As busy leaders and owners of a business time is a precious commodity that is not renewable. I sometimes hear owners and leaders say phrases like “I have to stay on top of everyone to make sure it gets done”, “it’s crazy busy around here and I can’t seem to come up for air.”
These are phrases that tend to point toward a business owner and leader headed for burn out. Are you headed that way? Here are some signs.
- Feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. Each time you look at a “to do” list a mountain of dread flows over you.
- You don’t think clearly. You find yourself not able to focus on one thing for long before the next “fire” erupts from someone else.
- You are frustrated and don’t feel things will get better any time soon.
- Your performance is waning so you make it up by working longer hours after everyone has gone home and it often spills over to the weekend too.
- You are always “at work” even when you are away from it. You can’t seem to disconnect from it and your mind is always racing through issues that you want to solve at work.
- Are people avoiding you?
- Nothings seems to be going right. You head towards the negative instead of the positive, and can’t seem to find the good in most situations.
- You don’t socialize outside of work in part because you don’t disconnect from it.
- You are experiencing health issues and fail to exercise or eat right, and you know it.
- You are finding sleep harder to come by. Studies have shown a lack of sleep over a period reduces your cognitive ability.
If you see any or a number of these symptoms, you could be headed for burnout. Make sure to avoid it by:
- Eating healthy
- Get adequate sleep…7 to 8 hours each night
- Delegate
- Implement operating systems that are simple and proven that help with accountability and drive results
Here is to make sure we understand what burnout looks like and making the changes necessary to avoid it.
Mike