The Best Ways to Prevent Job Burnout

The “honeymoon phase” isn’t just for relationships. In fact, it happens frequently with jobs. For the first few months of a new job, there’s no such thing as a bad day. Your boss can do no wrong, and your company is greater than any other one out there. However, once this rosy glow wears off, the realistic picture of the work environment may be a shock. When employees are no longer engaged it can lead to a number of concerns, including loss of productivity and higher turnover.

In addition to this, company culture matters more to workers than ever before. Unlike other generations, millennials place a high priority on liking what they do each day at the office. Providing a positive work environment and room to grow makes that business more likely to draw in top talent of all ages.

There are a number of reasons why an employee can begin to feel burnt out at work. Some common issues include:

• Excessive job demands: An overloaded employee will quickly become exhausted. It’s easy to identify this person: they’re the one drowning in papers and to do lists.
• Role confusion: A person who isn’t sure exactly what their job requires is more likely to experience frustration and, as a result, burnout.
• Lack of information or support: An employee who has no guidance or support at work will quickly start to feel confused, and may begin to disengage as a result.
• Lack of feedback: It’s hard for a person to get better at their job when they don’t know what they are and aren’t doing well. The fastest way to get an employee to quit is to ignore and ostracize them.
• Little to no involvement in decision making: While a company can’t be a complete democracy, employees should feel as if their ideas matter. Their suggestions should be valued and taken seriously.
• Work mismatch: When a marketing person is put into tech support, they’ll begin to feel out of place and frustrated by their lack of success at work. Employees should use their talents and interests each day.

Preventing burnout is easy when employers shift the focus to factor employee satisfaction in to the equation. Some easy ways to do this include:

• Create a clear list of goals and strategies: If employees don’t know what they’re working towards, they’ll wonder why they should work at all. A clear set of well-defined goals and company values help employees to stay focused and base their work around these principles.
• Check in regularly: While employees don’t need to be micromanaged, some guidance and feedback from a manager counts. This interaction should consist of both constructive criticism and praise for a job well done. Employees who feel connected are more likely to be satisfied with their working environment.

It is also important that an employer defines roles for all members of the organization. When people know exactly what they’re supposed to do and how performance will be measured, their efforts are worthwhile and meaningful.

How do you prevent burnout at your company? Let us know in the comments!