Burnout has reached crisis proportions. With nearly 50% of employees mentally and physically exhausted due to poor work life balance, and an increasing rate of annual turnover due to burnout, something must be done. Work related stress and burnout is taking its toll on workers’ health, as they work longer hours to make a few more dollars, or to compensate for not enough employees. Seventy-one percent of 18-29 year olds already know the term burnout, and many, the associated feelings of waking up in the morning dreading the day ahead. The number of workers seeking sleep meds is on the rise, as work related stress keeps their minds running, unable to settle down. Despite the apparently grim state of stress in the workplace, it’s not a hopeless situation.
Tap these 6 tips to avoid burnout and increase your daily happiness.
1. Take a vacation
Despite the two weeks’
vacation time that many workers feel is not enough in a year, nearly 50% leave their vacation days unused, or take work along. To avoid burnout, leave work behind. Whether you take one long vacation, or break it up throughout the year, take that much-needed time to get back in touch with yourself, your family, and your life. A few days in paradise, or at the very least, out of the office, will give your heart, soul, and entire outlook on life a major boon.
2. Rediscover your purpose
We all need a reason, a vision, and a ‘why’. Define yours. If your vision and your reality don’t match up, it may be time to start
networking and
expanding your career horizons to align what you do with your greater vision. Sometimes though, it doesn’t require a major career change. It may just take a new way of looking at your existing role, and finding meaning and purpose within your day.
3. Exercise
A combination of cardio and mindfulness training not only improves your health, but your total mindset and approach to life. By increasing your energy, you’ll feel more ready and excited to start and conquer your day. Make it interesting by involving your friends or coworkers in an exercise challenge—to get healthier together, build stronger friendships, and enhance your outlook.
4. Go social
Social contact is crucial—and I don’t mean social media. There’s nothing like face-to-face contact and connection to open the floodgates to keep stress from building up. Focus on your friendships and relationships outside of work. Make time every day for the people you care about. Invest in at-work friendships during lunch and breaks.
5. Give electronics a break
In the 21
st century, it’s all too common to find people on break staring at their phone, or doing work outside of work hours. Give your electronics and your mind a break. Use your tech as tools, and not as a crutch or a vice.
6. Champion a cause
Nothing improves the status of the heart and soul like
having a mission and purpose outside of the daily routine. Find a cause you care about and get involved. Stepping outside of yourself and your comfort zone to collaborate with others and focusing on the needs around you will help your community—and keep you from burning out.
Don’t wait till you’re on the verge of a breakdown to take action. The mental exhaustion that comes with overwork and an unbalanced life is too costly on your health to leave unattended. Implement these steps today to build a more beneficial work experience, and a better life.
