As we adjust to our country wide red light setting here in New Zealand, it’s not lockdown so why does it feel like?
Burnout is on the increase and it’s not surprising given there’s not much that’s normal about our new normal. Like hiking at high altitude, everything becomes harder in circumstances like this: meal planning, supermarket shopping or just waking up and getting on with the day. We’re more distracted than normal: more anxious, less motivated and certainly less innovative. We struggle with the guilt that comes with not being able to be at our best and perform in the way we know we can.
Simply put we’ve all got some form a covid fatigue as we contemplate the effects of the constant threat and uncertainty over the last 2 years. Everything is harder and the on off nature of life as we move in and out of restrictions and outbreaks is a test to even the most resilient of us.
For me I see the conferences and workshops I was looking forward to delivering disappear overnight. The trip to see my UK based family that had been edging closer again disappears off into the future. I tell myself, we’ve done this before, but I think that might be part of the problem. We keep doing this and it’s exhausting. Each cycle we come through we think it’s behind us and then another cycle or variant appears. No wonder we feel tired and motivation might have taken a hit. I started the year with renewed vigor and cautious optimism, fresh off the back of the summer break. It seems like a long time ago now!
In 2018 global research organisation Gallup found that of nearly 7500 fulltime employees internationally, 23 per cent feel burnt out at work very often or always, while another 44 per cent feel burnt out sometimes. That was before the pandemic hit.
Many of us have struggled during lockdowns and the uncertainty that came with the outbreak. To be honest, that was the normal response, in these circumstances. Whether it was being apart from loved ones, illness, fear, the struggle with kids, home schooling, job security worries or the prospect of getting COVID – there’s a lot to feel worried about.
More specifically, COVID has meant that many of us have missed big overseas family events like births and deaths (in the case of deaths, in particular, some of us have been unable to grieve as we usually do, gain closure or visit loved ones in hospital). Some of us have lost our businesses overnight, and have been wondering how we’ll pay the bills. Some of us will have tested positive for COVID and realised we’ve passed it to our family. Most of us have lost all our usual mental health supports: people, places, activities or freedoms. Every bit of the pandemic has been a test on our already stretched mental health.
Whilst battling the pandemic, home schooling the kids and trying to work from the kitchen table, it’s not surprising our resilience has been tested. Many admit to their work performance taking a dip, we might also find we’re less able to achieve or ‘prove ourselves’ from the home office like we can in the workplace. All of this can lead to productivity guilt. We feel guilty if we’re working all day and the kids feel abandoned. Or we feel guilty if we stopped work at 3 pm to spend time with the kids. And then, on top of all this, we feel guilty we’re not training for a marathon in our spare time, or doing personal development webinars, or baking bread.
Whilst we’re on the subject of pandemics, the World Health Organisation predict burnout will be a global pandemic in less than a decade. So what is burnout, how do you know if it’s impacting you and what can you do about it?
We use the term burnout to describe physical, mental and emotional exhaustion – usually relating to work. The most common indicators burnout is at play are; exhaustion, a feeling of lack of control, disengaging, trouble focusing, a sense of dread about work and frequent feelings of cynicism or irritability.
But burnout is not just about quantity but the quality of what we’re doing not just how much of it we’re doing. According to Psychology today; Burnout is not simply a result of working long hours or juggling too many tasks, though those both play a role.
From the new book, Burnout to Brilliance here is my summary of the research on burnout and its five stages of seriousness.
COVID-19 has put a magnifying glass over an already burned out workforce and exacerbated the issue. So who is most at risk? How do we avoid burnout? What triggers should we look out for?
In my experience, it’s not poor performers who burnout, we don’t burn out because we’re not capable, in fact it’s the opposite. The more capable we are the more likely we are to burnout, it’s the drive of the high achiever that leads us down this path. High achievers are given more work because of their competence and track record which puts them at higher risk of overworking , having too much on their plate and ultimately burning out.
And of course we can’t say no, for fear of not been seen as up to the job, for looking weak or like we’re not coping. Our cultures and societal norms around this stuff keep us pushing until we hit a wall, saying yes until we collapse under the weight of all the commitments we’ve just made – then we feel like a failure.
Well, if you’re tired all the time, despite getting plenty of sleep; if you’re constantly on the verge of illness; if you’re struggling to motivate yourself, and not finding joy in the things you used to love or don’t have the motivation to do these things … you’re on notice burnout is close.
In this state, we become less tolerant of those around us. We might reach for the wrong food or increase our alcohol intake as a coping mechanism. When we’re exhausted, we tend to choose TV over exercise, or takeaways over cooking, or we skip meals completely because of a loss of appetite – these are all potential burnout signs.
And, of course, the most obvious sign is when we truly hit burnout, and end up in bed, completely devoid of energy and interest in life. This was certainly my experience of burnout back in my days in the corporate world.
Most of us know what it’s like to be at our best; we’ve been there before. Likewise, we know what it’s like when we’re about to hit a wall and get sick: when we’ve overdone it, left it too late or burned the candle at both ends.
I like to think of this in terms of a traffic light. We all have green and red zones, and they look different for us all. The red light stops us completely; it’s our ground zero. The green light is when we’re all go and at our best. The amber light, in between, is important: it’s our warning system. When we slip from green, before we hit red, the amber light gives us an opportunity to act and pre-empt hitting the wall and slipping into that red zone: burnout.
For me, that amber light is a twitch in the corner of my eye, a sore throat and a constant tiredness. It’s noticing I’m less tolerant and a bit snappy with loved ones. This is my amber light; my warning to back off, take a rest and pre-empt the approaching red zone.
Another way to think about this is in terms of the petrol warning light in the car. When you know your tank is nearing empty, stop and refuel, to avoid being left on the side of the road. On a long car journey we know it takes longer if we pull over and stop for fuel but we also know it’s necessary to ensure we reach our destination.
So what do these traffic lights look like for you? What do you notice about yourself when you’re at your best, on green? What about when you’re at your worst and close to burnout, on red? And what about that bit in between: what are the early warning signs you get at the amber light? What rating would you give yourself right now and what can you do about it?
Find out more about navigating the journey from burnout to brilliance in my brand new book or check out the Covid Support webinar available to deliver for your team now.