If your Monday morning work routine already has you fantasizing about the weekend, you might be showing signs of burnout. It’s somewhat different than job-related stress. Experts say stress is usually short-term—maybe you have an important project deadline looming—but exhaustion occurs when stressors such as a lack of autonomy or feeling your work doesn’t really matter never seem to go away.
To fight burnout, it helps to know a few of the symptoms. Dreading going to work, high absenteeism, lack of energy in and out of work, insomnia, and irritability can all be signs of burnout.
So, what can you do to prevent burnout setting in on the job? Here are 10 tips. Let’s start with the ones concerning basic self-care—things you need to do every day.
- Exercise
It does more than just help you get in shape. Studies show that regular exercise can improve mood, mental acuity, self-confidence, energy levels, and productivity.
It doesn’t need to be an exhausting grind at the gym. Regular walks and mini-workouts can help you get into the exercise habit. What you’ll get in return is a physical and emotional boost to help fight burnout.
- Eat a balanced diet
A lot of people turn to sugary or foods rich in refined carbohydrates for a lift. While this might give your mood a boost in the short-run, it can cause your blood sugar to crash later. Experts recommend instead that you eat regular, balanced meals.
Fats such as fish and walnuts have been shown to improve brain function. It’s also important to get plenty of healthy protein, which helps to stabilize blood sugar.
Sleep – Research shows that adults need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep per night. If you’re having trouble sleeping, avoid caffeine in the evening and also stay away from electronics—phones, televisions, computers—right before bedtime. Most workplace accidents are caused by sleep deprived employees so not only is getting good sleep healthy but it’s also safe.
- Laugh
According to the Mayo Clinic, laughter helps you take in more oxygen, reduces stress, stimulates your heart, lungs, and muscles, and increases endorphins—which make you feel better.
- Socialize
While you might love your work, it shouldn’t be your entire life. Find friends to hang out with who aren’t work colleagues. Plan regular activities together whether it’s a weekend meal or a sport you both enjoy.
In addition to what you can do in your day-to-day life, take a hard look at what’s going on in the workplace.
- Work with purpose
Having unclear work expectations or goals is a major cause of burnout. In addition to knowing what you are working toward in the short-term, preventing burnout starts with rediscovering the deeper purpose to your work. For most of us, our job is more than just a paycheck, so we need to remember what brought us to that career.
- Perform a job analysis
Get a handle on exactly how much work you’re doing and when. If the tasks can’t be spread out or delegated, then it might be time to schedule a talk with the boss. Show your employer how much you’re doing and suggest ways your workload could be managed more effectively.
- Take control
This goes along with analyzing what you do. Once you have that figured out, give yourself more autonomy by prioritizing tasks, so you get those items that are most important done first. Learn how to break down larger projects into manageable chunks so you can leave at the end of a day feeling you have accomplished something.
- Give help to others
Just as it helps ease stress, doing little things to brighten colleagues’ days will actually lift your mood too.
- Start saying no
Being a yes-person is easy. Most of us are hardwired to want to please other people. But the reality is, you can’t do everything—and do it well. Accept the tasks you want to do or the ones that will advance your career, and learn to say no to other requests. This applies to outside of work interests too.
- Remember to ask for help when you are under stress
This might be through an employee assistance program or merely talking to a friend or family member. Left alone, the effects of burnout can end up costing you the career you love. Both you and your employer end up on the losing end of untreated stress and burnout. Experts say it’s important to take some time each day to find the joy in your life.
