BURN OUT!

“A state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion caused by long term involvement in emotionally demanding situations.”

“A state of fatigue or frustration brought about by devotion to a cause, way of life, or relationship that failed to produce the expected reward.”

Common Symptoms:

what burnout is, the symptoms of burnout are much as you would expect them to be. Physical symptoms can include physical fatigue, frequent illness and sleep problems.

Emotional symptoms include disillusionment with the job; the loss of a sense of meaning and cynicism towards our organizations or clients; feelings of helplessness; frustration of efforts and a lack of power to change events; strong feelings of anger against the people we hold responsible for the situation; and feelings of depression and isolation.

Behavioral symptoms can include increasing detachment from co-workers, increased absenteeism, an increased harshness in dealing with our teams, marked reduction in our commitment to our work, and increased alcohol consumption. These symptoms reflect exhaustion and a loss of satisfaction with work.



Burnout happens when people who have previously been highly committed to a job lose all interest and motivation. Sadly, this can spell the end of a successful career.

It mainly strikes highly-committed, passionate, hard working and successful people – and it therefore holds a special fear for those who care passionately about their careers and about the work they do.

Anyone can become exhausted. What is so poignant about burnout is that it mainly strikes people who are highly committed to their work: You can only "burn out" if you have been "alight" in the first place. While exhaustion can be overcome with rest, a core part of burnout is a deep sense of disillusionment, and is not experienced by people who can take a more cynical view of their work.

Exhaustion and long-term stress contribute to burnout, but they are not the most destructive parts of it. The real damage of burnout comes from the sense of deep disillusionment that lies at its heart.

Being proactive, energetic, committed people, it is likely that we respond to obstacles like these by increasing our commitment and hard work. However, in these circumstances it is possible that these efforts may have little or no impact on the situation.

This can be where burnout begins to set in. As we get less satisfaction from our jobs, the downsides of these jobs become more troublesome. As we get more tired, we have less energy to give. If our organizations fail to support us, we can get increasingly disenchanted with them. We become increasingly disillusioned.


Here are some advices that might help:

1. Take care of yourself.

If you're run down, you'll burn out faster. Make sure you get enough sleep, eat right, exercise and de-stress on a regular basis.

2. Make the time to do nothing!

We all need to take time to relax, refresh and replenish. Don't keep pushing yourself. Keep regular business hours and take breaks during your work day. Make sure to schedule in time off and vacations on a regular basis. You'll come back with a fresh outlook and perspective

3. Get back in touch with the things you value.

Is your work fulfilling and meaningful for you? If not, check in with your values. What's missing? Where are you compromising? What needs to be eliminated? What are you merely tolerating? Re-assess and re-adjust your priorities as needed. If you work for yourself, you're in control. Make the choices you want to make by honoring what's important for you.

4. Think out of the box and challenge yourself consistently.

If work has become a chore or you're in a rut, try spicing things up a bit! Find innovative ways to do mundane tasks, create new products or services to add to your offering, improve performance, or tweak what you do best and make it even better.

5. Establish realistic expectations for what you can and cannot accomplish.

If you find that you're driving yourself or your employees too hard it may be time to let go of unrealistic expectations and readjust. Shorten your to-do list, give yourself some slack when needed and know when to let up on yourself and others.

6. Learn how to communicate clearly.Resolve conflicts, don't run from them.

Let people know what you expect from them, and ask them what they expect from you. Be clear and concise with what you say, and how you say it. Listen closely to the people around you, it will teach them to listen closely to you.

7. Manage your time.Poor time management is another thing we do that leads to burnout.

Set regular business hours. Make appointments with yourself to get things done - and keep them! Being on time counts, show up promptly for appointments and expect others to do the same.

8. Stop blaming yourself or others.

If you're playing the "woulda, coulda, shoulda" game, perhaps it's time to re-evaluate your attitude. Blaming yourself or others for things that have gone wrong doesn't help. What does? Learn from your experiences and make changes to ensure that you get the results you want the next time.

9. Value yourself by establishing boundaries and limits.

Learn how to do it in a way that clear and consistent. Don't give away too much of your time. Let people know your policies and procedures. Be upfront with what's acceptable and what's not. Learn how to say no.

10. Deal with your emotions.

Keeping your feelings inside usually leads to trouble. If you are feeling any kind of negative emotion, don't deny it. Instead, learn how to acknowledge your feelings, be up front with them; and deal with the underlying causes.

11. Laugh, smile and enjoy the ride!

Life is too short to worry and be serious all the time. Find ways to make your work fun and enjoyable.

12. Don't feel embarrassed to ask for help.

Everybody needs a little help once in a while. You can't do everything yourself. Don't be afraid to ask friends or associates for help.