How do I deal with employee burnout?

As many employees focus on productivity in their workday, expectations continue to rise. Today’s worker is busier than ever. And yet, they are no longer satisfied with the amount of work that they are putting in.

Some of this comes from the endless articles on productivity that clutter up the internet. Too many employees are focused on trying to get as much done as physically possible.

While this may seem like a good thing on the surface, it can be damaging in the long run. Many employees are finding themselves burning out at a higher rate than ever before.

As a manager, this should concern you. You no longer have the luxury of letting your employees deal with burnout on their own. You need to be a leader for them, which means navigating employee burnout as best as possible.

You can use some strategies to keep your employees on track without letting them slip into burnout.

Regular meetings

At first, this doesn’t sound like a very effective strategy. More meetings? Everything that we know about work today tells us that we should be having fewer meetings.

That holds true, but these meetings have to serve a particular purpose. Communication is essential in any organization. If you want your employees to work within their means, you have to set expectations for them. And when you set expectations, they have to be communicated clearly. You need to give employees some sort of end goal in mind to not overwork themselves trying to chase an unachievable ideal.

This also gives your employees a chance to discuss any issues they might have. Create an environment where employees are free to speak up about their concerns. If they can tell you that they feel overwhelmed by their workload, then you can address some of these issues before burnout sets in.

Acknowledge their work

Some employees overwork themselves because they feel that they aren’t doing enough. They expect to hear something from the boss, but they never get that approval that they’re looking for.

You can’t be that kind of manager. For employees to take a breath, you need to let them know that you’re happy with their work. If you can sincerely communicate this regularly, you can stave off a lot of burnout because employees will be far more satisfied with the work that they are doing.

The easiest way to do this is with some sort of rewards program. Boost Coinz™ can allow you to build a customizable program in a matter of minutes that will work for your team. You can use this rewards program to help employees be motivated to work harder and understand when they reach their goals and take a break.

Create a clear career path

A part of setting goals for any employee is that they know exactly where their career is headed. Some employees simply overwork themselves because they are trying to win the approval of a boss that could further their careers.

When you are meeting with your employees regularly, you need to be discussing their futures. Providing clear updates on where their careers are headed can help them feel motivated to do their jobs. But it also will allow them to limit themselves on what they’re doing. Instead of chasing after an abstract goal, you can provide clear benchmarks for them to hit to know they are moving their careers forward without killing themselves.

As you can see, a lot of employee burnout has to do with communication between managers and employees. As a manager, that falls on your shoulders. Suppose you can shore up those problems and create an atmosphere of open communication and recognition. In that case, you can keep your team from burning out regularly.