TALK to any recruiter and they would tell you that more and more applicants are asking if their organization has work-from-home arrangements. This pandemic has shown that organizations can really adopt alternative working arrangements, especially for parts of the business which do not necessitate being in the office. But working from home also comes with its own disadvantages, one of which is burnout.
The World Health Organization (WHO) defined burnout in 2019 as a “chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” With the pandemic probably lasting until next year, people working from home are starting to feel the toll of juggling home responsibilities, work demands, lack of social interaction, Zoom fatigue, and the threat of being infected. Add to that the expectation that since you are at home, you are always on and are expected to reply to e-mails well beyond the regular working hours. And then you feel guilty for not answering because you feel you owe it to your manager for being considerate in allowing you to work from home. All of these contribute to burnout.
Symptoms of burnout include lack of concentration in your work, easily getting irritated or angry at minor inconveniences, detachment from colleagues and friends, being stressed out, and even being absent from work even if you work from home. All these indicate disengagement from anything related to work and, if not mitigated, can lead to low productivity or even termination. And if you think that working from home saves you from burnout, think again. More and more people are getting burned out even if they work from home.
When you start experiencing these symptoms, what can you do? Below are some things to consider.
Start with your own well-being. When we talk about well-being, the Hebrew word shalom somehow encapsulates what well-being is all about—being at peace with yourself and that health, prosperity and peace of mind and spirit be upon you. People managers are beginning to put a premium on the well-being of their team because they know that this is the foundation of their team’s productivity. More organizations are also developing and implementing programs to promote the well-being of their employees in a bid to increase efficiency and engagement.
You can start your own well-being program by making sure you take care of your health—both physical and mental. Eat healthy and ensure you have vegetables and fruits in your diet, sleep for at least eight hours so that your body is rejuvenated for the day’s workload, and find time to exercise. As to your mental health, do not feel guilty for taking breaks and blocking off time. If machines need time to rest to function properly, how much more for you? You need to take care of your body so that it’s one less thing you need to worry about.
After you have appraised yourself and your well-being, you need to understand where your stress is coming from and then lessen it. You might not be aware of this but constantly checking the news will stress you out, especially given the news nowadays. If you need to get updates, do so for a certain period during the day which will not compromise your work or other activities. Sometimes, your stressors are people who unceremoniously dump their negativity on you. Be aware of these people so you can avoid them, or, if you need to interact with them, limit your time with them.
Sometimes, being at home can make you feel like you have all the time to do things. Add to that the pressure to do well because you cannot get fired because it is difficult to look for new work at this time. But also remember that you need to be realistic with yourself and what you can and cannot do. Take stock of your workload and then talk to your manager if you need to. If the workload cannot be helped, look for opportunities to streamline your workload to have more free time for yourself. Take those opportunities to refresh yourself or even learn a new skill to do your work faster.
You might also want to look at your calendar and then block off times for your own work. If your organization has a calendar function, set those times in the calendar for people to know that you are doing something during certain times. And when people ask if they can invite you to a meeting, ask about your involvement in the meeting and learn to say no when your presence is not really needed. You can ask for highlights of the meeting or ask someone to give you the gist of the meeting, so your time is not wasted. The most important thing you need to learn is to say “no” to meetings which do not contribute to your personal or professional growth.
Take a leave and then activate your support network if you can. You can always take a day or two to regroup and vent out to trusted friends. A new environment or a change of perspective might be beneficial in alleviating some of the stress and give you a renewed passion to do your work. Trusted friends can also tell you things you might need to change to be better at what you do and thrive.
If things go awry, you might also want to seek professional help. Most organizations already have a peer support group where you can have a safe environment to vent out and seek help. There are a number of groups offering online counselling. Take advantage of those offerings if you need to.
Being burned out does not always mean your work is really exhausting, or that you are in the wrong profession. Sometimes, it means taking the time to take care of yourself. So, when you feel burned out, it is your body telling you to pause and evaluate how you can overcome those challenges.
Image courtesy of Ayo Ogunseinde on Unsplash