How can we avoid professional burnout?
We all know a person (or persons) that has climbed the professional ladder at a speed that makes you wonder if they had wings. Watching them achieve, perform, and impress beyond anything we think is possible. Then they hit a wall and burnout or leave the organization. Do you wonder what causes professionals to burnout? The “honeymoon phase” ends and all the bad habits, lack of professional boundaries, and overwhelm come rushing in.
When we start a new job, we tend to be so excited about the opportunity and want to make a good impression that we often say yes to every opportunity given to us. Our calendar is packed with projects and meetings and...oh, yeah, the work we were hired to do. We are now committed to being busy rather than being successful.
All the commitments leave us rushing and not giving our best to them all in the typical 40-hour workweek. Working extra hours right off the bat depletes the time we have for ourselves, our families, friends, and other obligations. Less time and more obligations = increased stress. Our bodies can only handle so much stress and then it shuts down.
Setting boundaries is a requirement!
The lack of boundaries impact our physical and mental well being as well as those around us. Before you know it, you have lost control of your time, energy, and workload. Your work-life balance is non-existent and your workday seems dysfunctional.
How can you avoid this quick and painful journey from new beginning bliss and being totally burnt out and OVER it?
You came to the right place!!! When starting a new job or a new position, you should know going into it what you expect to get out of it, learn from it, and be aware of the learning curve that will limit your participation in other projects.
Don’t say “yes” to everything. Ask questions about the project (especially around due dates and time commitments), consider what other tasks you have going on, and ask yourself if it will energize you. As several coaches teach- it should be a HELL YES!, not just a yes when selecting projects to work on. Commit to being successful rather than being busy.
Another important thing to be aware of is your mindset at work and about work. Your mind is powerful but not perfect. Pay attention to how you think about work, how you talk about it, and how it makes you feel.
Every day won’t be sunshine and rainbows but there should be more of those days than ones that feel like impending thunderstorms.
5 ways to improve your engagement at work
Energized Projects (the HELL YES! kind)
Just say no to some projects (decline respectfully- thank you but I already have a full plate and couldn’t do it justice at this time)
Commit to the contracted time of your role, not all the extra hours you can get
Commit to success not succeeding at "busy"
Mind your mindset
Peace and love,
Teresea
Photo Credit: Unsplash
