Burnout: Identifying And Neutralizing

2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 15:43

On the emotional level: people lose interest in work, a feeling of irritation and dissatisfaction appears, sometimes the meaning of life is lost. On the physical level: sleep disappears, or, on the contrary, you want to sleep, people lose and gain weight, abuse various methods of relaxation, fatigue appears - energy is lost even for minimal actions. Often this condition occurs in people whose professional activities are closely related to people, but they are not the cause.

There are several reasons, and many of them have one thing in common: stress.

One of the main reasons for professional burnout is the rhythm of today's life, including at work, i.e. in the professional field. Everything around is changing very quickly: rules, innovations in professional fields, fashion trends, and constantly updating knowledge and skills is required. Many people, due to their internal rhythms, do not keep up with what is happening. They do not have time to recognize and learn everything. Then there is an inner feeling that life is running faster than you can, and this is a certain stress. It is he who introduces a person into a state of dissatisfaction.

The second reason is the age difference between generations. Today is the very milestone when as many as three generations can meet at work. All three think differently and imagine their approach to processes and outcomes. The generation of our parents approaches everything thoroughly and theoretically, our generation learns from practice and mistakes, which is absolutely unacceptable for the former. And the generation of today's youth, that is, Z, basically does not understand the approach of the previous two. So much for the dissonance in understanding and perception. When you get the feeling that you are not being heard and that they speak a different language, it is also stressful.

The third reason is Generation Z and the inadequacy of professional life to their needs. Generation Z chooses today the so-called "patchwork biography". It is not career growth that is important to them, but self-realization at every stage. That is, they often choose a new professional field if in the previous one they have achieved certain results that are sufficient for them personally. It is very difficult to retain such specialists here, if only to arrange quests for them along a professional trajectory.

The fourth reason is new horizons, or rather the natural need to take new heights. Almost every person has a period in life between the ages of 30 and 40, when there is a desire to find oneself in something new, or to "learn to walk anew." As a rule, in this state, the most professional employees leave their companies and go to conquer new heights in new areas.

Fifth - new priorities and values. By a certain age, professional achievements fade into the background, and people look more towards the family, begin to value personal time, and the opportunity to live "here and now." They choose a quieter haven, with lower incomes, but happier and more fulfilling lives outside of work. In this situation, the meaning of being at the workplace from 9 to 6 is lost, I want to find a way of self-realization in a freer schedule, while devoting more time to my family and myself.

The sixth reason has to do with mistakes in the organization itself. We are talking about corporate culture, or rather about its absence. These are contradictions in management, in tactical and strategic leadership, high unrealizable requirements for employees, devaluation of employees' work and merit, lack of objective assessment criteria and an ineffective personnel motivation system. All of the above leads to dissatisfaction and stress, as a result, to the desire to find a new place of work, where all this will be possible.

The last reason is the fear of losing a job due to the current situation in our country. Goals change from internal to external. Employees, fearing losing their jobs, spend energy on preservation, not on development. This is what violates the internal needs of people, which also leads to dissatisfaction and "the desire to escape from reality."

There is good news, too. Almost all causes can be neutralized by retaining your valuable employees. It is necessary, taking into account each point, to find a solution to the need that underlies the cause. For example, in the case of new horizons, expand the field of activity of the employee and give him the opportunity to master new directions that were previously closed. Or, with the fear of losing his job, convince the employee that he is in a company where his loyalty is interested in him and appreciates.

Most importantly, a person is made happy by two main directions in life - professional realization and personal happiness, so you shouldn't forget about your personal life either! But the last thing is more to the employee: make sure that you want to go home the same way you want to go to work, then professional burnout threatens you least of all.