When you think of a person who is ‘burned out’ you probably get a pretty clear view of them. Showing all the typical symptoms of burnout like exhaustion, frustration, a general sense of being at the end of their rope most of the time. The person used to have passion, be excited for the day ahead but now seems like they can’t get going even on things that used to light them up. We can spot it in others a mile away but when it is happening to us we’re typically deep into it before we recognize it in ourselves. How do you handle it then? If you’re not recognizing it for yourself until you’re already there, how do you come out of it? Once you’re burnt out are you just done? Does that mean you quit and move on to something, or somewhere, else?
I found an article that suggested, if you get to the point that you are snappy with co-workers due to burn out it is likely time to leave. I would be willing to bet that for many, seeing the look on a co-worker’s face or the surprise in their voice at our tone might be the first indication to our level of burnout at work. So maybe that is true sometimes. You can’t just quit every time you’re frustrated and made a snippy comment though. You’d go through all the jobs out there. You need a few of those facepalm, did I really just say that moments under your belt. They build perseverance and grit to get through the next painful moment. Your burnout might be a training ground for something bigger.
Learn from my mistakes
Let’s use one of my own facepalm moments in the course of burnout a few years ago as an example of how not to handle this. To set the stage I was about a year into a role that I felt like I was growing out of. I had learned a ton, was doing well, and wanted a new challenge. There were a few parts of the job that used to feel shiny and exciting and now felt like lipstick on a pig and drudgery to get through. I spent a ton of time attending meetings on these new lipstick topics but there were other’s that were eat, sleep, and breathing it.
You see, we were talking about building an entirely new system to process all of our work in. This is a huge undertaking it takes years and we had had more false starts than I could count. Many of us would spend weeks working on what we were told was top priority work only to have it tossed out the moment the project stalled or went in a new direction. Then a few months later we’d get another request that felt identical but were assured was new, better, critical, and time sensitive. I was getting disillusioned by this work when I was asked to take a more inside roll. It felt like I’d be part of the game now. I was excited but with a little distrust and side eye.
Here’s the part where it all goes bad.
I went to my first project team meeting, and it was like all of the hurry up, wait, throw that away and do this, that I had experienced in the years prior was just put on auto drive in warp speed during this meeting. Every time I opened my mouth I was talked over, corrected, told no, or just straight up ignored. I’m sure you can imagine that I sat quietly and reflected that there must be a perfectly logical reason for this, big no on that. I gave dirty looks, made comments like ‘THAT IS WHAT I JUST SAID’ and ‘Are you even hearing me?’ All while opening and shutting my laptop loudly in a meeting, to my boss, in front of their peers and other departments. I am not kidding when I say I am still embarrassed about that and I think of it whenever I see those who attended.
So, what could I have done differently? Truly I could have just shut my mouth and quietly steamed, then confronted my boss, respectfully, later. Remember though, my snippy immature reaction is just a symptom of burnout. Let’s work on the root cause, not just the symptom. What could I have done to combat the burnout before I even got to the meeting where I lost my cool?
Plan for success
When you first jump into fulfilling work you think the excitement and motivation will carry you through. Recognize that you’re wrong first of all, then build in breaks and goal points to recharge and keep you going. Now in mine you could argue that I didn’t really lose momentum. I had a bad experience that was continuing through the project. However, there will be adversity in any project or any goal you set. You need to plan so you can persevere through them. Set up you’re breaks after wins so you’re able to celebrate and then breath. It doesn’t have to be long, but something to close a chapter before diving into a new one.
Don’t lose your balance
Don’t lean all the way in. Falling off the beam is one of the key reasons people do burn out because other areas of their life start to lose traction. I could write a whole lot more here but to be honest, I already did, click here to read Maintaining Balance While Chasing the Goal.
Share the love
This one will be tough at first but I’m serious, it will help. Delegate responsibilities and for those tasks that you love most and are uniquely qualified for. Train and develop others in the work. Involving others and developing them will help energize you when things are going well and provide relief (because now you’re not the only one who is qualified to do it) when you’re starting to lose motivation and momentum. You start with small things. Maybe you’re the only one who ever researches from x site, give someone the link and let them watch how you use it). If you’re the one who always handles that type of call (explain the difference and how you handle bonus points for creating an SOP), or you’re the one who communicates the status (have someone ghost draft it and you review and give feedback before sending it out).
So how did it end?
As with so many things, in avoiding burnout, preparation is the key. Trying to avoid burnout (or pull yourself back from it) once you have one foot on the threshold will be much more difficult, but not impossible. Let’s revisit my story for just a second. After that meeting I apologized for my behavior and explained my frustration. My boss agreed and explained why she handled as she did. This helped me to take a ‘break’ for perspective, it was only like a day but I could close that chapter before moving to the next. Certainly, no celebration but similar effect. Then, while maintaining my balance, I involved my own stakeholders in the meetings and decisions. That way, I was sharing the love and if I felt like my voice was being stifled in the future I could stand up. I would respectfully and professionally stand for them rather than my ego getting in the way.