How leaders can break the cycle of workplace burnout

The uncertainty, isolation and frustration the pandemic brought to working life (and beyond) unsurprisingly resulted in a spike in workplace burnout. But, with cases of burnout remaining stubbornly high since Covid, what are the dangers for ambition and productivity, and what can leaders do to stave off burnout in themselves and their teams?

Burnout kills ambition

People will never commit to their life’s best work or deliver breakthroughs if they are burnt out. Curiosity, passion, and innovation are left as smouldering cinders and it can often be difficult to re-stoke the flame.

There are innumerable reasons that burnout can occur. Many leaders found that lockdown amplified a lot of these causes, and, for teams still operating remote or partially remote working, some of them still remain.

For example, for people already being overly productive, working from home may amplify a tendency to push too hard and overwork. For people already feeling socially disconnected, lack of a bustling office to go to regularly may amplify this feeling.

Avoiding burnout isn’t just an exercise in boosting productivity. Productivity itself can kill ambition, and it often can only be focussed on short-term goals. You need your team to have juice in the tank if you’re going to achieve more long-term ambitions. For you to effectively prioritise, make good decisions, innovate and seek out your next opportunity you need a full battery.

Being present to your people

Leaders need to be present to their people and identify what issues there are. It’s easy to approach it by only thinking of what would cause burnout in yourself personally. But everyone is different, and what causes burnout for one person might not cause it for another.

A leader can’t just listen from their own perspective, they need to empathise with their team. There are probably things that are affecting the team as a whole – perhaps a lack of access to resources as people are working from home. But there are most likely issues with individuals that might fly under the radar as they may not be considered issues from another person’s perspective.

It is time for leaders to stand in the shoes of every single member of their team and see what’s going on for them. Everybody’s circumstances and approach to work are different, and they will be affected in different ways.

Perhaps it’s the extrovert salesperson on your team — who’s always at the water cooler sharing stories and sales tips — that’s missing that social interaction. Or perhaps it’s an introvert on your team who is unhappy they are not getting to share their learnings with other members of the team.

Maybe it’s someone who lives on their own and is feeling isolated, or someone with children at home who feels overwhelmed. Maybe it’s countless other things that may seem insignificant but can have a big impact on the individual experiencing them — and consequently the team as a whole.

So what should you do from here? Your role as a leader is to be present to the reality of all of your team members and check in with them. It’s vital to understand that burnout is caused by different things for different people and looks like different things in different people.

No judgement can be cast on those who feel burnt out. It has nothing to do with different abilities and resilience levels. It’s down to different styles, circumstances, and communication preferences.

It’s these differences, after all, that makes a team diverse. So, with burnout still a very real and present danger, now could be a good time to check in on your team, extinguish burnout, and spark some passion.

Looking to create an impossible future? Get in touch to explore how we can help you ignite your ambitions.