Avoid Setting Boundaries to Burnout

BY JOCEE HOLLADAY

“Burnout” may not be a new concept, but it is a new word to our vocabulary Coined just 50 years ago, the word was first used to describe how overwhelmed and overburdened healthcare workers were feeling at work. In the decades since, many people, from students to stay-at-home parents to STEM professionals, have experienced burnout.

The Mayo Clinic describes burnout as “ a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that also involves a sense of reduced accomplishment and loss of personal identity.” This definition is one you likely relate to since over 89% of people have experienced burnout this past year. In a survey done by 360Learning, burnout is the number one reason women either have or are planning to quit their jobs and 25% of burnt out women are actively thinking about quitting

Burnout is a big deal, and avoiding it is essential. Causes of burnout can include a lack of control over your schedule and environment, unclear job/school expectations, a dysfunctional work environment, overworking, insufficient work-life balance, and inadequate social support. One of the best ways to avoid burnout is to set boundaries

What boundaries should you set?

We asked over 500 women in STEM to tell us about their boundaries that have helped them avoid burnout and improve their lives. The responses are summed up in these six suggestions:

If you ’ re working or attending class online, separating your relaxing time from your working time can be challenging. One trick is to physically separate these two spaces by having a designated workspace. This way, both your body and brain know to stop working (and stressing) when in bed and to focus on work when at your desk. While doing homework in bed may be tempting for a night, you should try to avoid this pattern! Your future self will thank you for the physical separation of your activities

Make time for what’s most important.

Schedule the important things first. For example, if going to the gym is important to you, schedule that event first and then fill in the remaining time with the rest of your work/school obligations. Numerous studies have shown that happy people are the most effective employees and successful students. Use this knowledge as your permission to make your happiness a priority and an essential part of your day

Improve your day by time blocking.

Time blocking is the process of scheduling your day to improve productivity and keep you on task. Most methods of time blocking involve picking your most essential tasks, blocking out time to accomplish these tasks, and then blocking out dedicated time to relax throughout the day. Many successful women in STEM have used time blocking to help them improve productivity while also keeping them from overworking. You can accomplish much more during a workday with structure than a workday without structure. While simple in theory, preplanning your entire day can be challenging to get right You can start small batching related tasks together or dedicating specific work to specific days For example, Mondays could be dedicated to studying math and Thursdays to science Eventually, you can further focus your time: on Mondays you spend 1 hour studying the current topic, and 1 hour reviewing a previous topic

Stick to a schedule.

Make it clear to your coworkers, classmates, and yourself that you will only work during a set schedule For many working women, this is 9 am to 5 pm You can install software that can help you stick to your schedule by auto-declining meetings that are not in your set working/studying hours.

If you ’ re a student, keep in mind that sticking to a dedicated sleep schedule can help you get higher grades. While you may be tempted to stay up all night studying for final exams, studies show that students who got 8+ hours of sleep the night before an exam performed better on tests than those who chose to stay up studying instead.

Use your vacation time and weekends for yourself.

It can be hard to “turn off” school or work during weekends or vacations. Here are some tricks to help you leave work behind during your off hours. When on vacation, log out of your school or work email accounts and uninstall Slack and any other work-related messaging platforms. If an emergency is important enough, someone will find your phone number and call you. Take time to reset and relax away from the expectations of school and work.

Just say “no.”

Opportunities are all around us, and it’s important to take on the things that will benefit your life. But just as important as saying yes is saying no. Before you accept an “amazing opportunity”, and risk over burdening yourself, check to make sure it is the right thing (and the right time) for you Ask yourself, “Does this help me accomplish my next goal? Is this worth the work and stress? Do I have time to fully commit to it?” If you answer no to any of those questions, that might be a sign to say “ no ” to the request as well Opportunities will always be available, so be selective about any additional opportunities (aka work) you take on

While setting boundaries is a very personal process, having boundaries set ahead of time can improve your life Think of boundaries as a tool

Boundaries are:

A tool to protect yourself from overworking

A tool to improve your work-life balance.

A tool to increase productivity

Ultimately, boundaries are a tool to fight against burnout and provide you with a better, happier, and healthier life

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