Recognize Burnout, 8 Ways to Get Past It
If you’ve been in the workforce for a while now, chances are you’ve felt the symptoms of burnout. While not everyone will realize it, they will most likely experience some or all of the effects of burnout at some point during their career.
Truth: I was burnt out in my last job. Or was I? All the symptoms seemed to fit but everything I read about burnout didn’t seem to quite match what I was going through. I convinced myself that since the definition didn’t fit me, the advice wouldn’t either.
I had no idea how to deal with burnout, or whatever it was, but I do now. This post is what I wish I’d read when I was struggling to find my motivation again, and hopefully it will help some of you out there.
How to Recognize Burnout
Recognizing burnout is often the hardest part. It is easy (or at least seems easy at the time), to tell yourself you don’t need help or advice. It is much harder to kick the ego out of the front seat and seek help, to look at the cause of the problem. Having a high level of self awareness is important when it comes to recognizing the signs and symptoms.
So what is Burnout anyway?
Most articles that I was reading back then usually started by noting that burnout occurs when you are working extra hard, putting in long hours, and have lots of responsibilities at work. This isn’t false, but it isn’t complete either. There are countless reasons why you might be experiencing burnout and working extra hard is just one.
Thankfully there are better definitions out there. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies burnout as “a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.”
The WHO also notes 3 aspects of burnout:
Energy depletion or exhaustion;
Mental distance from, or negative feelings towards one’s job
Reduced effectiveness at work.
Notice the reason for the stress is not included, but that the symptoms all manifest in the workplace. You don’t need a specific reason to feel stressed at work. Truth is stress can come from many sources, and it can affect your work whether it originated there or not.
4 Things to look out for:
Lack of motivation to get work done
Sure you’ve got deadlines, but no amount of urgency seems to help get and keep you motivated. You know the work has to get done, but each step of the way feels arduous. The minutes pass like hours.
Lack of physical energy, simply just feeling tired.
You woke up, had your coffee, got yourself to your desk, but as soon as you arrived the batteries died. Does this sound familiar?
You start to tell yourself and others that you hate your job
This is an easy bandwagon to jump on. How many times have you met someone who honestly told you “I love my job!” Those people are unicorns right? It’s easy to start thinking that hating your job is just part of life. This is an extra sneaky sign. Stay alert on this one. If you start finding yourself living only for the weekend, you may be experiencing burnout. It is also possible of course that you actually hate the work in which case, you know it’s time to move on.
You’re falling behind and missing deadlines
This one gets missed, because you might start believing that you aren’t good at planning and organization. If you were once on top of the work, and never had a problem with deadlines before, then it’s probably not simply a case of bad planning.
8 Ways to get past Burnout
Now that you are more clear on what burnout is and how to spot it, let’s look at how to overcome it.
Get out of your Head
Overthinking leads to overwhelm and stress. Now is the time to get real and look at the facts and not at all of the thoughts you have towards them. When you think about all the tasks you need to do as a collective it’s easy to get into the mindset of feeling helpless and hopeless. “There is no way I can do it all.”
No matter how much work there is for you to do, constant thinking doesn’t do one single thing to help get that work done, and it actually slows you down.
Pay close attention to your thoughts. If every other thought is “I need to do…” then you can start to see how the mind actually adds to your stress level.
Get back to planning
It’s hard to get anything done when you can’t clearly ‘see’ all the things that actually need doing. Make a list of all the tasks you need to do and the steps involved in each one.
Get specific on the steps. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by large tasks so break them down into bite sized pieces.
Schedule your Tasks for the Day, Week, and Month
You’ve got your detailed list of tasks, great! Whether you are the old fashioned type who uses a handwritten planner or you are a big fan of project management apps, get all those tasks into the planner.
My personal fave is Asana because it allows me to write subtasks and schedule different due dates for each within a larger project. Start from your deadline and work backwards until you have each part of each task scheduled.
Put Down Your Phone + Eliminate Distractions
Only exception to this is obviously if you need your phone to do your work. But even so, be aware of how much time you are spending scrolling.
When you’re faced with something you have no motivation to do, it is all too easy to pick up that smartphone and start a scrollathon.
There are a bunch of apps out there that can help you combat excessive screen time, and while there are several that I absolutely love, I’ve often found that one of the best ways is to get my phone out of my sight.
Put it in a drawer, behind something, or in another room, get it out of your sight. Silencing it is not enough. If you can see it, the instinct to pick it up is still very strong.
This goes for other distractions as well. Be aware of how you spend your time and what activities are preventing you from doing your work. Set limits for the amount of time you allow yourself to spend on these activities. Set a timer if you have to, whatever works.
Get Some Space from your Work + Focus on Self Care
Self care comes in so many forms. One thing I’ve noticed though, is that when you’re feeling overwhelmed it is best to choose self care activities that leave you feeling better about yourself. Netflix can be self care when not overly indulged in, but can leave you feeling even more guilty for not getting your work done.
Do something that leaves you feeling refreshed. Take a walk outside, do yoga (or any other exercise if yoga is not your jam), make yourself a green juice. Anything that leaves you feeling even slightly more healthy is a good thing. It could even be just taking a shower. Feeling physically clean can have a big impact on how you feel in your mind.
Ask yourself “What would my best friend say”
It isn’t always practical to call up your best friend hoping for validation and for them to tell you all of the things you’ve accomplished. But you know if you did, there is no way she (or he) would be as hard on you as you are on yourself.
Instead of listening to that incessant ‘inner critic’, start listening to your ‘inner best friend’. Set your timer for 5-10 minutes and write down your recent accomplishments. This can be a great way of grounding yourself in reality, and realizing you are capable of more than you’re giving yourself credit for.
To learn more about the inner critic check out this two part podcast episode from Yoga Girl, Rachel Brathen’s podcast, From the Heart
Talk to Someone
It isn’t against the rules to seek advice or help from others. If the problem is actually that there is too much work and no amount of planning is going to help, it is important to realize that asking for help is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of strength. Burnout can feel pretty lonely and like it is only happening to you. Sometimes just knowing that you aren’t alone can help get you back on your feet.
Refocus on your Goals
Zoom way out and try to remember the “why” behind your work. Your “why” doesn’t have to be ground-breaking, but make sure you have one. It can be easy to lose sight of the “why” when you are feeling burnt out. Write it down and put it somewhere you’ll see it everyday. Your “why” might even be that your work is a stepping stone toward a bigger goal. Even if you aren’t in you’re dream job at the moment, write it down and remind yourself why it is that you do the work you do.
When it Might Be Time to Move On
You’ve given all the advice a try and nothing seems to help, at least not long term. If you’ve made a significant effort to get yourself back on track and motivated in your current role but it isn’t moving the needle enough, then it might be time to move on.
While there are countless reasons why you might want to leave your job, here are five signs that its time to move on:
There is no room for advancement or growth
This is a big one. If you either can’t move up to a higher role and want to, or your growth has stagnated, then it’s time to look elsewhere. You’ve already asked for new challenges or to change teams but there hasn’t been any or enough of a change to make an impact.
It is both yours and your employers’ responsibility to help move your career forward. If your employer is holding you back, it’s time to get your resume updated and look for a new job.
This job was only meant to be a stepping stone - and you got what you came for
You have a dream job in mind and where you are is not it, and can never be it. Your values perhaps don’t align with those of the company, it’s not the kind of business you ever wanted to be in long term, and/or you no longer or never did find the work fulfilling.
You took this job to gain some type of experience, you got it, but you got comfortable and stayed. You know job searching is hard so even though you’ve wanted to leave for a while, you’ve been procrastinating hardcore.
You’re comfortable
This goes along with the previous point. Comfort generally means you aren’t growing, or moving forward. By their very nature, challenges bring a certain level of discomfort, but also reward when the work is fulfilling and you’ve done it well.
If you applied the word ‘comfort’ to a relationship for instance, that would not be very flattering would it? If comfort is your go-to word for describing your job, it’s time to seek greater challenges.
You’re dealing with a toxic work environment
This comes in so many forms I cannot even begin to cover them all. Let’s say for instance there are some very negative attitudes around you constantly, and you’re walking on eggshells all the time, this is a toxic work environment. Or maybe there is a lot of workplace gossip, you never know if it’s you they’ll be talking about next. Worse yet, you could be in a more serious situation, such as being the subject of harassment.
Trust your gut here, if it feels toxic to you, it is. If your environment and people in it trigger a lot of anxiety, and it is not a situation you can change, you should get out of there.
Any situation that affects your health in a negative way is one that you should get yourself out of.
You’ve always dreamt of starting your own business
No number of attempts to renew your passion and motivation for your current role is going to make your entrepreneurial dreams fade away. If you’ve always wanted to ditch that 9-5 grind and be your own boss, you should be taking steps to leave your job.
Final Thoughts
If you’re experiencing burnout it should be your top priority to practice some self-care, and self-love. Be kind to yourself and remember that you are not alone in feeling burned out. It is more common than you might realize. Watch out for the signs and be mindful of slipping back into burnout even after you’ve recovered.
If you’re still saying, “I hate my job” after all the efforts you’ve made to get past burnout, you know it’s time to move on.
