Burnout or stagnation

Burnout is a word that gets around more and more these days. Especially (surprisingly?) among younger people in the work environment.

But what is it? And what do we do about it?

Now burnout is not recognized as a medical condition. There is no strict diagnosis for it. Some experts think that other conditions, such as depression, are behind it. But as a rough definition, this is a special type of work-related stress; a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that also involves a sense of reduced accomplishment and loss of personal identity.

I’ve discussed alternate methods of payment before - autonomy, mastery, impact - that could potentially give employees a sense of self within the work environment. However, especially in these times of physical and - inevitably - social distancing, these may seem gratuitous rather than helpful. Great for entry and intermediate level employees, giving them drive and initiative, but mostly expected from experts, managers, leads, architects, developers and so on.

This is, of course, a generalization. There are plenty of people starting up with no incentive to push harder and people well over a decade or two in the workforce who have found their calling in working on several projects in parallel - especially ones not directly related to their main projects.

And on the flipside you’ve got bright, young minds ready to pick up work and any leads, happy to figure things out that end up in a rut because they either took on too much or learned too little.

Which brings me neatly to stagnation. This is, of course, the product of a few key choices along ones career path that ended up in a situation that is either not engaging enough or overwhelming. A wise woman once told me: you keep advancing until you land the job that you can’t do.

This inevitably leads to a lack of drive, a feeling that you’ve hit the ceiling and don’t know where to go or what to do. Maybe you’ll press on, maybe you’ll job hop, maybe…well, there’s a lot of maybes.

So how do we square this circle? Or as Ken Robinson said “Does it have to be a paperclip as we know it? Or can it be 200 ft tall and made of foam rubber?”

To me, the answer is still slightly elusive so all I can give is advice, as hindsight is always 20-20.

Set yourself a difficult, but achievable learning curve. Not a target. Those are things that happen along the way. But the main focus should be self-improvement. You lack social skills? Get learning. You need to understand the market? Do your research. Something you think you know that baffles you when confronted with it? Retrace your steps to a point of knowledge and start from there.

That being said, that’s all work-related. That’s what’ll stop stagnation. The key “payment” methods apply here. Autonomy, mastery, impact. And there’s no order to it, really. Maybe you need autonomy to gain mastery. Maybe you need mastery to make an impact. But maybe you need the mastery to gain autonomy. Or an impact that grants you both. It’s all situational, but it must be clear in your head before diving into any project. And this will, hopefully, help with stagnation. Structure is always key!

Now back to our black sheep: burnout. This one, I’m afraid, will not be resolved within the work environment. Unless you’ve got a manager with a LOT of time or a mentor willing to put in the effort and guidance, after a certain point, you’re on your own.

And while these can solve some of the issues at work, it’s a temporary fix. That spare tire’s only good for so many miles before it needs to be replaced with a proper one. This is when you go shopping. This is when you need to ask yourself: what sort of tires do I want? And what’s the weather like? And where am I going? Is it offroad? Do I need a whole different car? Because I can’t just keep going down this narrow one-way road forever. The spare’s gonna give way at some point.

I feel this starts at a personal level, with an examination of the self. Each tire is a part of your life: family, friends, work, passion. If one takes up more than the others, you’re gonna have an uneven or bumpy ride. And if work’s gotten too big for you to handle (i.e. it’s taking up a lot of time with little results), then it’s time to focus on other things. Balance things out.

Maybe work isn’t holding you back, but you’re holding yourself back from work. Things gnawing at the back of your head. When’s the last time you went out with friends and vented? When’s the last time you just sat down for a nice chat with your parents, loved ones? When do you actually intend to finish that book or pick up the guitar again?

I think you’ll find - much like when you’re trying too hard to remember a word that’s at the tip of your tongue - that focusing less on work and giving yourself more time to relax without worrying will have a greater impact on your results than simply grinding away day-by-day, hoping things will be different.

So go out! Or stay in! Pick up the guitar! Or listen to Satriani! Call your folks! Hang with friends! Write the book! Just take a break. And I mean it!

And, in the immortal words of Douglas Adams: don’t panic (in large, friendly letters).

You’ve got time. Just use it wisely. For yourself.