Burnout is becoming more and more common at work. 1 out of every 20 employees is at home with a burnout. You also hear more and more commonly that someone in your direct environment has a burnout or is about to develop one. Per decree, it has been compulsory since the 1st of September for supervisors to practice burnout prevention. There are different ways of doing so and different courses aimed at burnout prevention. How do you pick one, or where do you start to look? To help supervisors on their way, we describe the symptoms of burnout in this article, and that which is important to consider in burnout.
Tips for supervisor in burnout: the symptoms of burnout
First off, you will notice that employees with burnout do not respond in the same way when you ask something, or find it difficult to complete certain tasks. When you have burnout, you namely feel exhausted. You have the feeling that even the simplest of things or the easiest tasks are too difficult and require too much energy. Because their brains are full and they feel exhausted, employees with burnout or developing burnout will also find it difficult to focus. They namely experience a lot of stress, and this will distract them in many tasks, so that it often takes more time for them to complete a certain task than it used to take. Concentration and attention are two factors which are affected a lot when someone has a burnout or when someone is developing a burnout. Having a burnout can thus influence work a lot, and in many cases it will do so. Especially when extra tasks are added, someone with a burnout will feel lost and will not know where to start. That is why it is useful to practice burnout prevention, because burnout is negative for both parties involved. For the employee the negative effect is found in experiencing a lot of stress, feeling exhausted, and being mentally overwhelmed. They will hardly be able to do even the simplest of things, without experiencing stress or feeling lost. For them it takes both time and effort to get out of this burnout, which might mean that they are absent from work for several months. For and employer a burnout is negative, too, because tasks no longer get done as quickly as they used to, or are not finished at all anymore. After this, when the employee needs time off, this means that work power is lost, which can also cause problems for the supervisor.
Tips for supervisor in burnout: treatment of burnout
Koeck, MD, gives day training for supervisors regarding burnout. Such a training entails: explanation of the symptoms of burnout, recognizing burnout, neurological processes in burnout, communication techniques for burnout, how to communicate in a multidisciplinary team, tips regarding prevention, and information about re-integration.
Tips for supervisor in burnout: take the stress test
Would you like to know to what extent you experience stress and if this can lead to a burnout? Then take the free stress test whenever you want to!
