At Work

Job Burnout: Part 1 – Defining Job Burnout

The alarm rings again, and you fight to not hit snooze one more time. You’re dreading another day doing the same old thing at the same old job. Have you been finding it harder and harder to drag yourself out of bed and have the energy to go to work? At some point, most people – in every level of a company from a receptionist to a CEO or owner – find themselves victims of job burnout.

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines burnout as “exhaustion of physical or emotional strength or motivation usually as a result of prolonged stress or frustration.”

The term job burnout is described as an emotional burnout experienced in a job or career-path. Sufferers of job burnout can experience chronic anxiety, depression, prolonged stress, lack of motivation, and/or hopelessness – among other serious problems. It’s important to deal with job burnout not just because of your personal happiness, but for your career and financial future as well.

Are you headed for job burnout?  The next post can help you determine if you should be alarmed.

New on the Job and Have Extra Time to Kill?

When you first start a job, you may be anxious to prove that you’ve earned your spot and want to work hard to earn more responsibility. You might even find that you complete your initial tasks quickly and have a lot of spare time on your hands. When that happens, what should you do? Do you sit back and wait for your next project, slow down your pace so it takes you longer to finish, or ask for something new to do? If you ever find yourself in this situation, here are three ways you can effectively use your time at work and prove yourself at your new job.

Offer to help others. If you have some extra time here and there but aren’t consistently without work to do, start by asking if your teammates need help when you find yourself between assignments. You may not know all of the details of the project they’re working on, but you can help out with other tasks, such as filing, answering the phone, or assisting customers, which will give them more time to work on their bigger projects.

Ask for more responsibilities. If you constantly find yourself with extra time on your hands and you’re already comfortable with your initial projects, it may be time to ask for more responsibility. Talk to your supervisor about other tasks or assignments that you could take on as your own. Make sure to discuss how much time you could devote to a new project, what skills you could develop or improve on, and how the team could benefit from you taking on new projects.

Study up. If you’re not quite ready for a new responsibility and your co-workers don’t always have work to share, use your spare time to increase your knowledge of the company and industry you’re working in. If you have access to the internet, you can research the latest news on your company. You can also participate in training the company offers. Learn as much as you can, and pick up as many skills as possible that will help you in your day-to-day job and give you an edge over your competition.

Starting a new job is exciting, but the excitement can quickly wear off if you’re bored or not stimulated at work. Use your enthusiasm to help you improve your skills and further your knowledge by using the most of your downtime at your new job. Don’t waste your time – it will pay off when you earn the respect of your team.

Workplace Goofs

Everyone has done or said something at work at one point that has either made them laugh out loud or turn red from embarrassment. Have you fallen down the stairs in front of your CEO, walked out of the bathroom with tissue stuck to your shoe, or accidentally eaten someone else’s lunch? Or know someone who has? How did you react? We want to hear your stories, so share your or your co-worker’s workplace blunders with us in the comments section below. Then, we’ll feature the top five comments in a future blog post with tips on how to handle the situation.

5 Little Words that Make a Big Difference in a New Job

Starting a new job can be an exciting and equally anxious process. You’ve survived the job search, dominated the interview process, and are ready to begin. How can you make the most of the first day on a new job? Here are five little words to keep in mind.

1. Meet.
Everyone. Make it your goal to learn as many names as possible, and don’t be shy about meeting new people. The first few days on a job is your best time to meet new people, because you have the excuse of not knowing anyone. Much of your personal success on the job will depend on the relationships you develop at work – not just with immediate co-workers, but with people in other departments or locations as well. So, take the time to invest in meeting people and building relationships.

2. Ask.
One of the most terrifying things about a new job is the unknown. Whether or not you have prior experience within a certain field or industry, there are a lot of new things to learn – the company culture, team dynamics, products, and processes, to name a few. Often, your best resources for learning about all things work-related – from big picture to the little things – are the people around you. So, don’t be afraid to ask questions for fear of looking unskilled or inept. The longer you wait to ask, the harder it will be to work up the courage. Some reports say that most people spend their first 90 days just trying to guess their way around a new job. Don’t waste your time and energy this way. Make it a point to ask as many questions as you can within the first week on a new job so you can hit the ground running and quickly impress.

3. Learn.
hen you start a new job, it can often be difficult simply figuring out exactly what all your responsibilities include. So, make it a point to learn as much as you can, not just about what you’ve been tasked to do, but about the company, industry, and field you’re working in. Be proactive about learning, and you’ll show your boss that you’re a star player and be better equipped to not just survive, but thrive in your position.

4. Help.
he shining stars in the workplace don’t just focus on doing their own work. They understand how to help the entire team as well. Of course, you don’t want to come across as a know-it all. So, while you are learning the ropes, let those around you know you’re willing to help when it’s needed. That way, by the time you’ve had a chance to get up to speed, teammates will know they can turn to you for your insight and assistance.

5. Do.
It can be so easy within the first few days on a job to get bogged down in orientation, paperwork, and information, that doing the actual work you are assigned to can be difficult. But don’t wait. Start working right away so that you can discover the areas you need to ask questions about. If your boss doesn’t give you projects right away, ask for them.

Acting out these five words can help you quickly master the job you’ve been hired to do. So, start your new job off right by living these five mantras – not just the first week, but every day.

Who knows what opportunities might emerge when you commit yourself to becoming a star from day one.

Which of these words is the most important when you’re starting a new job? Let us know your thoughts by sharing your comments.

Follow Your Heart to Find Your Passion

We hear all the time how important it is to listen to your heart when searching for a career path. But when I read, a commencement address that Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Computers, gave at a graduation ceremony at Stanford University in 2005, I wondered how often do we actually follow that advice?

Steve’s journey started with a simple calligraphy class he sat in on after dropping out of college. In his search to find what interested him, he found himself mesmerized by this style of writing. What he didn’t know was that this would later influence him when he started designing the first Macintosh computer. It became the first computer with beautiful typography.

In his address, Steve spoke about three specific times in his life that got him to where he is today. The first story was about connecting the dots, the second focused on love and loss, and the third story spoke about death.

These three ideas can help you find your own passion. Here’s how:

Connect the Dots. Examine your past. What are some of the things that have interested you the most? Whether it’s a bio-chemistry class or a calligraphy class like it was for Steve, no interest is too small to help point you into the right career.

Love It and Lose It. Stick to your passion. It doesn’t matter that you may have tried to be successful doing what you love and failed. Try again from another angle. Persistence pays off. Remember the old saying, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” Find creative ways to interject your passion into your work life, and see what happens.

Live Each Day. If you haven’t discovered your passion, live each day to the fullest by trying new things until you have found your niche. Explore new hobbies or chase your dreams. There is something out there for everyone; it just takes initiative and courage to find out what you love and let it change the way you work and live.

Remember, hardly anyone is born knowing their passion. It takes time and a little soul-searching. So, follow your heart. Dig into your curiosity. You never know where your dreams might lead you!

What Would You Do for a 4-Day Work Week?

With high gas prices, employees are struggling to meet the increasing cost of simply getting to and from work. And businesses are paying attention. There are stories of some employers getting creative, using incentives to help employees pay for gas. It’s all over the news how employers in some fields are meeting worker demands by offering a 4-day work week. The idea is to fit a 40-hour week into four 10-hour days so employees have one less day a week to travel to work.

But when it comes to business, a 4-day work week isn’t quite as simple as that. In fact, most places that have gone to a 4-day work week are government or non-profit entities. Some businesses face complications like losing profits and customer service by operating just 4 days a week.

The truth is, every benefit they add costs employers cash they have to make up for somewhere else. When you think about it in those terms, how important is saving money on gas to you in the big picture? Just how valuable is that extra day off each week?