Written by | Wei-Hsuan Chuang, Intern Psychologist
Reviewed by | Tzu-Jung Chang, Counseling Psychologist
Readers who clicked on this article may be currently experiencing or have experienced such troubles.
Burnout refers to a state of mental and emotional exhaustion from expending all one's energy at work. When experiencing burnout, we feel unmotivated and fatigued for everything, and even have a sense of constant internal depletion. This low-energy state is like a battery with no power, making it difficult to find the strength to complete tasks or do things we want to do.
At this time, it is especially important to pause, rest, and re-evaluate one's condition. This article will explore with you how to cope with and prevent burnout, helping yourself live an energetic life.
The Meaning of Burnout
Burnout responses can be categorized into: indifference towards work objects, decreased work efficiency, and lack of sense of accomplishment (Maslach & Leiter, 2016).
- Indifference towards work objects:
In interpersonal interactions, treating others with a passive and cold attitude. It is also a state of depersonalization, making it difficult to connect and interact with others. - Decreased work efficiency:
Related to "Emotional Exhaustion," where individuals are in a state of physical and internal psychological fatigue, unable to effectively meet work demands. - Lack of sense of accomplishment:
A low evaluation of one's work ability and efficiency, accompanied by a feeling of incompetence, which easily leads to a negative self-concept.
According to Maslach & Leiter, burnout is a psychological state and a stress response. Among these, emotional exhaustion can serve as an initial assessment of burnout. Long-term exposure to work stress leads to a sense of emotional depletion, affecting the quality of work-life and the functioning of the organization (Wright & Cropanzano, 1998). The concrete manifestation of emotional depletion is like sometimes we suddenly feel unmotivated or annoyed by work. What was once full of enthusiasm suddenly loses its joy, leaving only fatigue. Such moments are a precursor to "emotional exhaustion."
Before Burnout — Personal Energy Management
Facing burnout, consciously "maintaining" one's physical and mental well-being can prevent energy from being depleted more quickly.
First, let's discuss the concept of personal energy. Energy management is also a form of "vitality management," which can be considered across four dimensions:
- Physical: Physiological vitality, such as eating well, sleeping, and exercising.
- Emotional: Emotional well-being, enhancing energy through emotional management, building positive emotions, or empathy.
- Mental: Focus in thoughts, intentionally cultivating concentration to enter a flow state.
- Spiritual: Spiritual fulfillment, achieved by setting clear goals and realizing personal visions.
Systematically breaking down vitality into these four dimensions helps us manage it. We can set small goals to address each of the four categories.
Generally, the physical dimension is the foundation of everything. The amount of power in a battery affects an individual's physical and mental stamina when facing work. Beyond that, the emotional dimension is more like the quality of this battery; having more positive emotions allows for better performance. Training in the mental dimension affects execution efficiency; higher concentration leads to higher work efficiency. Finally, if one can increase spiritual satisfaction in work, connecting work with a sense of personal meaning, these four dimensions will together form a "positive energy."
During Burnout — Self-Compassionate Care
When burnout occurs, it means we are out of power! We need to recharge before we can continue moving forward.
At this time, the most important thing is to return to yourself and allow your body and mind to rest. Several methods can be tried:
- Find a safe place to rest:
Reduce environmental stressors. In a state of exhaustion, both body and mind struggle to bear more pressure. You can go to a familiar and favorite coffee shop to work, or leave the office for a quiet space to rest. - Create healing events:
Whether it's eating, drinking, playing, cuddling a pillow, admiring cute objects, or hugging a close partner, these are all great forms of inner healing. They encourage the body to secrete happy hormones (oxytocin), generating a sense of well-being and reducing anxiety. - Consciously boost motivation:
From the four dimensions of energy, choose the "easiest" one to start with, and actively engage in it to build up your energy reserves. An relatively easy start might be to get your body moving, exercising to release dopamine. Or, use the time to sleep and replenish physical strength, or supplement with Vitamin C and protein; these are all simple ways to begin.
Having read this far, have you thought about which dimension you'll start with to gradually conserve and enhance your energy?
Instead of blaming yourself or feeling depressed due to work exhaustion, try to focus on "what we can control and adjust" to positively recharge yourself.
Work consuming energy is something everyone experiences. If we can alleviate pain promptly when nearing or experiencing exhaustion, and replenish our energy through the four dimensions, we will have a better chance in the future of balancing exhaustion and recharging.
References:
Lin, Y. C. (2024). You're Not Lazy, You're Low on Energy: Energy Management Techniques for a Supercharged Life. Taipei City: Cite Publishing Group.
Wu, Z. Y., & Cheng, B. H. (2006). The interactive effects of job involvement, emotion regulation, and emotional labor on emotional exhaustion. Chinese Journal of Psychology, 48(1), 69-87. https://0-doi-org.opac.lib.ntnu.edu.tw/10.6129/CJP.2006.4801.05
Zhao, Y., Wang, Y. C., & Wang, Z. H. (2019). Validation of the three-factor model of burnout for clinical nurses. Bulletin of Educational Psychology, 51(2), 207-230. https://0-doi-org.opac.lib.ntnu.edu.tw/10.6251/BEP.201912_51(2).0002
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