How do you feel about your job? Do you jump out of your bed with excitement? Or do you drag your feet to work, and feel anxious about it?

If your employees tell you that they are the latter, they could be experiencing burnout. 

There are several types of burnout, one of which is overload burnout. This happens particularly to those ambitious individuals who might strive for success at any cost. As a result, they may find themselves exhausted, or having strained relationships with loved ones, deteriorated health, and poor performance in the workplace. 

At the opposite end is “under-challenged burnout”, which refers to individuals who no longer find their roles fulfilling, and thus became demotivated at work. One reason could be because their careers lack learning or growth opportunities. Thus, as a leader, it is recommended to assign new tasks to such individuals or to help their team break down their goals into smaller steps. Focusing on incremental improvements may help refocus and re-energize the burnt-out individual.

The danger of putting your employees in a constant state of burnout is that they might even believe that the negative symptoms and emotions are part of their personality traits. This includes being frustrated, depressed, demotivated, and so on. Therefore, it is essential for leaders to be alert for burnout signs like these, and to create a psychologically safe culture where employees can comfortably engage in open and honest conversations, instead of bottling up their emotions.

Like Ipek Akinci Dziubek, Country Manager for Singapore, Malaysia, and Emerging Markets at Philips Domestic Appliances mentioned in the sixth episode of “Ask the Expert” series, “It is important for leaders in such times, if not all times, to demonstrate compassionate leadership.” It is important for leaders to listen to their team members empathically, understand their needs, and find ways to resolve challenges in a collaborative and compassionate approach. 

Oftentimes, we are caught in the rat race where we are pressured to get ahead, especially when many organizations are trying to rebuild their business and recover their revenue loss after the pandemic. However, leaders should bear in mind that stress and burnout could impede their business recovery if they do not prioritize their employees’ well-being. Hence it is essential for companies to encourage their employees to keep healthy boundaries at work. One such measure could be to ask employees to disconnect from work when it’s after working hours.

Being socially connected with others is another important aspect of employee well-being that companies should pay attention to. Leaders can create a work environment that is conducive to friendship. For instance, encouraging employees to share their stories about their personal interests, and organizing meaningful activities. This shows that you genuinely care about them, and also helps reinforce a sense of belonging in the workplace. 

Take Philips Domestic Appliances as an example. Dizubek shared that one of the ways that their company supported their employees is by freeing their employees from internal meetings and other non-critical work on Fridays. This allows its employees to pause, think, catch up and connect.

Ready to explore more on how you can support your employee well-being? Book a free consultation with Budaya Team to see how we can help build a healthier and more engaged workforce.

About Ipek Akinci

Ms. Ipek Akinci Dziubek is the Country Manager for Singapore, Malaysia, and Emerging Markets at Philips Domestic Appliances. She is responsible for the overall strategy, direction, and management of the Philips Domestic Appliances business for Singapore, Malaysia, and Emerging Markets. 

Dziubek holds a Master of Science Degree in Engineering Management Systems from Columbia University, School of Engineering and Applied Science New York, and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering from Bogazici University, Faculty of Engineering Istanbul, Turkey.