What Is Job Burnout And What Should I Do If I Have It?

You might spend years in college and tens of thousands of dollars preparing for a career. Or you may start a job out of high school, and work your way up to a managerial position. Instead, perhaps you take an entrepreneurial route dedicating incredible amounts of time, energy, and money building a business.

Few could question how hard you work to be successful, no matter the career path you’ve taken. But regardless of how you started or where you are in your career, you have something in common with everyone else who works for an income each day — the possibility of facing job burnout.

What is job burnout and what should you do if you or someone you know has it? Read on below as it’s an important topic. Job-related burnout can have lasting effects on anyone who suffers from it as well as those around them.

How is Job Burnout Defined?

Job burnout isn’t something you get after a couple of horrible days at work. It’s much more complicated.

According to David Ballard, co-editor of The Psychologically Healthy Workplace: Building a Win-Win Environment For Organizations and Employees, job burnout is “an extended period of time where the demands being placed on you exceed the resources you have available to deal with the stressors.”