How do you know when you are getting close to Burnout?

Do you find yourself dragging your body out of bed to go to work? When you’re working too much, you may find yourself in a state of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion. This is caused by excessive and prolonged stress.

Feeling burnout usually happens when you’re overwhelmed and unable to meet constant demands. When this carries on, you begin to lose interest in what you’re doing, and you forget why you were passionate about your job to begin with.

Working too much can reduce your productivity, sap your energy, and leave you helpless, cynical, and resentful. You may read this and think, “It’s not THAT bad for me.” However, most of this burnout starts when we start to feel bored, overloaded or unappreciated. It starts when you feel like you’re juggling a bunch of balls in the air, but no one is noticing, or no one is really caring. If it feels like this all the time, then you’re working way too much.

Here are a few signs that you’re working way too much:

• You feel like you have little to no control over your work tasks.
• You feel there’s a lack of recognition or worth to the things you’re doing.
• You have unclear or overly demanding job expectations.
• You are doing work that’s monotonous or unchallenging.
• You are working in a high pressure or chaotic environment.

Working too much will also manifest in the following areas:

• Physical (feeling tired, drained most of the time, frequent headaches, back pain, muscle aches, decreased immunity, change in appetite and sleep habits)
• Emotional (feeling of failure, self-doubt, feeling of helplessness, trapped, defeated, detached, feeling alone)
• Behavioral (withdrawing from responsibilities, isolation, procrastination, taking longer to get things done)

Here are 8 simple tips to prevent the consequences of burnout:

Start the day right.

You can start with a relaxation ritual. You can spend 15 minutes of each day meditating. You can write in your journal. You can do gentle stretches. You can read something that inspires you.

Set boundaries.

Do not overextend yourself. Learn to say “no” to some requests. If you find it difficult to say “no,” say “yes” to things you really want to do.

Do a tech detox.

Set a time each day to disconnect from the digital world, and to connect to your soul, or to the real world. Put away your laptop or your phone. In this period of time, do not check your email or your social news feed.

Adopt a healthy lifestyle.

Eat healthy. Exercise. Sleep at least 6-8 hours a day. When you eat right, engage in regular physical activity, and get plenty of rest, you will have energy and resilience to deal with the hassles and demands of life.

Nourish your creativity.

Creativity is a great outlet to counter the burnouts. Try something new. Start a fun project. Pursue something you’ve always wanted to do. This will help balance your life.

If you’re just recovering from working way too hard, here are things you can do to get back on your feet, when it’s too late to prevent burnouts.

Slow down.

When you discover that you’re already at your breaking point, you need to force yourself to slow down and take a break. Give yourself time to rest and to heal.

Ask for help.

When you’ve worked yourself out, you need to protect the little energy you have left. Ask for help. Delegate. Turn to your loved ones for support. Simply sharing your feelings and frustrations with another person can actually take the load off.

Reevaluate your goals and priorities.

When you are working too hard, it’s a sign that something in your life is not working the way it’s supposed to be. Take the time to rethink your hopes, goals, and dreams. Think about this time as a sign that you may be neglecting something that is important to you. Take this as an opportunity to rediscover what truly gives you joy, and adjust your path accordingly.

If you are suffering from significant Burnout, we recommend you reach out to your local care providers to gain the extra support you need an

The Daily Guru Team

Articles written by our internal Daily Guru writers, who are certified & qualified growth & development professionals.