If you’re constantly feeling tired, stressed out, and depleted, you might need to manage some of the symptoms of burnout. There are many ways to do this and one of the first steps is understanding more about the symptoms of burnout. By learning how to be kinder to ourselves and ignoring our inner critic, we can start to be more mindful of reducing the internal and external pressures that sometimes lead to symptoms of burnout. While job burnout is one of the most common causes of these symptoms, burnout can also be caused by a lack of adequate social support, interpersonal issues with family and friends, or poor self-care.

Tools to Overcome Job Burnout

What is Burnout?

In her short course, Preventing Burnout, positive psychology expert Sha-En Yeo defines burnout as the excessive and prolonged exposure to stressful and overwhelming working conditions, and the inability to manage them well. 

Am I Suffering from Burnout?

Sha-En goes on to explain three main symptoms of burnout to look out for; exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy. If you are experiencing one or more of these symptoms, you could be on your way, if not already, to a burnout level.

1. Feeling constantly exhausted

The most predominant sign of burnout is exhaustion. Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally too. Sha-En gives the example of having a to-do list and prioritizing the top items, but looking at the list and just feeling completely overwhelmed with no sense of drive to get started on it. When you’re tired in the non-stop, never-enough-coffee-or-sleep kind of way, it is a sign that you could be chronically exhausted. 

2. Having a cynical mindset

If you’re constantly feeling cynical, undervalued, or not seen, this is another sign of possible burnout. A negative, distrustful mindset creates a difficult environment for you to try and survive, let alone, thrive in. Toxic self-talk can lead to demotivation, and may eventually contribute to burnout. Being self-aware and taking note of your mindset is a critical part of managing burnout.

3. Ineffecticious in usual tasks

The third sign is realizing that you’re being inefficacious in your day-to-day. When you know you used to be able to power through items on your to-do list with a sense of energy and vigor, but no longer feel that you have that same ability or desire, you could be experiencing burnout. If tasks that used to be quick and effective are now taking a lot longer and you feel that you are struggling to get through them, it goes hand-in-hand with burnout.

Sha-En explained that burnout can often feel like it just creeps up on you without you noticing it, and then all of a sudden you’re exhausted and drained beyond your physical self. It’s a scary and tough place to be in, so taking control is important before it becomes too late.

Tools for Managing Burnout

Deloitte conducted a burnout survey that showed 77% of respondents experienced burnout on one or more occasions. According to this research, the biggest drivers of employee burnout are lack of support or recognition from leadership, unrealistic deadlines or results expectations, as well as consistently working long hours or on weekends.

1. Become more self-aware of how you are feeling

Being aware of the main symptoms of burnout - exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy - having the self-awareness to notice when you’re experiencing any or all of them, and not “normalizing” pushing yourself beyond capacity is essential to manage the symptoms of burnout effectively. 

Check in with how you are feeling during the day with a quick reflective exercise to rate your energy levels from 1 to 5 and pay attention to your mood; making self-reflection a habit will allow you to become more connected to how you feel. With your reflection time, try to make space for noting what you’re grateful for. By training your brain to focus and acknowledge what is working and going well in the various domains of your life, you will feel more at ease with yourself and those around you.

Another thing to remember is that you should never be ashamed of asking for help; reaching out to someone you trust can be daunting, but there are ways to do so. By becoming more self-aware, you’re also able to pick up on when those around you could be struggling with the symptoms that lead to burnout. By supporting one another, we reduce the stigma and encourage a balanced approach to work and day-to-day living.

2. Prioritize self-care to support your overall well-being

When you prioritize taking care of yourself, you will be able to build a more solid foundation for navigating challenging times. Start with paying attention to how you can gradually improve your daily habits and routines. Some of the self-care fundamentals include sleep, exercise, and healthy food.  

You need to respond to any warning signs as early as possible to avoid burnout altogether. Chronic or prolonged burnout can be challenging to recover from and could even take months before feeling better. The key is early intervention. Be gentle on yourself and remember that by slowing down and being less “busy”, you are often able to be more mindful, intentional, and productive with your precious energy.

Join the Preventing Burnout Short Course to gain an awareness and understanding of the early signs and symptoms of burnout, how to counteract it, and define it to communicate energy-conserving boundaries with colleagues, friends, and family.

All of the content on our website is thoroughly researched to ensure that the information shared is evidence-based. For more information, please visit the academic journals and other resources that influenced this article: Workplace Burnout Survey; 5 Ways To Overcome Job Burnout; Preventing Burnout Course