You have probably read and heard a lot about burnouts happening at the workplace. In fact, it has been a buzzword circulating the corporate world for some time now. With high levels of stress at work, burnout has become an excruciating reality.

A lack of self-awareness of the changes happening in the body and mind due to work stress leads to the extreme situation called the burnout where one literally becomes incapable of handling work or home situation effectively.

In my talks with corporate clients, I have often spoken about how we can be aware of an impending burnout and prevent it in some cases. In most cases, however, we end up solving for a burnout that has already happened.

A New Kind of Burnout

For the last month or so, we have all been working from home. One would think that it is a relatively calmer space to be in, more relaxed, and less stressful. It seems highly unlikely that a burnout can happen while working from home. If you think this is true, then you may want to read on and figure out what is happening. It may awaken you to something that is happening to you that you are not aware of.

This new kind of burnout due to ‘work-from-home’ is taking place because the way we know life has changed drastically. Those who are used to getting up, getting ready and getting submerged in the humdrum of daily life, suddenly find themselves in a completely new environment. Merely handling this change can get stressful!

Most people who have not ever thought of working from home find that the comfortable lines that they had drawn between work and home are dissolving. At the same time, there is anxiety about keeping yourself relevant so as to keep the job. There is also a keen desire for everyone to prove to their colleagues and higher powers that be, that they can continue to show dedication, loyalty and productivity while working from home too.

There is therefore, a need to work even harder to demonstrate relevance.

Manifestations of Work-From-Home in These Times

Working from home may be less stressful in normal times. But these are COVID-19 times and we know that there is a lot of ambiguity about the future. While everyone is only talking about COVID, how it is affecting almost everyone in the world, and how and when the lockdown will be lifted finally, there is not much talk about the manner in which these few months will affect life for everyone.

Worry about future prospects – The reasons for keeping relatively mum about the future of businesses, jobs, incomes, and lifestyles is obvious – no one knows the extent of the damage that we will finally land up with when all this clears. The uncertainty makes everyone push themselves to the extreme. If there has to be a headcount reduction due to the economy, then let it be the other guy and not me!

Seamless access to work – Leaving work at the workplace is no longer a luxury that anyone can afford. Thoughts about how things will pan out are constantly on the mind. And when that happens, the workplace or the area of work that you may have designated for yourself, is right next door. The laptop is right there. The urge to be at it all the time is, therefore, very strong.

No ritual for switching off from work – There is also no transition that takes place – the transition from the home-you to the work-you that generally happens every morning when you ready your body and mind to switch to a different persona. There is no changing into work clothes (you are probably working in your pajamas these days), there is no need to take a shower every morning at the same time (you can always have one later), there is no need to rush for the 7.23am train or bus (you just have to pop into the other room, if you have created a set-up). The lack of this transition causes the mind to be in a work and home state together, creating confusion.

Preventing the Work-From-Home Burnout

As always, the solution to most things lies in two spheres – internal and external. There is a need to handle the practical aspects of this situation and then there is a need to rewire your brain to be comfortable with the situation.

Practical Solutions for WFH Burnout Prevention

Stick to a Schedule – When you opt to work from home on a specific Friday, you can afford to take the day as it comes and let it flow. You know that it is a temporary situation and you shall be back to work the next Monday. There is hardly a need to make significant changes in the house for that.

However, this new work-from-home situation is different. Other people in the house are also working from home and the kids are not at school for the better part of the day. Creating this schedule can give you a feeling of ‘order’ when there is so much ‘chaos’ outside.

• Create your new work and home chore schedule
• Designate a room or space where you will sit and work each day
• Factor in your commute time and use it productively – some exercise perhaps
• Fix the time for breakfast, lunch and dinner – you can finish laying, eating and clearing in 30 to 45 minutes if the times have been fixed
• Change into your work clothes (maybe Friday dressing) before starting work
• Change back into your home clothes when you finish for the day (and DO finish for the day like you would normally do during regular work days)

Managing Household Chores – Some of us may have to factor in the extra house work while we are working from home. This may mean extending the working hours a little bit further into the evening. Here again, try and create order!

• While making your schedule, factor in chores you will need to do around the house
• Make a list of the work you will do each day of the week – there is no need to put extra pressure on yourself by trying to do everything on each day
• Create a menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the week or the fortnight that you can rotate to take off the pressure of thinking what to make each day
• Assign responsibilities like manning the washing machine, or putting dishes in the dishwasher or dusting for other people in the family – and make sure to tell them that they are to do these without being told over and over again

Coordinating Timings at Work – If you know that you are likely to be away from your desk or work space for an extended period of time during work hours due to some chore that you need to complete, leave an out-of-office message for those who reach out to you during that time. Alternately, you could let them know that your response time will be slightly delayed due to something that you need to attend to.

Communicating clearly helps in managing the pace of work. It also helps others understand what they can expect. Providing voluntary information keeps things coordinated, structured and moving forward seamlessly.

Prioritizing Tasks – There is a tendency to complete tasks that seem urgent while working from home. This gives a sense of having completed something and also makes us feel that we are being more productive. However, this can be harmful in the long run. Use the Eisenhower Important-Urgent grid to decide what needs to be done first. Focus on the important work! These are the things that will keep you going when you are back to work!

Switch off – At the cost of repetition, I am going to say that it is important to ‘switch off’ from work when you are working from home. If you have a tendency to stay ‘on’ all the time, you are at a higher risk of work-from-home burnout! If you attend to your emails just before sleep time, while pausing a movie, while having a conversation or on weekends, you are setting yourself up for a burnout, something that can keep your from getting back with full force when we finally emerge from the lockdown.

Re-Wiring Your Brain to Prevent WFH Burnout

As mentioned before, making the practical changes in your schedule and lives is not enough. There is a need to do some thinking to change the way we react to this situation as well.

Focus on the Here and Now – If you are feeling overwhelmed with thoughts of the future, practice some thought policing. This is a process in which you keep a special radar in your head with regards to anxious thoughts about the future. When you catch yourself with a negative thought in your head about the future, STOP yourself immediately. Imagine a large red STOP sign in your head and force yourself to think about the here and now! This will get you through each day – one moment at a time!

Gratitude – Despite the situation, there is a lot that we have to be thankful for. For 5 minutes each evening, think about the things that you are thankful for – your health, the health of your loved ones, the food on your table, the comfort of your home, the warm cup of coffee you enjoyed in the evening – there are a lot of things that we can be grateful for that we take for granted.

Good Side of Work-From-Home – When work seems too much and you tend to move between house chores and your laptop in a frenzy, take a deep breath and think about the good side of working from home – the fact that you can squeeze in a quick nap on your comfortable bed, the freedom from the long commute you had to subject yourself to each day, and the comfort of sitting on your sofa and working while watching television when you are doing something that does not need too much focus (but needs to be done, nevertheless).

Extra Time – Despite the fact that there is housework to do along with your office work, there is also the extra time that you are getting to spend with your family. Use this time judiciously because before you know it, things will be back to normal and you will miss the time that you could have spent with them. Create a board game time with the family, cook meals together, or take a walk every evening with your partner. This is also a great time to catch up on some reading that you always meant to do or finish that self-paced course you started some time back.

Take these steps towards changing the way you work and prevent the unnecessary issue of a work-from-home burnout!