How to Recognize and Prevent Remote Work Burnout
Once considered a perk, remote work has become a new normal over the past year. And even though it comes with a wide range of benefits, remote work can prove to be challenging for many.
When we work from home, it’s harder to set boundaries between our professional and private lives. It’s not so uncommon to open our laptops in the morning, do some house chores in the middle and end up staying up late since our attention and productivity are hindered. All of this can lead to burnout which can both take a toll on our health, motivation, happiness, productivity, and quality of our work. Recognizing and preventing the symptoms of burnout becomes a crucial step when it comes to remote work, and we decided to provide you with some tips and tricks on how to do it successfully.
How to recognize the symptoms of remote work burnout?
Long-term stress caused by remote work burnout is usually first noticed among colleagues, family, and managers. What’s more, the isolation we’re experiencing in the past year and a half makes the symptoms of burnout even harder. That’s why early prevention is important, and we should be wary of these telltale signs:
- Indigestion, heart palpitations, headaches.
- Poor performance at work.
- Poor productivity levels.
- Problems focusing.
- Experiencing negative feelings about yourself and the job.
- Lack of motivation.
- Laziness.
- Chronic fatigue.
- Irritability and short-temper.
- Insomnia.
- Anxiety.
- Depression.
How to prevent burnout?
Research says that around 67% of remote workers feel pressured to be available 24/7. No wonder remote work burnout is so common. However, there are steps we can take to prevent it, including:
- Developing boundaries. One of the most difficult things about remote work is separating your private and personal life. And even though employees are physically away from work, they usually feel the need to close this gap by being available at all times. Knowing where to set boundaries is crucial to preventing remote work burnout. To do this, employees have to set up a dedicated working space, determine their schedule, turn off notifications when they’re not working, and avoid checking their emails and Slack messages past their working hours.
- Implementing a flexible schedule. A flexible schedule is now what remote work once was. Even though remote employees don’t have to lose their time commuting, spend money on ordering takeout, and buy as many clothes as they would if they were coming to the office, they still have a life past work that needs to be attended to. Everyday chores and responsibilities can hinder employees’ productivity and the quality of their work. That said, it’s important to be more flexible and allow employees to work when they feel most productive. That said, a flexible schedule comes as a great solution, that allows employees to finish their non-work-related chores without endangering their jobs. Just be cautious to determine a time frame when everybody has to be present at work, to avoid miscommunication and delay.
- Taking a regular vacation. Working from home doesn’t mean employees took a permanent vacation. Even though they’re comfortably suited in their homes, they are still working and they need some time to recover and de-stress. That said, employers have to track their leave carefully, and avoid remote work burnout. We know that leave tracking can be a daunting task for many, however, MS Teams and Slack users can now do it effortlessly, in just a few simple steps. Vacation Tracker is an MS Teams and Slack integration that helps teams track their leave in just a few simple steps. With its intuitive dashboard, employers can check their staff’s availability in seconds, and employees can choose from more than 9 different leave types. What’s best, nothing cost you to try it – you just have to sign up for a free 7-day trial.
- Practise Pomodoro. Burnout frequently takes place where organization skills are lacking. Managing your daily tasks effectively, for this reason, becomes crucial. One easy way to allow your employees to bring the most out of their work is to install a Doropomo, a Slack integration that’s based on the Pomodoro technique, and make their workday much easier. The Pomodoro Techniques usually refers to a principle where work and rest mode are interchangeable – meaning, employees should work on a single task for 25 minutes, and rest in 5 to 10 minutes batches. Practicing the Pomodoro technique is much easier with an app such as Doropomo that can help your employees create to-do lists in Slack for the day ahead and effortlessly complete projects, regain focus, have undisturbed work sessions, and avoid work from home burnout.
Remote work burnout is a serious condition that shouldn’t be ignored. The first step towards a dedicated and productive workforce is by ensuring everyone is their best self at all times and recognizing the signs of burnout before they escalate. Now, with this know-how, you can apply your knowledge and secure an undisturbed and happy workspace year around.
A cat enthusiast and a cupcake maniac, Ana is a freelance Content Writer passionate about HR, productivity, and team management topics. When she’s not at her keyboard, you can find Ana in the kitchen, trying to make delicious cookies.
