Understanding and Avoiding Burnout
It's time to normalise, de-stigmatise, and incentivise asking for help.
Content Warning: In this article I discuss the risks of burnout and its potential repercussions in order to highlight that this is a serious issue that requires action by businesses and should not be ignored.
We will highlight this section in the text when we get to it so if you want, you can skip to the next section.
These topics cover drug abuse, depression, and abusive behaviour. If you are affected by any of these topics discussed in the article please seek relevant professional help.
If you live in the UK you can call the Samaritans 24 hours a day on 116 123 or text SHOUT to 85258 or visit https://www.samaritans.org
Last week was Mental Health Awareness week, and you may be thinking to yourself: “Simon, you should have posted this last week!”, and you may be right; but I didn’t want this post to be drowned out in the sea of posts around mental health last week, and it wasn’t ready.
I know from both personal experience, managing teams, and mentoring people that this is too important a topic to rush out for a content calendar.
With that, let’s start with a confession and story.
The Confession
Throughout my career I have run teams to the ragged edge in pursuit of a deliverable that was asked of me, and that I agreed was necessary to reach the business’ goals. Why? Because sometimes you need to, in order to get the job done – but I didn’t do it without highlighting the risks.
“OK – the team and I will get it done. It will be hard but we will do it, however this cannot become the expected pace, as it will burn the team out. Also, fair warning, the quality may not be as good due to the volume and time frame you’ve set out, so we’ll need the sales and client teams to step up for some editing and commentary.”
With the risks made clear and support from the business, we banded together and got it done. We celebrated this marathon effort, though the quality was nowhere near our usual standards. We knew that, but the business was happy.
The story
The next week, we were asked why something was scoped at four days when it only took two days the previous week. I highlighted that we were back to normal working, and not pushing the team to abnormal capabilities. The same people that had previously supported us were upset. When I said “OK, we can do it – if we do the same again”, the reaction was less than positive. Understandably, the rest of the business couldn’t now support us like before as they had their own tasks to do; yet they were confused why my team was unable to do it alone. It wasn’t recognised that the previous two day turnaround was an all business effort.
I spent time in meetings pushing back and setting expectations. The best support to my position was during this time the team did a quick turnaround piece of work, and they weren’t happy with the quality; I highlighted that this was the inevitable by-product of the short turnaround. However, there were insinuations that the team weren’t working “hard enough” because “they showed they could do it" – “not without increased” support I countered.
The next time I met with one of my deputies I found out between our catch ups they were working 12–14 hours a day to try and reach the deadlines for deliverables; to say I was angry is an understatement. They looked and sounded exhausted, so I sent them home (well… I asked them to sign off as they were working from home). My manager understood and supported the decision, but it was not well received by everyone in the business.
So, why did I push back so hard? Rest is as important as hard work. If your team aren’t rested, they won’t do good work and will inevitably burn out. When that happens, the effects are pervasive and impact more than just the individual.
The moral of the story
Every good story needs a moral, and so the moral today is this:
When “Hustle”, “Crunch”, and “Excessive Working” become the norm rather than the exception, or if your team or you experience burnout; it is the direct result of failures in leadership, management, and the ability to plan or deliver projects effectively.
Dr. Simon Wallace
I have made it a quote, because I stand by it – you can quote me on it, and I will defend it until the day I take my last breath.
Paradoxically, I do admit that sometimes short term increased workloads need to happen that wouldn’t be sustainable over a longer period – but that’s why I say “become the norm rather than the exception”. You shouldn’t be afraid to push your team hard and expect high standards, but you need to acknowledge that rest and recuperation are critical to continued levels of high performance.
That concept is nowhere near revolutionary. We see this with professional athletes: they train hard, perform to their maximum, then they recover. They know that recovery is as important to top performance as hard work. We need to stop fetishising “hustling” in business, and pretending that “exhaustion” is the measure of a job well done.
From personal experience, both as a technical practitioner – someone who gets stuff done – and a senior manager, the quality of work after 40 hours a week (over-working) declines massively. You might think that you get more done, but the quality can be so poor that you likely have to re-do it, completely negating the reason for over-working.
What if we ignore this moral?
You, or your team will, at some point, experience “Burnout” [1]:
Burnout as defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO)
Burnout is a syndrome conceptualised as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It is characterised by three dimensions:
feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion;
increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one's job; and
reduced professional efficacy.
Burnout refers specifically to phenomena in the occupational context and should not be applied to describe experiences in other areas of life.
Whilst the WHO make it clear that it is an occupational phenomenon rather than a medical condition, experiencing burnout can exacerbate, or cause, medical conditions. I think the key thing that this definition highlights is that burnout is caused by work, not personal situations. Sometimes it can be hard to separate the two, and at others it is easily separated; you just have to be honest with yourself to help identify the root cause.
The main issue that I have with the term “burnout” is it makes it seem like such a passive thing; a candle “burns out”, a fire “burns out”, and that’s the end of it. No more issues, the problem has gone away. Right? Wrong.
When you or members of your team burn out, it is pervasive. It’s not a singular explosion – one bang then it’s done – it’s like setting landmines. A single misstep can lead to both an explosion and shrapnel, and the shrapnel can be even more devastating.
What are the signs and stages of burnout?
Let’s start with the signs of burnout, as stated by Mental Health UK [2]:
The signs of burnout - Mental Health UK
Feeling tired or drained most of the time
Feeling helpless, trapped and/or defeated
Feeling detached/alone in the world
Having a cynical/negative outlook
Self-doubt
Procrastinating and taking longer to get things done
Feeling overwhelmed
I found this model on Forbes that was developed by psychologist Herbert Freudenberger and his colleagues, which I think is a pretty good description.
Stages of Burnout - Paraphrased from Herbert Freudenberger et.al.
Excessive ambition: Enthusiasm can be a benefit and a detriment. You feel like you aren’t good enough and you should be doing more, better, and faster.
Working harder: If I work harder, then I will do better. As part of this, you take on more work which means you can’t do everything in working hours. This leads to things like 12 hour days, answering emails on weekends, and it is only compounded when you are praised for “going above and beyond”. You feel good for being acknowledged and so starts the addiction to work and praise – disconnecting from work feels difficult, and you feel guilty when you don’t work harder.
Neglecting your needs: At this stage, you start to prioritise the needs of others and work ahead of your own. This neglect of your own needs means you don’t prioritise your wellbeing which can present as: weight gain, insomnia, decreased focus, poor diet, etc.
Displacing problems: Through focusing on work excessively, you ignore the world and the problems around you. From time to time you may realise something is not right, but solving it is too much with everything you have going on at work. This reinforces the cycle and puts even more pressure on work, as you then need to get work done to allow you to sort the other problems you have.
Revision of values: There will come a time when you realise this isn’t the person you wanted to be; but instead of re-aligning, you adjust your values to be what they need so you can focus on work. You overlook the needs of friends and family, hobbies are a luxury you can no longer afford, and self care is selfish. You define your value based upon your work.
Denial of new problems: You have changed and others should embrace the new you and your outlook on life. This can lead to butting heads with colleagues because they are lazy, or clients because they are demanding, or family because they are needy. You become intolerant, lacking empathy, and cynical. Work is to blame for your issues, not that you have realigned your values and changed as a person.
Withdrawal: I don’t have time for friends or relationships, work is too important right now; once I reach the right level I can refocus. So you pull back from your relationships, your world revolves around work and you escape through guilty pleasures
Impact on Others: Your family start to worry about you, you aren’t the person you were before and you’re impatient and irritable. You lose focus on what’s important and start doing things that impact others because you lose focus, i.e. not picking up your children from school, or missing meetings because you’re too “focused”
Depersonalisation: You don’t know who you are anymore. You feel detached from your life and you are merely occupying an empty vessel that once was your body. Going through life like a zombie, whereas before you were enthusiastic to work, now you do it because you need to.
Inner Emptiness: What once gave you value, doesn’t anymore. You start to feel worthless. You lose your drive and fantasise about quitting and leaving it all behind. To cope with this you may turn to bad habits like unhealthy eating, alcohol, or drugs in order to numb yourself.
Depression: You become emotionally and mentally exhausted; Life and Work feel pointless.
Full Burnout Syndrome: You reach your breaking point. Your body may collapse or you may suffer a mental breakdown. Medical attention is necessary, and many professionals need to take extended leave in order to heal
It’s important to note that with these stages, they aren’t always linear, you can skip stages, or go through ones faster than others; but these are useful to help you reflect and identify where do you see yourself in, and why?
What are the impacts of burnout?
Content Warning: In this section I discuss the risks of burnout and its potential repercussions, in order to highlight that this is a serious issue that requires action by businesses and should not be ignored.
These topics cover drug abuse, depression, and abusive behaviour. If you are affected by any of these topics discussed in the article please seek relevant professional help.
If you live in the UK you can call the Samaritans 24 hours a day on 116 123 or text SHOUT to 85258 or visit https://www.samaritans.org
If you are affected by any of these topics, you can skip to the next section, the heading is “So how do we minimise the risks of burnout?” if you want to search for it directly.
When we experience burnout it can often be the start of greater problems; and as we see from the definitions for the stages of burnout in the previous section, an escalating situation rather than the end of the matter.
So what happens if we leave burnout untreated, and learn to live with the new normal? Short version, it slowly erodes away at who we are and replaces us with someone we probably wouldn’t like if we met.
Western Governors University have a good, and I think comprehensive, list of effects of burnout [3].
The Effects of Burnout - As stated by WGU
Physical health issues
Excessive stress
Fatigue
Increased likelihood for heart disease
Increased likelihood for high blood pressure
Increased likelihood for type 2 diabetes
Increased likelihood for respiratory issues
Increased likelihood for death before age 45
Mental health issues
Depression
Anger
Irritability
Anxiety
Increased likelihood for mental health needs like medication or hospitalisation
Personal consequences
Alcohol or substance abuse
Isolation from friends and family
Irresponsibility with finances
Anger towards family members
Inability to fulfil responsibilities
Professional consequences
Job dissatisfaction
Withdrawing from colleagues and friends
Inability to do job well
Drain on company resources
This list highlights that burnout can lead to severe health issues, increased sources of stress outside of work, detrimental effects on your relationships, dependence on coping mechanisms, as well as impacts on your professional capabilities.
From my personal experience this list resonates with times that I have been burned out; not all of them, but I know from speaking with my partner that I was vaping more; I was going to the pub after work more frequently in order to “de-stress”; I was more grumpy, my temperament was more irritable; and I was constantly tired. In hindsight, it was obvious; but at the time I normalised this because it gradually happened.
What I also recognise in this list are times where I have noticed these traits among colleagues that I think are burned out; because their behaviour shifts.
There was a colleague of mine who I was friends with, and over time I think the stress of their job got to them. There would be times where they would scream at people. “What is this sh*t?!”, “This is your f*cking problem, fix it!”, “Why am I having to do your f*cking job?”.
The person I knew for years wasn’t a bully, but their behaviour became such. I regret that I only confronted it directly with the person was when it was aimed towards me, as I think it was a sense of relief when I wasn’t the one getting screamed at.
Upon reflection, I should have tried speaking to them about burnout, or trying to get someone else to; but in actuality I was concerned it would be handled badly and I would put myself in their crosshairs. In a strange way I hope this wasn’t who my friend had become, and that they were experiencing burnout; but left unchecked behaviours can become ingrained and what becomes the exception becomes the rule.
Burnout is not something to normalise or take lightly, it shouldn’t be part of the job, and as team/business leaders we should look to minimise the risks of burnout in our teams.
So how do we minimise the risks of burnout?
There is no one list to rule them all, because the sources of burnout can be different. What I do to minimise the risks for myself and my team is:
Ensure projects and deliverables are scoped and briefed correctly.
Never resource over 35 hours a week for an individual.
Ensure deadlines are not “Just in Time” to allow for unforeseen circumstances.
Advocate for your team and their wellbeing throughout the decision making process.
Ask if there is anything else they would like to talk about during “one to one” meetings; making sure they know it can be anything.
Build a culture that normalises “I don’t know” and “I need help”; so they know, and they are’t afraid, that asking for help won’t negatively impact their career.
As an individual we need to be on the look out for the signs of burnout in ourselves, identify when we are starting down the path through the stages, and most importantly ask for help. Whether that help comes from family, friends, or people within the business; we should never be afraid to ask for help.
Which brings us nicely to the most important thing businesses can do in order to minimise the risks of burnout; build a culture where people believe that admitting the need for help will not detriment their careers.
You can put up all the posters and you can have all the initiatives, but if the culture is such that people don’t believe that it is anonymous, or asking for help won’t negatively affect their career goals; they won’t use it or ask for help until its too late and they have to take time off.
Don’t mistake “people aren’t using this service” for “we don’t have a stress or burnout problem”; it could be that they are too busy to even think about it, or they are afraid to do so.
It is more important that as managers and leaders we need to be empathetic and look for these signs within our team; or in ourselves. Ask questions, be open, be honest, and be someone that they trust. You don’t need to be, and in my opinion shouldn’t try to be, their friend. You should however try to be someone they trust and respect so they can come to you with issues; and they know that you will handle their issues and the solution in a professional, discrete, and effective manner.
Let’s learn from athletes
Your brain is very like your muscles, when you work hard; rest is as, if not more, important. If you don’t allow time forrest, you will injure yourself. Athletes know this, and I think as business leaders we should learn from them.
Keep your team and yourself in peak performance by:
Recognising the need to rest and recover after stressful periods
Normalising a culture of openness and honesty that prioritises mental health;
Putting as much effort into understanding how they are feeling about their work as we do to understanding what they are currently working on.
When athletes have a muscular twinge they tell their coach because they know that if they work through it without proper assessment, that they might injure themselves; and one session missed, to properly assess the extent of the problem, is preferable to an entire season lost due to injury.
You aren’t your team's therapist; but as a business or team leader I believe that you have a duty of care towards your team and their wellbeing – much like a coach has towards their athletes.
It’s hard work, you won’t always get it right, and more likely than not burnout will happen; but you should always try your best, learn from when it happens, and get better.
No one said being a good manager is easy.
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Grand. Thanks for your time.
