6 Tips For Avoiding Burnout At Your Job

Do you spend your entire weekend dreading going back to work on Monday? Do you find yourself snapping at your poor good-natured secretary for bringing you coffee or asking you if you are okay? Do you sometimes feel like throwing things around in your office or just leaving and never coming back? If you have felt this way, you might be experiencing job burnout. We will all experience it sometime or another. It is often the result of having too much stress at work. We often spend hours each day feeling constant pressure, stress, and desperation at work and don’t seem to see the end results of our hard work. Symptoms of burnout often include mood swings, tension headaches and other physiological symptoms, loss of motivation and enthusiasm, and depression. Although work burnout is very common and it is almost impossible to eliminate stress from daily life, there are several things that you can do to prevent it.

Take a Real Vacation

One of the biggest factors that can lead to burnout is that we never really get time off from work. Most employees use vacation days here and there to run errands or take care of personal life duties and are left with no time off for enjoyment. Try taking at least a full week off where you cut off communication completely from your employer. Try traveling to somewhere outside of your city so you feel that you are really disconnected from work. If it is impossible to be completely out of contact, ask to be e-mailed rather than called. This way, you can at least set aside some time during your vacation for work-related duties and leave the rest of the time for enjoyment.

Participate in Fun Activities after Work

Your work day will be a lot easier if you have something to look forward after work. Enroll in a gym where you can go and have some stress-free time for yourself. Join a local team if you enjoy doing a certain sport and you will be able to socialize with other people and talk about things completely unrelated to work. Start a poker night or social with your friend where you can catch up and talk about your personal lives.

Draw the Line

Most cases of job burnout are due to spending too many hours working. It would be wonderful to be able to stick to a routine 8-5 schedule, but this is not a possibility in many positions. Set a limit of how many extra hours you will allow yourself to work. Sometimes staying an extra hour or two at work where you are completely focused on your task is better than taking work home and spending hours on it because you are distracted by your kids and spouse. Talk to your boss if work is becoming a little bit too much to handle and see if you can delegate some of the more tedious and easy tasks to others.

Find Enjoyments during the Day

The regular work day can seem long and never ending. Find ways to break up your day by allowing yourself some enjoyment throughout your work day. If you are a coffee lover, take 10 minutes in afternoon to enjoy a delicious cup of your favorite latte. Take a lunch break to your favorite restaurant with a friend or your spouse. Allow yourself ten minutes to walk outside and take in some fresh air. Read your favorite book or watch your favorite show during your lunch time.

Vent (For a Little Bit)

Sometimes we need to just let it out. Spend a few minutes each day venting with your spouse and your work about things that are going on at work. You should just allow yourself a couple of minutes because spending your entire day complaining about work will only worsen your situation. Try to adopt a positive attitude and look at the good things that come with your job, such as a stable paycheck, benefits, excellent co-workers, a beautiful view, etc.

Move On

If you seem to try everything and feel completely unmotivated, it might be time to move on to a different position. Talk to your superiors about what you are experiencing and inquire about other opportunities within the company. If you feel like the company is not a good fit, start actively searching for a job elsewhere.

Eric Thompson

Source: Office Space For Rent