5 Ways to Prevent Burnout

I’m sure by now many of us have heard of the term “work-life balance.” I’m also sure that many of us have experienced how difficult it can be to achieve this elusive balance in our own lives. Whether you’re still working from home, have been transitioning back to into working in person, or have never left your in person job chances are high that you have experienced some level of burnout over the course of the pandemic. It seems that because of the decreased connection with others, dissolution of work-life boundaries, and higher demand in our jobs - symptoms of burnout affected more and more people. So what actually is burnout? And how can we prevent it and get closer to striking an effective work-life balance? Lets get into it.

What is burnout?

Burnout is an experience of exhaustion, depersonalization, and feelings of ineffectiveness that arises from a prolonged imbalance of chronic stress and coping resources. In other words, when there is not enough recovery during prolonged stress, it can lead to feelings of physical and emotional exhaustion, detachment, and a decreased sense of accomplishment - not only in work, but also personal life. This can show up as dreading going to work, feeling withdrawn from colleagues/friends, loss of enjoyment in life, feelings of helplessness to change your situation, pessimism, changes in sleep patterns, increased anger, stress, anxiety, and/or sadness, and general fatigue.

Burnout sets in gradually as a result of that chronic stress and depletion of our resources that allow us to recover and cope. It might show up slowly at first and only affect you in your workplace, but it can slowly creep into your personal life as time goes on. It can be so important to know the warning signs of what burnout looks like for you so that you can nip it in the bud during the early stages of development.

5 Ways to Prevent Burnout

Now that we know that burnout is a sneaky type of experience that can show up and affect our ability to thrive both in the workplace and our personal life, lets explore how we can prevent it or stop it in it’s tracks when we recognize it’s developing.

1. Physical Self-Care

   Since burnout can arise from a depletion of our personal resources, making sure we have a lot of these resources stored up is crucial. Getting enough restful sleep, eating nourishing and regular meals, and finding ways to move our body all contribute to the build up of personal resources that can prevent the exhaustion that comes with burnout. When we aren’t feeling exhausted, we have more energy to make choices that help us sustain our well-being.

   *Consult your medical doctor before beginning an exercise routine.

2. Set Work Boundaries

   We want to protect those resources we have worked hard to cultivate in strategy #1! This means setting a boundary to leave work at work, physically and mentally. If you’re working from home, you may have found this more difficult since you may be steps from your work at any given moment. Maybe at the end of the work day you shut your computer and put it out of your sight. Maybe you take a walk around the block to signify the end of your work day with a “commute” home. If you’re coming back home from work, maybe you allow yourself to think about work during your commute home, but once you step foot into your home you close the door on work for the time being. Creating a distinct work-time and home time can help decrease any mental or physical energy you’re expending outside of work hours.

3. Set Home Boundaries

   The same goes for protecting those resources, even at home! Sometimes the way we approach our responsibilities at home can worsen the burnout that is developing. If we have put pressure on ourselves to come home from work and cook dinner, do the dishes, do laundry, go grocery shopping, etc. etc. - chances are we’ll get exhausted even attempting to get half of that done. To save those energy reserves, you’ll have to get realistic about what you can accomplish at home without depleting yourself.

4. Learning to say No

   An extension of boundary setting at work and home is saying no to things that you know will exhaust you. This is an especially important one for those with high-achieving personality types who may try to do everything at work and at home. If your boss asks you to do something extra and your automatic impulse is to say yes- check in with yourself to see if taking on extra will negatively affect what you already have on your plate. This might also apply in your personal life. If you know it’s about to get busy at work (or in your personal life) and a friend invites you to a party, do the same check in - will that level of socializing exhaust too many personal resources and leave you empty during that upcoming busy time?

5. Learning to Say Yes

   At this point you might be thinking “what the heck, Tina? You just told us to say no?” I know, and I swear it’ll make sense! 2 of the 3 biggest characteristics of burnout are detachment/cynicism and a decrease in feelings of accomplishment. One of the ways that we can prevent those two big symptoms from occurring is to say yes to things that energize us. Whether it’s saying yes to something fun like getting lunch with a friend or saying yes to doing more of a work task that you are highly efficient with, both can serve to boost your emotional energy and confidence. Doing more of the right type of activity or task can increase those personal resources by reconnecting us with our authentic life and creating a sense of optimism and accomplishment across the board.

If you’re experiencing the warning signs of burnout, are having trouble striking a work-life balance, or find yourself feeling thoroughly burnt out at work and home reach out and set up a free consultation! We can work together to decrease the burnout that may be present in your life.

Tina Leboffe, MA, LPC, NCC, AAC

*Please note that this blog is for your information only and does not constitute clinical advice or establish a client-counselor relationship.