Communicating Burnout - Making A Business Case to Decrease Your Workload

Can you be experiencing burnout if we are only 2 months into a new year? We sure as hell can 😵‍💫 🫠

Shoot - we are still recovering from the holiday chaos, our kids are sick (with yet another virus), business is back in “demand mode” and we are lucky if we still have our jobs (layoffs… I’m still lookin at you)

Let me first start off by saying, you’re doing a great job. I’m here to give you the grace and the credit you deserve navigating through our incredibly demanding day to day lives. 

Work seems to be exponentially harder these days and when our society is fueled by “busy-ness", it is only a matter of time before we become burnt out. Gallup 2021, found that employees overextended themselves in 2020 to deliver as much “business as usual” as they possibly could and we are STILL dealing with the repercussions. I don’t know about you, but time seems to be in warped speed ever since the world shut down amongst a pandemic. Wasn’t 2019 just last year…?

“As CHROs reflect on the past 12 months, it is clear that employees have made heroic efforts in serving customers and keeping organizations in business. Many have put themselves at risk or persevered through immense personal challenges” (Gallup, 2021).

And yet, what has that heroic effort gotten us? Laid off. Underpaid. Still disrespected. 

Yikes. 

With all of this, it is SO important to learn how to stand up for ourselves. We need to learn how to effectively communicate our needs and limitations in the workpalce. 

Here’s how to communicate limitations and address potential burnout in the workplace - 

1 - First things first, start documenting everything on your plate.

If your inbox and never ending to do list seems like it’s too much, it’s probably because it is. Document all the tasks/projects/requests you handle on a daily basis. Do this for 2-3 weeks and you’ll get a clearer picture of all the work you’re being asked to do. 

2 - Next, schedule a 1:1 meeting with your boss/manager/business partner/counterpart to have a specific conversation about your bandwidth.

Use the documentation you have been preparing up until this point as a starting point to have the conversation around boundaries, limitations, and delegation. 

Here’s how to ask for that meeting/conversation - 

"Hey XYZ, would you be available to meet for 15-20 minutes on Monday or Tuesday so we can chat about my workload?"

3 - During the conversation, be direct, provide receipts and admit faults/limitations

This is the hard part. It is HARD to communicate we aren’t able to keep up with everything being asked of us. It is vulnerable and we want to shield ourselves from seeming ‘incompentent’. The reality is - business benefits from efficiency. If you are bogged down with a) too many tasks or b) tasks not related to the overall goal of the business, it only slows down productivity. Bad for you - bad for business. 
Communicate the fact that because of the insane workload, you are in turn being counterproductive to the efficiency of the business. It looks like this, 

"The business needs me to be doing (name a task, b task, and c task). Lately, x,y and z tasks have been taking up a lot of my time and I have not been able to accomplish a,b and c tasks in a timely and efficient manner.  For example, last week I noticed I was late on a report and I can tell I am suffering in my productivity. Is there a way we can discuss a solution for my workload so I can make sure I am being as efficient as I can with the tasks I need to be focused on?" 

4 - Lastly, come prepared with a solution

Now is the time to communicate boundaries AND showcase your problem-solving skills. 

"I want to be conscientious of the fact I am not performing my best when I am overworked. I’m wondering if it would be possible to offload or delegate some of the tasks so I can be more efficient. If not, can we take a look at where I’m spending my time? Open to any solutions to make sure I’m being as productive – and not overwhelmed – as I can be."

It’s not ok to be burned out and overworked – it’s unproductive to YOU and as a result, it’s unproductive to the business too. With the ability to communicate this effectively to your workplace, it will improve the working relationship and environment between you, your clients, and your colleagues. These conversations are what will create a safe, sound, and productive work space. 

Try these today and watch your work life transform for the better!