According to research, nearly one in two physicians are experiencing burnout. Surprising, right? Burnout can hit any type of profession. Those in the helping careers often experience this, and when working extended hours, feeling regret about the job, and experiencing pressures, anyone is at risk for burnout.
Was there a time at work when you got easily irritated by your colleagues or a small inconvenience? Did you have negative thoughts about your job? Do you feel empty, down, and lacking motivation? Those are some key features of emotional exhaustion at work.
Here are the 5 Signs of Emotional Exhaustion
Negative Feelings: Your dissatisfaction at work may come from different aspects; it may be your job, associate’s annoying behavior, job politics, or a bureaucratic workplace. Any feeling of disappointment and irritation at work is usually when you are emotionally tired.
Stress due to pressure and feeling out of time: Anyone who is emotionally drained does not have the push to handle the pressures of a job. You might feel pressured to arrive where you want to be, without ample time to accomplish your work, do an excellent job, or without the time to plan for your day and be motivated to deal with your work demands.
Unhealthy or Negative Thoughts: Our emotions and thoughts have a deep-rooted effect on one another. Observe that sometimes when you do not feel good, you are also thinking negative thoughts simultaneously. Harsh thoughts about yourself and your workplace are a common sign of emotional fatigue. Feeling alone, thinking that your co-workers are being judgmental of you, or judging your co-workers/management as incompetent are critical thoughts that might signify emotional exhaustion.
Strained Connections With Others: Unhealthy thoughts and isolating yourself from your co-workers, supervisors, and associates may give you strained connections at work and may add to the negative feelings, isolation, underappreciation, and loneliness.
Inefficient and Counterproductive Work Behaviors: If you are emotionally exhausted, your moral judgment may decline, and you may feel more emotional at work. Your work ethics may be affected, and as a result, you will be acting in ways opposite of your usual. Examples might include fraudulent behaviors, tardiness, stealing, and loss of integrity.
We may have experienced emotional fatigue at work due to long hours, lack of recognition, increased demands with inefficient compensation, and job insecurity.
It is important to identify your own emotional exhaustion work. When your emotions are not in good condition, it is the time when you will most likely make errors or bad decisions at work. And a poor performance and behavior may affect your career advancement.
Addressing emotional exhaustion is not easy, but one way to help yourself is to recognize the issue and seek help. Even if there are a ton of reasons to feel consumed, it’s best to make choices about your career proactively, rather than finding yourself out of a job because of bad decisions, negative emotions, and unethical behaviors.