EXECUTIVE BURNOUT AND
PREVENTIVE ACTIONS
BY DR. PRAKASH.V.BHIDE
Kiran was a
Hi Potential STAR in a financial company. He was an Engineer from IIT and MBA
from IIM. He had a dream successful career and was promoted as Vice President
at the age of 32. His boss and company had very high expectations from Kiran.
Unfortunately even with long hours of work, within a year after promotion,
Kiran is a wreck and facing burnout. Why? How can he be helped?
Even though
executive burnout is reported to be growing at an alarming rate, it is not
talked about much. The cost of burnout both for individuals as well as
organization is very large. In a survey, it is reported that the cost is $200
billion per year for Australia as a country.
The term
burnout was coined by Freudenberg (1974). The term burnout is described as “It
is a state of physical, mental and emotional exhaustion that often result
from a combination of very high expectations and persistent situational stress.
It describes a state of depletion of person’s resources, particularly energy
due to excessive demands made on the person as a result of which the individual
becomes apathetic and impassive towards work and other aspects of life.”
Radha Sharma
(2005): “Executive burnout is marked by persistent feeling of inadequacy,
ambiguity, dissatisfaction and powerlessness accompanied by behavioral manifestations
of apathy, indifference and physical and emotional exhaustion.”
My
experience shows that high potential talent and high performers with very
high ambition and expectations are more prone to executive burnout. Many
times ‘A’ players are found to be insecure overachievers. Even though they show
external self-satisfaction, a large number of them lack self-confidence. They
need constant appreciation and kudos much more than other ‘A’ players around
them. They are never satisfied with anything. The best results, grades or
promotion, are just ok for them. They work very long hours and can’t say ‘NO’
to unreasonable demands and expectations from superiors and other
significant stakeholders because of inner insecurity that they will be left
behind.
These high
potential and high performer ‘A’ players, to meet their own and
organizational expectations, work for very long hours under unremitting
pressure of walking tight rope amongst conflicting interests of work, family,
children and others. Over a period, they become lonely, harassed, burdened
and go beyond a tipping point into psychological quicksand leading to physical,
mental, emotional and psychological exhaustion. They become angry, go into
self-criticism, cynicism, irritability, negativity, mood swings, powerlessness,
overwhelmed, depressed, lack of motivation, self-control and sort of hit the
wall. This leads them to absenteeism, alcohol, drug abuse etc. Many burnout
cases report that they can’t sleep well, can’t eat well and are under chronic
stress. There is a total loss of energy and interest and long-term
psychological exhaustion and detachment. People report that they are empty,
helpless and hopeless.
The major
factors of burnout are:
1.) Type ‘A’
personality/stress personality.
2.) Very
high ambition to meet own and other significant stakeholder’s unreasonable and changing expectations.
3.)
Role-expectation conflicts
4.) Role
stagnation/Role erosion
5.) Personal
inadequacy
6.) Low
Emotional Intelligence (Self Awareness, Self Control)
Preventive Actions:
Individuals and organizations can do a lot to prevent burnout. Individuals should set reasonable expectations and say ‘No’ to things beyond their capacity. They must pay attention to work-life balance and periodically go on vacations with family and friends for socialization. Sharing with close friends is an effective way to come out of the burnout process. They must keep a positive attitude towards their life and rein their expectations. They must avoid long hours of work on a continuous basis and keep away from competing with others for promotions and more financial rewards. They should take help of executive coaches or, if necessary, therapists to come out of burnout. Meditation, spirituality, physical exercise, sports, pranayaam, self awareness and self control are very helpful.
Individuals and organizations can do a lot to prevent burnout. Individuals should set reasonable expectations and say ‘No’ to things beyond their capacity. They must pay attention to work-life balance and periodically go on vacations with family and friends for socialization. Sharing with close friends is an effective way to come out of the burnout process. They must keep a positive attitude towards their life and rein their expectations. They must avoid long hours of work on a continuous basis and keep away from competing with others for promotions and more financial rewards. They should take help of executive coaches or, if necessary, therapists to come out of burnout. Meditation, spirituality, physical exercise, sports, pranayaam, self awareness and self control are very helpful.
Organizations
should carefully watch the high potentials and high performers with Type ‘A’
personality who are obsessed with very high expectations and ambitions. With
annual mental checkup, Maslach Burnout Inventory Test, initial symptoms of
burnout can be detected. Counseling, feedback, executive coaching and therapy
can be provided by the organization. Superiors should avoid pushing High Pots
beyond their limits and expect long hours of work.
Even though
stress is closely related to burnout, and many people use it synonymously, the
concepts are slightly different.
S.N
|
STRESS
|
BURNOUT
|
1.
|
Over engagement
|
Disengagement
|
2.
|
Emotions are over-active
|
Emotions are blunted
|
3.
|
Produces urgency and hyperactivity
|
Produces hopelessness and Helplessness
|
4.
|
Leads to anxiety disorders
|
Leads to disenchantment and
depression
|
5.
|
Loss of physical energy
|
Loss of psychological motivation,
ideals and hope
|
6.
|
Primary damage is physical
|
Primary damage is emotional and
psychological
|
7.
|
Can occur at short intervals
|
Occurs slowly but creeps upon the
person and goes from bad to worse as time goes on.
|
8.
|
It is like a frog dropped in boiling
water jumps out
|
It is like frog slowly boiled in water
does not jump out but adjusts to higher temperatures and ultimately dies.
|
As per me, I
visualize EXECUTIVE BURNOUT as “A highly energetic bird trapped inside the
golden cage of his own unreasonable ambition and expectations from self and
significant others. Over a period of time it is exhausted, lonely unable to
break through the psychological cage of expectations, feeling trapped mentally and emotionally exhausted and ultimately collapsing in the cage.”
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