The Burnout Epidemic: Why are so many young people feeling fatigued?

To say the last four years have been hectic would be an understatement.

From a pandemic to political conflict to economic uncertainties, it feels like it’s hard to catch a break.

The more the world wants from us, the more stress and frustration enters our work and personal lives.

But can we really say it’s worse now than it was 30 years ago? Should the younger generation pull themselves up by their bootstraps or is there something else going on here?

Who is burnout affecting most?

As of 2021, 77% of people have experienced some form of burnout at their current workplace with rates rising the highest among Gen Z and Millennials .?

91% of those people say it’s due to an unmanageable amount of stress or frustration affecting their workload.

It would be easy for us to scorn the younger generation for not dealing with what we perceived as a natural result of hard work. But I don’t believe workload alone is the issue.

We live in a digital age where daily distractions are unavoidable. The lines between home and the office are becoming blurred. This leads to people having to strike a balance between their personal and professional life.

67% of remote workers feel they are pressured to always be available with 60% being afraid they may lose their job if they don’t. This is a far cry from the traditional 40 work-week we were promised in decades gone by. In today's world, it’s hard to find the off-switch.

Is it unreasonable to assume that a young workforce who are constantly on-call and pushing through economic uncertainty would feel trapped by their position, pressed too thin, or frustrated?

What can we do about it

Burnout is not a generational issue, it’s a human issue.

Major symptoms of burnout include helplessness, frustration, and feeling unheard.

We forget why we are doing the work in the first place; why we started, and where we’re going. This leaves us feeling trapped.

This is especially dangerous for leaders as it is our job to be the provider of vision and alignment for others.?

To prevent burnout, we must become owners of our attention and direct it in a meaningful and fulfilling way on both a personal and professional level. We must find fulfilment in the work we do day-to-day and feel like our work contributes to the greater whole.

“Those who have a why, can bear almost any how”.

• Victor Frankl

Take a step back, look at the things you are doing day-to-day, and decide what is meaningful to you and what is not:

• What problems are you solving?
• How are you contributing to that solution?
• How can you prevent outside influences from distracting you?

We should plan regular self-reflection in our personal lives and protect our directed attention towards the things we care about most above all else. If we don’t, we risk being consumed by the needs and wants of others. This can only lead to burnout.

A good way to measure this is through Dr. Alan Watkins the ‘Complete’ app. You can try it here to see where you're at and maybe give yourself a place to start when it comes to finding balance

The way forward

In practice, the world makes this a very difficult thing to do, especially in 2023.

Notifications, requests, last-minute schedule changes…

If we don’t take active steps to protect our attention with everything we have and risk saying “no” in pursuit of our purpose, we let other people dictate the direction of our lives and burnout will eventually ensue.

To use @Alan Watkin’s analogy, we must develop our own purpose:

Discovering your own personal purpose takes time, effort and dedication. However, once you have discovered it you then need to work with it to bring it alive in your life. Knowing your purpose helps you find the guiding theme in your life which can help bring clarity, relevance and importance to your daily tasks.

Burnout can be exacerbated by a chaotic environment but it can ultimately be prevented with the right approach to work culture and personal motivation.