How to Stop Burnout Before It Breaks You (And Your Team)
Burnout is everywhere, and it’s only getting worse. Study after study confirms what many of us already know deep in our bones: people are overwhelmed, overstretched, and emotionally drained.
But here’s the thing: burnout isn’t new, and it certainly isn’t a personal failing or something that can be solved with a few deep breaths or another “wellness day.” Burnout is a systemic issue rooted in the way we work, lead, and live, and until we start addressing it at that level: it’s not going anywhere.
I’m naturally an exasperatingly optimistic, sunny-dispositioned someone, but lately my mood has been getting ‘worser and worser.’
It’s not just the state of the world, the rollercoaster of economies, or the lack of credible leadership – though none of those help. What’s really dragging me down is the continued erosion of health and wellbeing in the name of ‘excellence’ and ‘achievement.’
What’s truly getting my goat right now?
Yet another study warning about the growing problem of burnout.
This one lays out the impact burnout has on people’s mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing, as well as on the sustainability of careers and businesses.
These reports, which seem to pop up every few weeks, present burnout like it’s a new discovery. Spoiler: it’s not. We’ve been talking about burnout for over a decade. And yet, each new report is met with shock and surprise.
I can’t even explain how cross these findings make me! Burnout is now a full-blown crisis, yet organisations are still woefully under-equipped and under-committed to addressing it. Leaders still expect (and often encourage) people to give more than they have. That’s not just abusive, it’s short-sighted. No one can sustainably work under those conditions.
Until we start thinking about life, the universe and our roles in it differently, not even weekly yoga and breathing workshops are going to reverse the riptide of burnout. (To be clear, yoga and breathing are both important and useful, but when people are exhausted, stressed and stretched to breaking point, they are about as much use as putting a band-aid on a severed limb.)
Burnout is not something that can be prevented (or cured) by offering more wellness days or yoga retreats. The only way we are going to banish burnout is by:
- allowing ourselves and the people who work with and for us to be honest about what we can and can’t manage,
- being sensible about what we expect of ourselves and everyone else, and
- spending our energy mindfully and wisely.
What frustrates me most is that burnout isn’t complicated, and preventing it shouldn’t be hard. It does require an ongoing and conscious commitment to setting boundaries, managing energy and time, and being more aware of ourselves and each other, but that’s far less challenging than enduring soul-destroying burnout or replacing top talent lost to it.
Severe burnout often forces individuals into a hard reset, because they have no other choice. But organisations need a reset too. Until there’s a deep, structural change in how we approach work and people, burnout will only get worse.
So, when are we going to start taking burnout seriously? And by “we,” I mean every single one of us.
In the meantime, you can do your own burnout prevention programme with this daily check-in:
- What can you say no to or ask for help with? At work, at home, in your community?
- Where and how can you give yourself a break?
- What do you love to do and find energising and invigorating? How can you fit those things into your days so that you can balance out the energy you are spending on other things?
It’s time to start taking burnout seriously, not just for your own health and wellbeing, but for the sustainability of your workplace, your teams, and your future.
You don’t need to wait for a crisis to make a change. Small, consistent shifts in how you spend your energy and set expectations can make all the difference.
💡 Need support? Join me for a Burnout Support Webinar on Saturday 31 May. It’s packed with practical tools you can use immediately, to help you reset and recharge.
With love,
Judy
Hello there, I'm Judy.
I'm a Master Life Coach, facilitator, trainer and published author from sunny South Africa. I'm passionate about helping people make things go right in their world of work and in their lives - by rediscovering and building on their resilience, resourcefulness and creativity.
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