On The Brink?
Can you imagine not being able to physically get out of bed in the morning?
Can you ever imagine what it must be like not being able to function or undertake work in any capacity?
Maybe you are, or have been, one of the professional workforce that have unfortunately found themselves on the brink of burnout?
Chemical Imbalance
Burnout should not be confused with mental illness. It's an inherently man-made condition as opposed to a mental illness which is a chemical imbalance in the brain. Burnout is the manifestation of a combination of stress, anxiety and potentially depression over a prolonged period of time that has rendered the sufferer with no resources to function properly.
A sufferer can start to feel detached and disengaged from their surroundings, friends or colleagues. They may feel empty, hopeless and helpless and it doesn't just manifest as psychological symptoms. Physical effects could be reduced immunity and the worsening of pre-existing conditions like migraine, diabetes or erectile dysfunction.
What Triggers Burnout?
It isn't hard to see why a high number of people are either suffering from or close to burnout when taking into account modern workplace practices. The triggers are long working hours, poor work-life balance, being constantly available by phone or email, tougher targets and worries about job security.
'CV-Library' did a survey of 2,000 UK professionals of which 42% said they had been feeling on the brink of burnout with the main contributors being unrealistic targets, long hours and increased workloads. A similar study in the USA by 'Kronos and Future Workplace' found that 95% of HR leaders felt burnout was undermining workplace retention due to the unreasonable workloads and poor management practices. With this becoming an ever-increasing problem, not least because people are becoming more aware of mental wellbeing, it may surprise you to know that stress risk assessments are only carried out by half of all organisations.
Your Mental Health Is Priority
So it seems that half of all organisations do not have your mental health as a priority. Knowing this, wouldn't you prefer to get out of the corporate rat race and set up your own online company?
Just imagine the benefits:
- Your own business can revolve around your passion(s) or personal experience(s).
- Control over the number of hours you work.
- Control over the timescales you set for your personal and business goals.
- Control over your work-life balance.
- The ability to work from anywhere at any time using your mobile phone or laptop.
