Strategies to Avoid Burnout and Support Your Employees

In our experience as workplace leaders, recognizing our roles in both avoiding burnout in our employees and supporting them when it happens is an important reminder of the kind of impact we can have on our organizations at large. At times, the meaningful parts of the manager experience can feel overshadowed by overwhelming workloads or packed schedules, but by remembering that we play an integral role in cultivating wellbeing and engagement among our team members, we feel charged to support them in the fight against the phenomenon at every turn. 

In this next article on burnout, we’re aiming to equip you with our anti-burnout strategies and best practices for supporting employees that can make the ongoing effort a rewarding one!

Recently, we published an article on burnout with some pointers on preventing it in managers specifically, but while they have influence over its presence in our organizations, the work doesn’t stop there. Everyone is at risk of burnout, and it’s essential that these tactics are integrated on a much broader level to ensure sustainable working habits for all. Practicing active leadership and coaching employees in this direction can ultimately have a transformational effect in the face of rising rates of burnout. 

Not sure if your employees are suffering from burnout? Here are 3 Tell-Tale Signs Your Employees Are Suffering From Burnout

What causes burnout in employees to begin with?

As discussed in our article on the real causes and effects of burnout, research tells us that the number of employees currently experiencing at least moderate levels of burnout continues to rise. Everyone is at risk for burnout, with 76% of employees reporting having experienced burnout on the job at least sometimes. According to Udemy Business’s A Leader’s Guide to Battling Workforce Burnout, most employees who experience burnout fall into one of the following categories: Overwhelmed overachievement, neglectful management, and poor engagement at work (often stemming from a perceived lack of growth opportunities).

While avoiding burnout altogether is the recommended course of action, sometimes, despite our best efforts, the symptoms of burnout might manifest themselves in one or more of your employees or team members.

Here are three strategies you can employ today to support your employees with burnout 

Honest communication about our relationship with work is fundamental to providing employees and ourselves with what’s needed to avoid burnout in professional contexts. With increased transparency around the issue, let’s get right into the most effective strategies that we can implement to take extra care in fast-paced work environments: 

• Establish safe spaces to discuss workplace difficulties 
  As we know, the symptoms of burnout in your employees can be pretty hard to spot, so checking in regularly with them on their current feelings toward work creates a safe space for them to openly and honestly communicate what may be unnoticeable from a manager’s perspective. With a collective understanding of the intricacies of burnout, team members will feel empowered to ask for support, rather than suffering silently from the effects of prolonged and unmanaged stress. 

• Serve as the ultimate advocate for your employees
  As a workplace leader, it’s essential that you use your voice to advocate for your team and their needs. Be adamant about protecting their time and workloads when they are threatened by unreasonable work demands. In particularly stress-inducing seasons, clearly communicate your expectations while offering flexibility where possible. Relish in the empowerment that comes with setting your employees up to do their best work by eliminating obstacles and offering continued support.

• Leverage accessible resources and support systems
  With the development of an organizational strategy against burnout must come the resources to put it into action. Well before you notice the onset of any symptoms of burnout, regularly remind teams of any programs or benefits provided by the company that could aid them in the areas of wellness and development, as employee engagement in these realms can act as a preemptive defense to the phenomenon. Additionally, remember that you are also setting an example for how stress management and self care are approached in your organization––ensure that you are scheduling and prioritizing time for rest and recovery and avoiding engaging in behaviors that can increase stress among employees. 

How Leadology is paving the way for managers to better support employees with burnout

Though batting burnout is an ongoing effort, the implementation of strategies personalized to the needs of your own organization can make the process more rewarding and sustainable. We’ve witnessed countless managers building their own line of defense against burnout with a reliance on strengths work in our premier leadership program Activate, where a network of leaders are engaging in purposeful conversations and sharing resources for collective success.

Schedule a strategy call with us to learn more about how Activate is connecting managers to the tools and support they need to finetune their strategies against burnout!

Carrie & Team Leadology