Most people have a day here or there when they feel drained and nothing goes right, despite all their hard work. But when these feelings last for days or weeks, they may indicate a much larger problem: Job burnout.
Things may be going great -- you love your job and are excited about your career -- when job burnout sneaks up on you with a creeping sense of dread. Or burnout may hit like a ton of bricks. No matter how it happens, job burnout can wreak havoc on your career and your health.
And job burnout doesn't just negatively affect employees who suffer from it. Employers must correct burnt-out workers' mistakes and replace employees who leave due to burnout, which costs time and money.
Job burnout is not unusual for healthcare workers. Many handle life and death situations on a daily basis and work with patients whose diagnoses and treatments frighten them. Some are overworked from long hours and staff cutbacks. And in healthcare, burnout can have dangerous consequences.
Are You Experiencing Job Burnout?
To answer that question, it helps to know what job burnout is. On the simplest level, it's when you feel mentally and physically drained for more than a few days with no hopes of improvement. You feel overwhelmed and wonder why you're doing what you're doing. Nothing makes any sense.
Answer these questions to gauge your level of burnout:
- Do you have difficulty getting up in the morning?
- Are you always tired?
- Do you forget things?
- Do you have unexplained aches and pains?
- Are you irritable at work and at home?
- Do you feel angry at work and at home?
- Do you lose your temper easily?
- Have you lashed out at coworkers, patients or your family?
- Are you overwhelmed most of the time?
- Do you feel like you have less control over things at work and at home?
- Are you stressed most of the time?
- Have you begun to wonder why you're doing what you're doing career-wise?
- When at work, do you look at your watch constantly to see how long you've been there and how much longer you have left?
- Are you going through the motions just to get through your shift?
- Have you been experiencing more headaches, stomachaches, rashes, chest pains and illnesses?
- Have you lost interest in things that used to excite you?
- Are you bored?
- Do you feel like you're in a rut?
If you answered yes to three or more questions and you've felt that way for an extended time, you are probably headed for job burnout -- if you're not already there.
Believe it or not, you can banish your burnout. It takes a little effort, but it can be done. In Part 2, we offer tips to help you overcome burnout and get your job back on track.
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