‘How am I supposed to motivate myself and my team when I feel burned out and cynical?’

Dear Komal, 

I feel like I’m running a marathon that has no end, and so is my team. The New Year rush of hope and possibility is long gone, and now I’m feeling stuck in overwhelm, exhaustion, and confusion. How am I supposed to motivate myself and my team to hit new benchmarks when so many of us are beyond languishing and frankly, somewhat cynical? How can I care again and feel connected to what’s ahead for life and work? 

– Where’s the finish line

Dear Finish Line,

You and your team are not alone in feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, and even cynical. 

A 2022 report indicated that 38% of respondents were burnt out—self reporting high levels of exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced professional efficacy. Burnout is defined as an outcome of chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. The problem with this definition is it doesn’t indicate who should be successfully managing the chronic workplace stress: the individual or the employer.

The workplace cultures that companies have galvanized during the pandemic are unsustainable and are depleting people’s energy. It’s been a while since I’ve spoken to someone who has had positive things to say about their workplace, workload, or overall work life.

Something’s gotta give.

With mass layoffs across industries, rising inflation, a looming recession, and any number of local and global events that make it rough to wake up in the morning, it’s no wonder you and your team are struggling. So many of us are. So what do we do in the face of massive systemic social and workplace pressures? Do we wait for capitalism to slow down? Or do we begin to redefine our relationship to work, shift culture in the small ways we can, and try to reclaim our life satisfaction?

Let’s aim for the latter. Here are some things to try to start building positive momentum and create space for well-being as you and your team find your way forward.

Lean on your team

You mentioned that many on your team are feeling burnt out. But I hope that also means that some team members have a more positive well-being. If this is the case, let’s reframe this marathon into a relay race, and I encourage you to give yourself permission to pass the baton to someone to lead the charge when it comes to morale, motivation, and team energy.

As you do this, be mindful of team members’ actual jobs and any asks that might go beyond someone’s expectations. Once you’ve made that assessment, ask for help! You don’t have to be the one to motivate the team at all times. Rotating this role, and enabling the rest of the team to also take ownership of collective motivation and well-being is a great opportunity to shift culture and prevent future burnout together.

Build in team “boundaries with work” check-ins

Invite your team to share their goals for how they plan to set boundaries with work this week. This can look like a hard daily stop at 5 p.m., taking a walk at lunch, actually taking a lunch break (not eating in front of their laptop), or making time for their favorite activities after work. Create a Slack channel where you automate a weekly prompt, and have your team reply with their commitments. If you have a weekly meeting, do a quick round to check-in on how it went or felt to set these boundaries, and then continue on to your other agenda items.

This small, consistent gesture will enable your team to actually normalize setting work/life boundaries, and support them in prioritizing their lives outside of work. It’s an important step to ensure folks are making time for their well-being and not on the fast track to overwork and burnout.

The caveat here is that your company has to actually care about its people enough to have a culture where this is even possible. If that’s not the case, there’s a bigger issue at play.

On this note, stop over-investing in work. It’s not your family.

It might be hard to hear, but you and your team are replaceable. Make it a priority to protect yourself and your well-being, including your financial well-being. The best way to do this is to ensure you are healthy, able to continue to work well, and have the capacity to pivot if and when the time comes. If you continue to run on empty or close to it, boundaries become blurred and so can your sense of worth. So define what success means to you in this role at this time, and then build in the nourishment you need from life outside of work.

Begin reconnecting with your community and chosen family in the ways you need to, and be consistent. At the end of the day, if and when hard things related to work or life happen, your community is who will help you through it.

Redefine your goals, start small, and make them matter

When it comes to your work-related goals, try the post-it approach. Focus on taking things day by day, and write your three core outcomes or goals for each day on three separate post-its. Once each is accomplished, rip it up, or throw it away, or make your ‘complete’ stack. This tactical approach to completing your to-do list can help build your sense of accomplishment in the face of an otherwise never-ending tasks and provide you with a small gesture of physical progress. Trust me, there’s a real dopamine hit here.

I hope one of your goals in this season is to take a break. Whether it’s a few back-to-back long weekends or a proper vacation, it’s time to get your plan for rest on the calendar. If it’s within your purview, consider introducing four-day workweeks for your team twice a month, or weekly if possible. Researchers found that employee well-being metrics improved across the board  when companies implemented the 4-day workweek. Imagine having an additional day to make your life better? Imagine how your team’s satisfaction and efficacy could increase by doing the same?

Finally, ask yourself what in your life (big or small) can help you get out of bed each day and move towards positive change. Attach your present “why” to someone or something that matters deeply to you, and let them inspire you to get back on steady ground and from there help your team do the same.

Work isn’t everything

Don’t forget how valuable you are, and how much you are loved. You are worthy of the care and attention you need right now, and taking the steps to refill your cup will also support your team to do the same. We can’t outrun these systems that are built to drain us, but we can do small, impactful things to try and reclaim our lives and joy. It’s time to invest in you.

Until next time,

– Komal

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