If you’re just not feeling your job anymore, burnout may be to blame. You take hours to do what used to take you less than 45 minutes. You get bored, or stressed, or you find excuses not to do what you have to do at work. A new survey conducted by Career Builder showed that 77% of people feel burned out from their jobs and 52% of employers feel that their employees are “very burnt out”.
So how can you learn to relax and enjoy your job again?
Be Laid Back About Reponses
People will get to you when they get to you. That doesn’t always mean today, tomorrow, or even over the weekend. Nothing that you feel, say, or do will make them respond any quicker. Yet people expect instant responses and are constantly stressing about when someone’s going to return their e-mail or phone call. This can build stress very quickly, and the more you practice the habit, the more you do it. Instead, be less demanding of others to see an immediate impact on how demanding you are of yourself.
Take a REAL vacation
A mini-vacation over the weekend can often be more work than it’s worth. All of the planning and organization for 48 hours can be even more stressful than work. Instead, take a real vacation. Take the time to go out for a week or two. Leave your phones, laptops, and other electronics somewhere else - they take away from the vacation part of being on a vacation. Instead, relax and enjoy yourself without all of the ties to the workplace. You’ll thank yourself for it later.
Get One Thing Done, Then Relax
Choose one thing that’s at the top of your list for importance. It doesn’t have to be a huge project, but it should be something you want to get off of your to-do list. Once it’s tone, celebrate your accomplishment, even if you only do so for five minutes. Take a short break with a cup of coffee and appreciate yourself and your hard work. It can keep the burnout gone for good, and it feels good in the moment.
