Burnout is a serious illness. As managers, can we detect it early and what can we do to help?
I woke up one day and just couldn't take it anymore. Waking up felt like a burden, I was looking forward to going to the office (when going to the office was a thing), I just didn't feel it anymore, I just wanted to sleep and watch the days go by.
One day I forgot the excitement I felt whenever I wrote code, watching my work as it compiled and seeing the end result. It just ended, my passion turned into a routine workflow, it may have been the same movements but it was definitely not the same experience.
If you just thought “this sounds like depression,” you're not alone, which is why it's so easy to misdiagnose burnout. Yes, both conditions share some very similar symptoms, which should tell you how heartless a person with burnout feels.
Fortunately, I found myself again and am enjoying life like never before. Burnout, like depression, is a serious condition, but it is not permanent and with the right help anyone can overcome it.
What is burnout?
Burnout isn't something that just happens, it creeps up on you, slowly. At first it was very difficult to understand. For me, it started as tiredness and boredom. For others, it may look like sadness or a few restless nights.
Although it may be different for each of us, ultimately the fate is the same: total disinterest, sadness, tiredness, stress, apathy and inability to enjoy life.
Let's get one thing straight: burnout isn't about work; In fact, for many people, their workplace is a safe haven, a place where they engage in activities that help them prevent burnout. And that is the kind of culture we should aim for.
Anything can trigger burnout, but most of the time it's associated with high levels of stress, lack of sleep, demanding environments, and difficult times in life. And that's exactly how developers tend to describe their work environment .
There is no way to sugarcoat this, software development is extremely demanding. Some of my best stories are about listening to music with my team while we debug. But some of my worst memories involve sleepless nights and having to work overtime to meet a deadline.
And that's another thing, even on the best of days, those extra hours take their toll. Yes, it was fun, yes, it was necessary, but that extra energy I had to expend had to come from somewhere, even from future me.
Detecting the Early Signs of Burnout
As I said before, burnout is very difficult to detect. You start rationalizing what is happening to you: “Hey, I'm tired, that's all”, “I need a vacation after this”, “My dad had to do more every day, one day won't kill me”.
You take vitamins, exercise and start to feel better, but not because you are cured, but because you are changing your behaviors. But the thing is, even if you lie to yourself, others will start to see holes in the mask.
People will notice that you are less productive, show less interest, delay deliveries and avoid work. They will notice your mood swings, that you are grumpy and sad, that you take feedback too much or ignore it completely, that you make the odd mistake. These are all signs that you are not well.
As managers, we have to be the voice of conscience for the people we work with. And that means understanding what's going on with our coworkers and helping them alleviate stress in one way or another.
For example, a good friend of mine who is a software designer can get really immersed in his work. He could literally spend 24 hours in front of the computer working and feel good about it. His manager realized that he was making a lot of mistakes and that's when they decided to intervene.
One day, the manager brought some CD cases to my friend's desk and “ordered” him to install them. There were several games, and he set a time for my friend to just sit and play every day in the office.
What the manager did was show my friend that work could be done differently, in this case by setting aside a few minutes every day to play and decompress. That's what most of the team did, and that's what my friend started doing too.
Decreased productivity and changes in mood are clear signs that the person is not feeling well. People are quick to label low productivity as laziness. But being lazy is just a quality, the real question is what is causing it.
What to do? In some cases, just listen. Managers who embrace a culture of open communication will have very little difficulty approaching their co-workers and offering an empathetic ear.
In other cases, professional help may be needed.
Seeking professional help
As managers, we can listen to our coworkers, give them a few days off, assign them to a new project, relieve them of some responsibilities, and so on. With any luck, a change is all a developer needs to start feeling motivated again.
In other cases, it is more difficult, as severe burnout can be very difficult to overcome and may require professional help.
Many companies offer psychological counseling or hire a life coach to provide help and guidance to their employees. In other cases, the company covers part of the therapy costs.
This may seem like a lot, but it is actually an investment. I'd rather help a great developer overcome their crisis and stay with us than have to train someone new from scratch.
Either way, it will take a while, and in the meantime, we can be supportive and foster a comprehensive environment that promotes healthier habits.
What else can we do?
In addition to being perceptive, two things can really help prevent burnout.
First, raise awareness about the condition. The more the team understands what burnout is, the easier it will be for everyone to identify it in themselves and others.
Second, foster a culture of open communication where coworkers can feel safe sharing their feelings. Promote stress-relieving activities, such as playing sports, going out to a company dinner, or playing games at the office. Anything that can break the idea that an office has to be just work.
Most importantly, design workflows that leave space for developers to rest, spend time with friends and family, or decompress however they want. Happy people find purpose in the things they do, and nothing is more motivating than fulfilling a purpose.
Source: BairesDev
