All the ways burnout sucks

If you're still here with me searching for the #burnoutofframp, welcome my tired friend. Before we explore how to avoid or recover from burnout, we first need to really understand what burnout is and how it impacts us.

Lost energy. Lost enthusiasm. Lost confidence.

Burnout is not a medical condition, but a occupational phenomenon that impacts our lives. And, it's more than just stress. When we experience exhaustion, cynicism, and professional inefficacy, that's when we know we're deep in burnout. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) describes burnout as lost energy, enthusiasm, and confidence.

When we feel burned out, it can be hard to step back and assess where the burnout is coming from and all the ways it is manifesting in our personal and professional lives. When we're in the thick of it, it all feels dark and dull and hopeless.

It is hard to find a way out when we're feeling depleted, disconnected, and doubtful.

So how does burnout suck? Let us count the ways.

1. It impacts our personal lives and relationships

• 83% of professionals say burnout negatively impacts their personal lives
• 55% of Americans don't use all of our vacation time
• 42% worry about what they're not getting done while taking time off

When your well is empty, it's empty. Fatigue doesn't discriminate between your work and home responsibilities. On top of that, most of us don't feel like we can truly disconnect. So we let our vacation days go stale (or bring our laptops with us) and continue the cycle of exhaustion. We also divide our attention away from the important things in life. Our families feel it when they aren't the priority, when your mind is elsewhere, and it takes a toll.

"By the time I get home, I have literally nothing left to give."

Resilience is the ability to respond, rather than react, to challenging events. When we experience burnout, our resiliency is low. We're less likely to bounce than crack when the toddler screeches for the iPad instead of take a single bite of food. Or when our partner suggests dinner is a bit too spicy. Or you discover the poop bag is empty while giving the dog one last potty break at 10pm and he's taken a massive dump one block from your house.

2. It's related to depression and anxiety

In 2021, 76% of workers said their job contributed to a mental health challenge:

• 56% burnout
• 46% depression
• 40% anxiety

80% said their mental health symptoms lasted at least one month. 36% said they lasted five months to a full year.

Burnout is its own thing. And, it often coexists with both depression and anxiety. Researchers have debated whether burnout is just depression disguised in a suit. And while they do share similarities, they are different phenomena. Burnout-depression looks like loss of interest in your projects, impaired concentration on work tasks, and often feeling physically exhausted on the job.

"Sometimes I fantasize about being hit by a medium-sized bus so I can rest for a few weeks."

Burnout is the result of chronic workplace stress, and the link between stress and anxiety is commonly-understood. Burnout-anxiety looks like excessive working about work (particularly when you should be resting), emotional exhaustion, and prioritizing work above personal needs.

3. It affects our brain function

Burnout literally makes us dumber. Researchers have discovered that burnout impacts our cognition and memory. Specifically, people who experience burnout report a decline in executive function, attention, and memory. On average, workers report operating at just 72% of their full capacity when considering their mental health.

"I can't keep up lately. I'm forgetting important things that are usually so easy."

When we're burned out, our brains need to work harder to accomplish the same tasks we used to find second-nature, particularly those requiring our attention. Writing those monthly reports, keeping track of expenses, managing program data and updates--all become painfully more difficult--when you remember them at all.

What's scary about this cognitive decline, it tends to persist for three years after diagnosis. The impact of burnout is long-lasting.

4. It impacts our career progression

Easy to see how burnout can set our careers back. When you're exhausted, disconnected, doubting your accomplishments, and your brain isn't firing on all cylinders, moving up the corporate ladder becomes much more difficult. It's also not something you're bothering to put effort toward. It's no wonder that 91% of professionals say unmanageable stress and frustration impacts their quality of their work.

"I'm so done. I checked out and at this point, I'm just collecting a paycheck until I can escape. I'm past burnout. I'm all burned up."

Mired in burnout, you're not building relationships with new sponsors. Not delivering amazing products sparked by inspired creativity. Not putting in extra effort to impress your boss. Not impressing your leaders with your wit, commitment, and ingenuity.

All of these things pump the breaks on the type of connections and achievements that lead to promotions, awards, and other opportunities.

Questions to ask yourself if you suspect burnout

Now that we've thoroughly explored how burnout feels, should you like to confirm if you are truly afflicted, there are a couple of tools to consider. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) assesses the three components of burnout: exhaustion, cynicism, and accomplishment. Here are six questions you can ask yourself (for free) right now:

In the last two weeks, how often have you...

1. Felt too tired to get up in the morning, or to work through a full day?
2. Felt emotionally drained from work?
3. Felt enthusiastic about your work?
4. Become more callous toward people?
5. Felt like you have accomplished worthwhile things?
6. Felt capable of succeeding?

If you answered to yourself, "a few times a week" or "everyday" to these six questions--then yes, you do likely fit the burnout profile of exhaustion, cynicism, and feelings of failure. Another tool to assess burnout is the Areas of Workplace Survey (AWS) which assesses your burnout in six workplace areas (workload, control, reward, community, fairness, and values).

By now, you likely know if you are indeed experiencing burnout. Next week, we'll explore where the burnout is coming from and dig into those six areas of work culture that breed burnout.

#burnout #mentalhealth #workload #makeworksuckless #employeeexperience #worklifeintegration

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