"Mental Health in Workplace - 8 Ways of How to Heal The Workplace Burnout"
There is a stark transformation in the timeline of our professional careers that underscores the critical importance of addressing the vitality of Workplace Burnout and Mental Health in the Workplace.
Most of us can vividly recall the first day of our job. You are brimming with zeal to prove yourself in the workplace. The very first days you dress your best. You exhibit impeccable manners and are all excited to work hard and earn a fortune. It’s like the beginning of your dream life. The warrior in you strives diligently, maintaining a learning attitude to excel in your roles.
Fast forward 3 years, and you are sitting with your best friend at a cafe complaining about every single living cell of your Tyrannosaurus Rex boss. That very place you hoped would be your golden ticket to your dream life transforms into a monster’s lair. The worst part is that you must return daily to the daunting environment. You have to contribute to the success of the monster boss while staying discontented with your growth.
But do we often question what led us to such a mental state? – The boss, the job itself, or our actions?
What is Workplace Burnout?
On multiple occasions, we come across phrases like ‘I’m exhausted’ or ‘work is very hectic’ or ‘work is overwhelming’. I am ‘Burnout’ is something we hear rarely. Today, Workplace Burnout is becoming a more relevant issue to address in discussions relating to Mental Health in the Workplace.
Guess what, many of us, have felt once in our professional lives what Burnout feels like but were just unaware of the term. Like we have been unaware of the word, so have we been oblivious to the severity of the situation. Burnout can affect an individual both mentally and physically.
According to the American Psychological Association (APA), Workplace Burnout is a concerning mental health workplace issue. Burnout causes physical, emotional, and mental fatigue due to intense job-related stress.
Symptoms of a Burnout
The symptoms of a burnout at the workplace can be characterized in 3 dimensions –
1. Emotional Exhaustion – Experiencing a sense of being drained and overly tired, making it difficult to face another workday. Even a minute seems like hours at the job.
2. Depersonalisation – One starts to accumulate a cynical or detached attitude towards one’s job and even colleagues. In layman’s words, you just start hating everything, the job, the boss, and even the people there.
3. Reduced Personal Accomplishment – We start to harbour a sense of inefficacy and lack of achievement in our work. Your mind keeps getting bombarded with thoughts like:
“What am I doing at this job?”
“Is this really what I want to do with my life?“
“What is the point of working so hard when nobody even cares?”
Workplace burnout normally occurs when an individual gets overwhelmed with the excessive demands of their job profile which they barely can fulfil. Sometimes an employer just forgets that getting work done from human employees is not a synonym of sugarcane being juiced to its final capacity.
Employers should keep in mind apart from financial needs employees also have psychological needs like public recognition, praise, and addressing major factors like workload and mental fatigue.
Understanding these symptoms can help in taking the necessary steps to address and manage burnout effectively.
Common Causes of the Workplace Burnout
1. Excessive Workload
As the name suggests, the leading cause of workplace burnout is an excessive workload. Whenever an employee is made to handle more tasks than their ability to manage, it leads to accumulated stress and fatigue. An unrealistic workload diminishes productivity, increases errors, and ultimately leads to burnout.
2. Lack of Control
Having little to no control over one’s job can significantly contribute to burnout. It happens when employees are unable to influence decisions that affect their work or their input is undervalued. It can lead to feelings of helplessness and frustration.
3. Insufficient Rewards and Recognition
Feeling undervalued and unrecognized for one’s efforts can be highly demotivating. Insufficient rewards, whether in the form of salary, benefits, or acknowledgement can make employees feel unappreciated, leading to burnout. Recognition is essential for maintaining morale and motivation in the workplace.
4. Lack of Support
A lack of support from colleagues and supervisors can exacerbate feelings of isolation and stress. Supportive workplace relationships are crucial for mental health. Without a network of support, employees are more likely to experience burnout as they navigate their challenges alone
5.Poor Work-Life Balance
A poor work-life balance is a significant contributor to burnout. When work demands encroach on personal time, it can prevent employees from fully disconnecting and recuperating. Over time, this imbalance can lead to chronic stress and exhaustion. It affects both professional well-being and professional performance.
6. Toxic Work Environment
A toxic work environment characterized by high levels of conflict, bullying, and harassment, can significantly impact mental health. Such environments are often perpetuated by toxic leadership and colleagues, where unkind and unreasonable bosses and colleagues create a climate of fear and stress. This hostile environment can lead to severe workplace burnout.
7. Role Ambiguity
This is again a significant factor in cases of workplace burnout. Unclear job expectations and responsibilities lead to confusion and stress for employees. When employees are uncertain about their roles or face constantly changing expectations, it can create a sense of instability and anxiety. Clear communication and defined roles are essential to prevent this cause of burnout.
Role of Toxic Leadership in a Burnout
Bosses can be strong catalysts in workplace burnout. 99.99% of people would agree with me, some bosses in their careers were just purely the 3 lettered ‘A’ word Holes. Sometimes, bosses in power assume by themselves, that they can treat their employees like the product of the 3 letter ‘A’ word Hole. It’s like they never came across a subject called mental health or a word as small as empathy. When office politics and excess workload add to it, the workplace just becomes a synonym for Hell.
Toxic leadership can severely hinder the performance and morale of hardworking employees. Sometimes, employees may not even realize their resentment towards their boss. They mistakenly start believing they hate their jobs. In reality, they are a victim of Workplace Burnout. This burnout reduces their overall job satisfaction.
Common traits of a toxic leader include Micromanagement, Lack of Empathy, Poor Communication, Unrealistic Expectations, and Favouritism. These behaviours can create a stressful work environment, diminish employee morale, and lead to emotional exhaustion, ultimately resulting in burnout.
Toxic Employees
Why is it that the Boss is always the Devil whenever we think about a toxic workplace scenario leading to Workplace Burnout? – It can be the other way around too, Right? Employees can also mentally drain their employer out. Let’s highlight some character traits that toxic employees exhibit-
-Constant Negativity-
-Lack of Accountability-
-Gossiping-
-Poor Communication-
-Lack of Respect for Authority-
-Refusal to Collaborate-
-Frequent Conflicts with Colleagues-
-Chronic Absenteeism-
These behaviours create a stressful environment, increase the workload for others, and require excessive management intervention. All this leads to burnout for bosses and employers who are trying to maintain team cohesion and productivity. Such behaviours disrupt workflow, undermine team morale and necessitate constant management oversight, contributing to leadership burnout.
8 ways of How to avoid a Burnout at your Workplace
1. Employers: Conduct Surveys
Going the extra mile to improve your team’s efficiency is all worth the work. Try to periodically measure workplace burnout through systematic surveys to gather insight. The non-negotiable parameters for the survey should be workload, recognition, community, control, fairness, and purpose.
2. Employers: Monitor Workload and Encourage Breaks
Employers, bosses, and even team leads should keep in check with their team’s workload. It’s your team not a group of donkeys or mules. A human, a donkey, a mule or any other member of animalia gets tired at some point. Checking in on your highly qualified people is super important. Yes, the team should be asked about their workloads if they are confident enough to handle their assigned tasks to the best of their abilities. keep track of workloads, check in with employees regularly, and promote the use of time off. Lastly, giving random breaks of 15-20 mins where possible never did any harm to an organization.
3. Employers: Assess Organizational Practices
To avoid workplace burnout employers need to implement certain effective practices. Flexible work schedules, clear communication, and employee involvement in decision-making help prevent workplace burnout. Wellness and professional development programs further reduce stress and promote well-being. All this will stop that mental pressure cooker from bursting.
Remember, it’s about more than just preventing burnout—it’s about creating a supportive environment where everyone thrives.
4. Employees: Prioritise Self-Care
This one is not new. It’s common sense and a very well-known fact now, but I will say it again. If you die tomorrow, your employer or your company will not stop working or minting money. Your colleague will not cancel that vacation he has been planning for the last 2 months. The world will keep on going, so you should also live for yourself. Similar will be the scenario if you get burnout.
Plan and go on trips, do adventure sports, visit that cafe, read books, get a massage, paint, and eat tasty food. For God’s Sake Have Fun! Because no one is going to stop for you, so why should you not live some moments for your happiness?
Most importantly – If things are bad and mentally you are struggling, and you need to see a Therapist, Please visit one NOW! (You are the Priority)
5. Employees - Set Boundaries and Unplug
Stop mixing Professional and Personal Life. Again something you very well know. When logged out from your workplace, don’t just physically log out, mentally also do. Your personal life also needs your attention. Connecting to your mom-dad, spouse, children and even your siblings is an important part of your life. Family stands with you in tough times. They also deserve the fun and frolics with you.
Also, your mind needs to rejuvenate from 8-9 hours of constant work. Unplugging from your work both physically and mentally will help you recharge and bounce back with renewed energy the next day. It’s like recharging your mobile at night after a full day of assisting you. Otherwise, someday your mental and emotional battery is going to deplete completely and will be burnt out.
6. Employees - Foster Social Relationships
Maintain healthy relationships with coworkers, friends, and family to help buffer the workplace. Always have one or two friends with whom you can share anything and everything. These relationships provide emotional support and perspective during challenging times. Take out time, to nurture these relationships.
Imagine coming home after a long day, feeling drained, and then sharing a heartfelt conversation with a friend. Suddenly, the weight of the day lifts, even if just a little. Or consider the warmth of spending time with your parents, recalling cherished memories, and realizing these moments are the true treasure of life.
7. Employers and Employees - Create a Supportive Workplace
A friend in need is a friend indeed. Try to be a part of a workplace culture where you are friends with your coworkers first and colleagues after. Professionals should create a culture where everyone helps everyone. Supporting each other is how everyone can get to their share of success. We all have been through stressful situations, “A little help there is a big help”.
Employers and employees should collaborate to create a supportive workplace. This includes fostering open communication, providing mutual respect, and offering support systems such as Peer Mentorship and Employee assistance programs.
8. Employers and Employees - Discuss Workload Regularly
This is key to avoiding workplace burnout. Communication is the key, “Talking things out will solve the issue”. One big-time activity we all love to indulge in during stressful times is Overthinking. Somebody well said that sometimes the worst place you can be is in your head. So, step out of your thoughts and start communicating.
Employers and employees should regularly meet to discuss roles and responsibilities, time management, and effective delegation of work. All this is just to be more efficient as a team.
It does not harm if with some concern we randomly ask our colleagues “If they are doing fine”.
Last Words
A CEO should never delegate culture – A strong quote from HBR review’s case study – Can you fix a toxic culture without firing people? -, “Management should always strive to foster a culture, which inspires employees to happily come back to work the next day”.
Studies show that when employees feel valued by their companies, they are more committed and satisfied in their jobs and show fewer signs of stress and burnout. How do you make the employees feel valued – Just by showing some care and empathy.
People need to take care of people wherever you go, and whoever you work with, they are people. If you take care of them, you and your team will sail on huge strides toward success.
That’s how we defeat Workplace Burnout.
Well Explained
Thank You. 😀