The MyWorkBALANCE App || The MyWorkBALANCE Framework

“Why do we have to take from our personal life to regain balance for our professional life? Why can’t we experience balance at work.”

Shari Founder of MyWorkBALANCE

Addressing Early

It’s never too early to start. According to 2022 data from Gallup, (RYAN PENDELL AND SARA VANDER HELM) workers under 35 are disengaging from their jobs in much higher numbers than their older cohorts. We should start early by incorporating burnout prevention in school curricula and training programs. By equipping individuals with stress management skills and resilience-building techniques from an early stage, they are better prepared to handle work-related stressors in the future. Additionally, early training can empower individuals by helping them understand the components of professional fulfillment and how to advocate for themselves in the workplace.

Of 10,243 full-time desk-based workers polled in six countries including the United States and the United Kingdom, over 40% said they are burned out. Nearly half (48%) of 18-to-29-year-olds said they feel drained compared with 40% of their peers aged 30 and up, while women (46%) reported higher levels of burnout than men (37%). It would make sense to implement burnout prevention strategies during an employee's onboarding and training process. Many new employees will not have had the privilege of exposure to burnout prevention education either through their academic experience or previous employment. Making burnout prevention a part of the onboarding process communicates the message that burnout prevention is a priority and part of the workplace culture.

If your company is just getting started with burnout prevention strategies, they can also be effective for those employees who meet partial criteria for burnout. Early intervention can help address the underlying causes and prevent further progression towards burnout.

Lastly, it is important to promote burnout prevention even after an employee has completed burnout treatment and is in the recovery phase. Continued support, monitoring, and follow-up can help maintain the progress made and prevent relapse.

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Why Do We Need Burnout Prevention

Individuals

If left untreated, burnout results in a feeling of exhaustion, physically, mentally, emotionally, and even spiritually (Jacobson, 2012). It causes an attitude of cynicism and detachment toward your workplace and contributes to a loss of belief in yourself, your abilities, and your effectiveness at work (Fred & Scheid, 2018). There is an 180% increased risk of developing depressive disorders for those suffering burnout (Ahola et al., 2005). Psychological distress is not the only impact; risk significantly increases for employees whose burnout persists. For instance, there is an 84% increased risk of Type 2 diabetes (Melamed et al., 2006) and a 40% increased risk of hypertension (von Känel et al., 2020). In the short term, an employee could experience insomnia, headaches, and musculoskeletal pain (Salvagioni et al., 2017) as well as impairment in short-term memory, attention, and other cognitive processes essential for daily work activities (Gavelin et al., 2022).

"Physicians have resilience and self-reliance in abundance, but when we rely on those traits above all others, we put our own well-being and that of our patients and colleagues at risk." - Susan R. Bailey, MD, president of the American Medical Association, 2020-2021

Physicians are at a higher risk of suicide and suicidal ideation than the general population. Suicidal ideation has been associated with high workload volume and medical errors.

Suicide - According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention:

Each year in the U.S., roughly 300 - 400 physicians die by suicide.
In the U.S., suicide deaths are 250 - 400% higher among female physicians when compared to females in other professions.
In the general population, males complete suicide four times more often than females. However, female physicians have a rate equal to male physicians.

Organizations

Leading burnout researcher from the Healthy Workplaces Center at the University Of California Berkeley, Christina Maslach, reported that 10% to 15% of employees in an organization will meet the full criteria for burnout. She adds “over half of employees are likely negative in one or two dimensions — not burned out, but perhaps on the pathway there.” (Maslach, 2021).

Costs incurred by organizations due to burnout include:

Absenteeism - Burnout causes a 57% increased risk of workplace absence greater than two weeks due to illness (Borritz et al., 2010).
Lost productivity - According to Gallup, disengaged employees cost US companies between $450 billion and $550 billion annually in lost productivity.
Replacement Costs - Gallup estimates that replacing an employee can cost between half and twice their salary. For example, if an employee's salary is $50,000, the replacement cost could be between $25,000 and $100,000.
Healthcare expenses - According to a 2019 Stanford study, workplace stress leads to nearly 120,000 deaths and nearly $125 to $190 billion in spending each year.
Poor Customer Service - New Voice Media reported that U.S. based companies are losing over $75 billion dollars annually due to poor customer experiences. National survey indicated that 39% of respondents avoided going to the doctor because of poor previous experiences with a healthcare organization or provider (Taber et al., 2015).
Patient Care - Patients give lower consumer assessment ratings overall to hospitals who require longer shifts for their nurses (Stimpfel et al., 2012). The consequences of untreated burnout can become catastrophic, risking patient safety with sometimes life-threatening mistakes by employees (Dzau et al., 2018; Hall et al., 2016; Pereira-Lima et al., 2019).

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Increase Professional Fulfillment

The BALANCE Framework: The good news is that you don’t have to suffer from the effects of burnout. Mental health practitioners believe that burnout can be both treated and prevented. Professional fulfillment is often defined as the extent to which an individual finds their work rewarding, meaningful, and aligned with their personal and professional goals. Focusing on increasing professional fulfillment is preventive for burnout and is less costly to both employees and employers than treatment for burnout. For health and human service employees, professional fulfillment can be fostered through the 7 pillars of the BALANCE framework:

Behaviors: Behaviors are the evidence of the forces that are “behind the scenes” of the workplace and “below the surface” in the individual. In the workplace, this is the culture that is both stated in written procedures and unspoken in the understood norms. In the individual, this is the past painful experiences, thoughts and feelings (Dana & Porges, 2018). The first step in avoiding burnout is to learn to notice and observe the problematic behaviors of yourself and others. Problematic behaviors are typically void of empathy and empowerment. Rather, they involve attempts to dominate and control others, lash out in anger and frustration, make assumptions before getting all the information, defensiveness, stubbornness, shutting down, or the like. Observing behaviors provides the opportunity to understand the context surrounding the situation and activate a proactive, problem-solving response. It also allows time to divert impulsive and emotionally charged reactions that perpetuate the toxic cycles that lead to burnout. This first step to commit to calmly observing rather than impulsively reacting is a critical ingredient of psychologically safe environments in which people can thrive and enjoy professional fulfillment.
Accepting Feelings: Accepting your own and others' feelings is essential for creating a safe and supportive environment. Often workplace cultures require that professionalism be synonymous with stoicism and that expressing feelings is a sign of weakness. However, both denying and/or stuffing your feelings is stressful and is problematic for the work culture and your physical and mental health. Feelings are an authentic component of the human experience and are better regulated than denied. Accepting and expressing your feelings and allowing others to do the same creates the opportunity to learn and discover meaningful solutions for the conflicts that are compromising the wellbeing of yourself and others (Harris, 2021).
Limiting Beliefs: Learning to identify and challenge limiting beliefs is the key to growth and development both for the individual and the workplace culture. For example, you could have beliefs that cause you to trust certain people more than others, or believe things about yourself and others that may or may not be true. Limiting beliefs are characteristically rigid and negative and unfortunately, the foundation for many of the organization policies that contribute to burnout. Beliefs that are helpful are those that are flexible, optimistic, and realistic. Recognizing and challenging limiting beliefs and the patterns and policies that reinforce them facilitates the opportunity for both individuals and workplace cultures to reach their full potential (Beck, 2020).
Activating Events: Events in the environment that trigger an emotionally charged response are the primary cause of burnout. Because the human body is wired for survival, reminders of past emotional pain are current threats that trigger the Fight, Flight, or Freeze response (Dana & Porges, 2018). Becoming aware of the people, policies, duties, and types of interactions that trigger the survival response is probably the most important skill in building resilience in yourself and the workplace. Simply stated, when either the activating event or the activation to the event can be avoided, burnout will be eliminated.
Nurture Health: For several years, self-care has been the obvious burnout solution promoted by the vast majority of employee assistance programs. However, recent research is indicating a downside to this single-minded focus (Hricová, 2020). Understanding that burnout is as much the responsibility of the workplace as the individual employee is the heart of a successful wellness program. Additionally, self-care or “health promotion” programs are most effective when offered as a voluntary and preventive measure allowing for autonomy and individual decision-making in its use (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015). Nonetheless, self-care is essential for health and wellbeing and is the responsibility of each individual and each organization to promote (Jackson & Watkin, 2004).
Connections: Individuals and workplaces that foster a climate of inclusion and belonging create cultures that are safe, fun, and productive. Even workplaces that are especially demanding and that offer limited employee efficacy (a situation ripe for burnout) can offset the risk of stress through building opportunities for workplace relationships (Karesek & Theorell, 1990). Importantly, while allowing coworkers time to connect, reflect, and vent about their work has been found to reduce burnout risk, requiring social engagement through seemingly unnecessary meetings has been found to contribute to burnout (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015). Connection needs to be allowed to authentically occur in the workplace (Jackson & Watkin, 2004). Additionally, reconnecting with your purpose, the reason why you do what you do and connecting with your passion, what you are good at, reinforces resilience in both the workplace and the individual. Rediscovering meaning and engagement with work in the helping professions can serve to reduce burnout risk (Hricová et al., 2020; Jackson & Watkin, 2004).
Efficacy: Studies have demonstrated that allowing employees increased autonomy in defining or “crafting” their jobs can reduce the risk of burnout (Gabriel & Aguinis, 2022). Workplaces that promote autonomy and agency demonstrate respect for the dignity and self-worth of employees, which provides opportunity for increasing confidence and motivation, the necessary ingredients for success (Jackson & Watkin, 2004). Believing that professional fulfillment is possible is the motivation for both workplaces and individuals to commit to implementing these 7 steps.

Introduction

Burnout Definition

What is Burnout Prevention?

Who Needs Burnout Prevention?

Addressing Early

Why Do We Need Burnout Prevention

Individuals

Organizations

Increase Professional Fulfillment

Conclusion

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