If you are noticing your employee’s seem burned-out, resentful, unsettled, or apathetic it’s probably because they are. To effectively re-energize the workforce, we need to shift the focus from getting more out of people, to investing more in them. When they are motivated and feel valued, is when they can bring more energy and show up as more of themselves.
Reports say it is an “employee’s market” … not according to employees.
The things we are forced to choose between as American workers have been shifting since early 2000 but since the pandemic, the job market and work culture have led to the highest burnout rates we have ever seen. People are choosing their next job not for the work, but for the benefits, the culture, and the kind of manager they have. The pandemic has tilted the work life balance beyond what the market can stand, and people are fully leaving the workforce without jobs lined up to break free and reset. Time is finite and workers are desperate to get more of it. The problem with money is we can’t take it with us, and if we could no one could pay enough for what the tradeoff is.
I am hearing things daily like:
“My job consumes everything,”
“I don’t even know what I like to do anymore,”
“I don’t have time for the things that really matter.”
My practice is made up of all types of demographics, from high level executives to direct workers, across the board the topic is burnout, unrealistic expectations, and work life imbalance. Coming from someone who works for themselves, I understand it is not as black and white as this article may sound, and that job security and feeding our families is not a lighthearted topic nor one that has any one solution. This article is to highlight a BIG problem that needs even bigger solutions and some tips for managing in the meantime.
If you are an employee here what you need to know:
1. Balance is a Myth. This is your life, there is never going to be balance. Figure out what’s important to you in your life and then prioritize little things every day that you can show up for. This could be taking a FaceTime call with your grandson in the middle of the day, leaving the office early to have dinner with your kids or put them to bed 1 night a week. Let yourself be a person first 2 out of the 5 (6, 7) days you are an employee. Small changes can make a big difference.
2. Turn it off. Decide when you are going to stop taking calls, checking email and slack and then hang it up. It will all be there for you tomorrow. Find a way to unplug for the day, the work will never be “done”, and you will not be more productive tomorrow or the next day if you are burning it out every night. This type of work is ineffective, leads to resentment and is often, thankless. Our work is important, we are important but none of it is that important and we need to invest more in our sustained energy and the longevity of our higher selves so we can keep perspective about what matters most and then have our actions align with our values. In short: there needs to be a time when you are not working and not available so you can just be in your life.
3. Protect Your Energy: NYT article just came out stating that the most valuable commodity for highly successful people is energy. Sustained energy only exists if we protect it. Energy is a reciprocated resource, working in an environment of negative burned out people only takes energy. Seeing your kid light up when they see you, or your dog run up and slobber on your pants, moments of shared joy and connection, these are things that give us energy back. An article written in Harvard Business Review in 2007 describes energy in the workforce:
“Time is a finite resource, but energy is different. It has four wellsprings—the body, emotions, mind, and spirit—and in each, it can be systematically expanded and renewed. For instance, harnessing the body’s ultradian rhythms by taking intermittent breaks restores physical energy. Rejecting the role of a victim and instead viewing events through three hopeful lenses defuses energy-draining negative emotions. Avoiding the constant distractions that technology has introduced increases mental energy. And participating in activities that give you a sense of meaning and purpose boosts the energy of the spirit.”
Quick and Dirty Energy boosts:
1. No matter what is happening, take 30 mins for lunch. Step away, take a walk, eat a sandwich, breathe.
2. Push away from your desk and take 3 mins to re-set. Check in with yourself observe your breath, observe anything you are holding onto, consider letting go of it, even just for the present moment.
3. Jump up and down. Literally.
4. 5-year question. “Does this really matter? Will it matter in 5 months? 5 years?
5. Have a mantra to help you help your tired burnout self:
“Life is short, this is my life.”
“It is enough, I am enough”
“Nothing crazy is going to happen.”
“I am one human, and this is my life”
If you are an employer here’s what you need to know:
1. F@#cking pay me. At the end of the day people are often motivated by money and success and if you are expecting individuals to trade long hours and endless availability they need to be compensated fairly. Obviously, there are budgets that confine spending but when it is possible, it can make a huge difference.
2. Acknowledge and Value the effort and its impact on their humanity and life. People are missing family dinner, putting their kids to bed, hanging out with their friends, showing up for special events and significant things daily because of the nature of their work. The only thing worse than missing these things, is to miss them and for no one to even notice or comment on the work you are doing or its impact. Not to say people need to be constantly validated for everything but when someone is working hard notice them, acknowledge you see the trade in they are making, it makes a difference.
3. It is still a global pandemic. People have just spent the last 20 months in a compact space managing more than can be expected (especially parents, especially mothers). Don't let that be lost on you. Make room for people to do their jobs efficiently and effectively in ways that work for their unique situation. I am looking at you in office mandates. Work with people and talk to them, there are ways to make our workforce so much more humane and have direct impacts on quality of life and organization culture.
4. Numbers don’t lie. There have been countless studies on workers motivation, productivity and general task completion being connected to less billable hours not more. The Corporate Executive Board found that people who have a good work-life balance are 21% more productive. In a Stanford University study from 2019, economics professor John Pencavel found that productivity per hour declines sharply when a person works more than 50 hours a week. “After 55 hours, productivity drops so much that putting in any more hours would be pointless.” Does anyone work 50 hours a week anymore? No.
Bottom line: everyone has someone they are reporting to. Everyone is managing the best they can in a system that is broken, with no so protections for the quality-of-life factor for any of us. The Harvard Business Review article quoted at the beginning of this article was published in 2007! We have been talking about this problem for 14 years and it has gotten worse and worse. Instead of blaming or finger pointing let’s all try and make room for the collective humanity of the workforce. No one wants to be trading this much life in. The best way to influence the behavior and relationships to work for your employees is to model good boundaries and be consistent. It’s going to take a lot to shift the work culture back to a more manageable place and it is going to take everyone moving in that direction, together.