Battle Burnout for Mental Health Month
Entering Mental Health Month is an ideal time to talk about the rise of burnout and what organizations can do to address its existence and alleviate the effects.
Burnout: A syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress
Defined by the World Health Organization as a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress, burnout is characterized by feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion; increased mental distance or feelings of cynicism related to one’s job; and reduced professional efficacy. When burnout strikes, it pulls down people, productivity, and overall organizational wellness.
Often, an organization’s top producers are highly at risk - and with 42% of employees reporting burnout (Future Forum) and HR leaders ranking highest on burnout metrics (Executive Networks), it’s clear that ignorance to this issue is not bliss.
Cool the Burn:
Offering vs. Encouraging PTO
There is a distinct difference between offering PTO and cultivating an environment where employees feel encouraged to take time and truly unplug.
Set your teams up for success by ensuring there is staff available to cover any short-term needs, respect boundaries by not contacting them (emails, texts, “just wanted to check-in” calls, etc.), and - perhaps most importantly - exemplifying these types of behaviors at a leadership level.
Some platforms, such as PTO Genius, are built to help identify who is in need of a break before full-on burnout hits.
Flexibility = Freedom
When feeling dissatisfaction due to a lack of flexibility, 53% of employees report feelings of burnout. From a retention standpoint, those experiencing burnout are 3.4x more likely to look for a new job within the year.
Conversely, employees with full schedule flexibility report 39% higher productivity and 64% greater ability to focus in comparison to those with none. Flexible workers are also 57% more likely to say their company culture has improved over the past two years compared with fully in-person workers—and cite flexible remote work policies as the primary reason their culture is changing for the better. (Future Forum)
Think Outside the Box
I’d like to introduce you to The Freedom Project - A Multicultural Social Impact Agency, and FOORUM, Inc., a Streaming and E-Learning platform that uses AI to teach people real-world solutions for finding mental health care in a broken healthcare system.
On July 28, this organization is hosting a Red Carpet film premiere at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. The event will focus on the effects of burnout + quality of life and correlations to domestic violence.
Consider getting engaged with this nontraditional approach to addressing mental health awareness, elevating accessibility, and destigmatizing these conversations.
One thing is certain - no one is immune to feelings of stress and overwhelm in the workplace. Building a framework to support your teams in being able to unplug, be flexible, and have brave conversations around lived experience can help to ensure everyone has opportunities to refresh and recharge - benefiting their health and wellbeing, and the bottom line.
