Nothing saps productivity and morale faster than team members who are tired, stressed, overworked, and basically burned out.
As the economy tightens and staffs shrink, your employees will likely feel more crunched than ever; in fact, a recent survey found that 78 percent of workers reported feeling burned out at work.
Whether it’s you or your team that’s feeling fed up, a lack of motivation and performance hurts on both the personal (career advancement, psychological well-being) and professional (productivity, project quality, revenue) levels.
That’s why it’s important to recognize the signs of burnout and, more importantly, do what you can to remedy it.
Some symptoms of burnout:
- Fatigue and low energy levels at work
- Being easily bored, lack of engagement, a “why bother?” attitude
- Increased cynicism or bitterness about the job, boss, or company
- Irritability and emotional outbursts
- Substandard performance, sloppiness in tasks, and missed deadlines
- Increased absenteeism
- Drug and alcohol use
One symptom alone doesn’t qualify as burnout, but pay attention if you see two or more in evidence in your employees. How to combat burnout?
- Provide flexible work options such as telecommuting, alternative schedules, compressed work weeks
- Offer time off, either as vacation or a short paid or unpaid leave
- Improve your accessibility to hear employee concerns and gripes
- Give employees more autonomy and control over day-to-day decisions — empowerment can build morale and motivation
- Recognize employees for their work and efforts
- If possible, offer a change in responsibilities or duties
- Facilitate coping skills by giving employees access to exercise and breaks and teaching them relaxation techniques such as meditation and self-hypnosis
(image by anna banana via Flickr, CC 2.0)
