Can We Avoid Burnout?

Left unchecked, burnout can show up as physical, mental, and emotional illness — and can have some pretty devastating impacts on people, their families, and workplaces.

Do you know the signs of burnout? Would you recognize them in yourself, in a colleague, or in an employee? Knowing the signs of burnout can help you take critical steps to protect yourself and others.

In their research on workplace burnout, Winona State University simplifies burnout into five stages:

1. Honeymoon stage: You’re thrilled with the work you do and how you do it. You don’t mind skipping lunch or working late because you’re so excited by your new venture. This where you might develop patterns that become hard to shake later.
2. Balancing act: You have good days and bad days. You might notice that even if you can keep up your performance at work, it’s taking more out of you to do so. You might start forgetting things or find yourself unable to sleep due to the onset of stress.
3. Chronic stress symptoms: You feel stressed and uneasy more days than not. When people make requests of you, you feel resentful. You may be exhausted, apathetic, or dreading Mondays.
4. Burnout: You feel the mental, emotional, and physical symptoms of burnout. You may start skipping work, procrastinating, or missing deadlines because it’s hard to work. You think about quitting to get out of your situation.
5. Enmeshment: The term “enmeshment” means that burnout has become your new normal. You might not be able to remember a time before you felt like this. At this point, you may be diagnosed with anxiety or depression before you recognize burnout as the underlying cause.

This progression underscores the importance of addressing things early-on, and setting healthy work habits during the “honeymoon stage.” If you feel like you’re doing well in this department, think of how you can support others to do the same. This can be as simple as modeling breaks, using time-off, and replying to messages during work hours only. There are many ways to burnout-proof your workplace culture!