Are you worried about increasing employee productivity in 2022? Let us help you unpack employee burnout and how to cure it before it gets worse.
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Employee burnout spreads like a wildfire. If you don't address it in the beginning, it can wipe out your entire team and possibly your business. The only way you can do this is by making sure that employees have the right amount of support to stay motivated. Additionally, you can figure out systems that increase employee productivity. The best way to get started is to know what employee burnout is.
What is employee burnout?
Employee burnout is sometimes called "workplace burnout". Have you ever experienced stress at work? Well, stress is nothing in comparison to burnout. As the name suggests, burnout happens when an employee’s well-being is totally drained - mentally, physically and emotionally. What does this mean? Simply put, the employee lacks the motivation and interest to keep working.
Most employees experience this due to mistreatment or overworking in the office. Ignoring employee burnout in its early stages can turn into a cyclone of negativity that will affect the turnover of the business, reduce employee productivity, and change the culture of the company. ignoring that one employee who is unmotivated and tired will influence the rest and affect the whole business structure.
In today’s digitized world, keeping employees happy is part of the goals of any business. Picture this, you pick out one team member who seems stressed and struggles to stay motivated to perform their duties. You assume that it's a personal problem that will get back to normal with time. Over time, that person might decide to air their frustrations on their social media pages, which will affect your business negatively.
So, how do you know that someone is experiencing employee burnout and not normal stress?
5 signs of employee burnout
Timely intervention will help you get ahead of employee burnout before it catches on in the office. For this to happen, you need to be aware of what signs to watch out for in your team. Check these out!
1. Low productivity
If an employee was an overachiever, they will slowly start to dip. The employee might be struggling to stay motivated and handle the same amount of work with the same energy. However, it is not uncommon for someone to start out with a lot of momentum and then reduce it for a few days. So, make sure you have a word with the person to rule out any external factors at play.
2. Frequent illnesses
Did you know that employee burnout and chronic stress go hand-in-hand? When the body is stressed it will not be able to fight off infections as much. Therefore, an employee who is experiencing burnout will have health-related issues. A survey of about 7,500 employees conducted by Gallup showed that 23% of employees have experienced burnout before and have reported to the emergency room as a result.
3. Frequent absenteeism
If an employee constantly feels tired and ill, they will always be absent from work because they need a break. Therefore, all the workload will have to be taken up by the other employees. This makes the other employees overworked and burnt out as well. Employee burnout is a vicious cycle that spreads like a disease if not addressed in the beginning.
4. Little or less involvement in social activities in the workplace
Less participation in social gatherings at the workplace is a bad sign. Social events in the workplace are fun and used to increase employee productivity. It’s set aside for employees to connect and relax. So, if an employee doesn’t feel like they have enough time to disconnect from work and enjoy themselves, especially during the holidays, please take this as a red flag. Don't stretch your team thin trying to meet deadlines and turnover goals at their expense.
5. Negative body language
Communication is mainly done verbally, which makes us ignore the most crucial form of communication - body language. Your body says a lot about a person’s thoughts. If you pay close attention to your team, you will easily pick out the employee who is easily irritated, frustrated, and nervous. Stress comes out in many ways and one of them is lack of patience. If you notice this, pull them aside and try to get to the bottom of their behavior.
What causes employee burnout?
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Lack of support - A strong support system in the workplace will give your team the right tools to increase employee productivity. Therefore, if the workplace does not have a support system, the employee may feel like they will not be able to accomplish their goals.
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Unfairness and discrimination in the workplace
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Poor work environment and workplace culture
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No recognition for their good work - Set up reward systems that recognize employees for their contributions in the workplace.
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Hard work with little rest - Stressful time restrictions and workload will make even the most motivated person experience employee burnout.
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External factors such as career incompatibility, lack of support from loved ones, stressful events, pessimism, perfectionism, and family pressures.
By now, you must have picked out a couple of people in your team who are experiencing employee burnout. The good news is that it is reversible and you still have the chance to stop it and increase employee productivity. Here’s how!
How to stop and reverse employee burnout
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Actively listen
Employee burnout makes a person feel undervalued and not needed as much in the workplace. Simply listening to a frustrated employee will make them feel human and valued. Ask them about what they are going through and what you can do to make their work experience better. Involve them in the decision-making process. Listening and creating an open-door policy will take you a step closer to increasing employee productivity.
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Create a recognition system in the workplace
Pick any day of the week and have your team say anything positive about each other. It will boost morale and help people experiencing employee burnout to remember why they do what they do. Hearing compliments about their work will increase employee productivity.
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Get feedback
Receiving feedback is a very direct approach to employee burnout. Therefore, opening the door to both positive and negative feedback will help you know exactly why a person is experiencing burnout. Employees will appreciate sharing their ideas.
The engagement at the office is the stepping stone to building positive work relationships. Host a team-building event that helps them reconnect and form new friendships. This connection may make them feel more motivated and get rid of their disgruntled mood.
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Efficiently delegate the tasks
Hard work really does pay. However, when hard work causes employee burnout, it doesn’t pay. Have you ever thought about delegating work to other people other than that one employee? Take some tasks off their plate and let others perform. Furthermore, if the rest of the team is not able to handle the task, you will have to create a training program. The training program will give them the right skills to help them perform the tasks efficiently.
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Create a burnout-busting system
Create a system that allows employees to know when they are at the end of the rope. You will have to educate them on the signs and causes of employee burnout. Additionally, you should be open to applying burnout-busting systems like:
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Taking mental health days
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Prioritizing employee wellness
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Helping them understand and pick out signs of employee burnout
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Allowing them to make mistakes
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Create a learning program that allows them to learn from other departments and advance their career
Conclusion
Employees are the biggest asset of any business. How you treat them reflects on your turnover and productivity. Exposing employees to stressful, strict, and harsh working conditions will cause serious harm to them and the business. This is why you need to increase employee productivity and lookout for signs of employee burnout. Use the tips covered above to cure employee burnout in the workplace.
