Burnout: What is it, and what to do about it

Does your work leave you exhausted and prevent you from doing things you enjoy? Do you feel like you give more than you get in the workplace? Find out how to identify burnout, the symptoms, and what you can do to regain control of your career.

What is burnout?

Even if you love what you do, burnout is a common symptom of corporate work. This can be a presumed fundamental part of the experience of legal roles. From legal support roles to lawyer or solicitor jobs, feeling exhausted or drained by your job can feel like an expectation of working within this industry.

But what is burnout?

Burnout is more than feeling tired after work. It may involve feeling useless or powerless and leave you feeling physically and emotionally empty. It is a type of exhaustion that can affect your physical, mental and emotional health and is the result of excessive and prolonged stress.

Whilst burnout is often mistaken for depression, it differs in that it is a response to a specific environment or situation. It can frequently result from feeling overwhelmed and unable to achieve the demands of your workplace.

Symptoms of burnout you may experience include fatigue, headaches, loss of motivation, feelings of self-doubt, procrastination, withdrawal or isolation, and an increased dissatisfaction with your work.

What causes burnout?

Burnout can result from internal and external factors in the workplace.

Internally, it may be that you are a high achiever or perfectionist that pushes you to overwork. But additionally, it may be having little control over your work, high expectations, or working within a chaotic or high-pressure environment.

What are the effects of burnout?

Burnout can significantly affect multiple parts of your professional and personal life. Most notably, it can affect:

Your Physical Health

Ongoing stresses like burnout can leave you feeling physically exhausted. In the long term, this means paying less attention to your physical health in terms of eating healthy and exercising. Additionally, burnout can lead to a weakened immune system, leaving you more vulnerable to illness. High blood pressure and heart disease are just some of the severe effects of burnout.

Your Relationships

Burnout can and will impact your mood. If you are experiencing burnout, you may find that you are more angry, sad or irritable on a day-to-day basis. Consequently, this will start affecting the people around you, potentially damaging your personal and professional relationships.

Career Consequences

If you’re experiencing burnout, there will be an eventual flow effect in the type of work that you can produce. Not only will the overall quality of your work decrease, but this may be notable to your peers and managers. This could affect your development, reputation and ability to grow in your role.

What do I do if I’m Suffering from Burnout?

Short Term – Take a Break

Regaining balance in your work and personal life is essential to recovering from workplace burnout.

This can mean taking regular breaks throughout the workday or, more importantly, taking a holiday during which you are not focused on work. Using this time to go out into the sun and do something creative or exciting can significantly impact your mood and ability to concentrate on work.

Adding breaks directly to your calendar can be a simple but effective way to ensure that this time is used.

Medium Term – Talk to Your Manager

If your workplace is burning you out, discussing this with your manager is valuable. Not only will they be better clued into their team, but they will also be able to identify ways to shift your focus or goals to something more productive and less likely to burn you out.

Many workplaces have programs like an EAP or Mental Health First Aiders that can provide mental health support. Your manager should be able to point you towards these programs.

If you discuss your concerns with your manager and don’t feel like you received the solution you wanted, there is another solution to this problem.

Long Term – Find a New Job

If you discuss burnout with your manager and don’t feel like they took your concerns seriously or didn’t implement change that positively affected you, it may be time to look for new work.

In a post-COVID-19 marketplace, there is a growing cultural sentiment that prioritises mental health in the workplace. Balance is essential, and businesses that don’t offer this to their team will ultimately lose them to other opportunities.

Work-from-home (WFH) opportunities are a normal and expected part of flexible working arrangements for businesses. As a recruitment agency, we deal with many businesses that offer multiple days a week to work from home if it suits their team members.

In such a buoyant market, staying in a job that is costing you mental health does not serve you in the short or long term. There are businesses that are looking to grow their teams in a positive direction and that will prioritise the well-being of their team members.

Talk to a Recruiter

Recruiters have a better grasp of the job-seeking market than anyone else navigating it. They interact with businesses and candidates every day and understand what each party needs to collaborate effectively.

If you are suffering from burnout and want a change in your workplace, reach out to empire group today and be connected with one of our great recruiters. Our team specialise in helping people grow in their careers (without the cost to their mental health).

empire group are a specialist recruitment agency with offices in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. We help professionals to advance their careers across legal support jobs, legal professional jobs, technology jobs, corporate jobs, risk and governance jobs, eDiscovery jobs, within both the temporary employment and permanent employment market. If you are looking to make your next career or business decision reach out to empire group today at 07 3231 1200, or email administration@empiregroup.com.au, or visit: https://www.empiregroup.com.au/contact-us/ to be connected with one of our great recruiters.