Burnout happens when work is too quick and overbearing, but boreout can set in when there isn’t enough to do, or employees feel disengaged or unchallenged.
When employees are engaged, they’re inspired with new ideas, committed to the job, and want to help their organization grow and achieve business goals. But when they’re bored, they may be quiet quitting, only meeting basic performance expectations, and feel unexcited about their work.
Nearly half of working Americans (46%) are bored, according to a survey conducted by OnePoll for Colorado State University Global. Experiencing some boredom at work can be normal and even be beneficial for creativity. However, excessive boredom can manifest in many ways, including:
- Reduced productivity
- Anxiety
- Stress
- Feeling like your work doesn’t matter
- Low motivation
- Procrastination
Beat Boreout
Once you’ve identified boreout, you can take action to combat the feeling and its negative effects:
- Talk to your boss. Let them know you have bandwidth available and ask if there are new projects you can take on or share skills you’d like to learn.
- Talk to your coworkers. You may discover that others are also bored, or they may have tasks you support to help even the workload.
- Learn a new skill. Use your free time to brush up your knowledge or learn a new skill related to your area of expertise.
- Consider a job or career change. If you can’t beat boreout in your current role, it may be a sign that it’s time to move on to a new job or career path that can better meet your needs and offer new opportunities.
Boreout can be difficult to experience at work, but it isn’t without hope. By attempting to improve your situation or making a significant change, you can lessen feelings of boreout and its impacts. When you’re ready to take on a new role, Express Employment Professionals is here to help. Start your job search with the free ExpressJobs app.
