How To Prevent Burnout In Hr Practitioners

Discussions of wellbeing and burnout frequently highlight the healthcare industry, which is known for high employee burnout rates. However, teachers endure long hours, emotional strain, and worries about students, leading to high turnover.

Interestingly, despite their susceptibility to similar risks, HR professionals may be overlooked when considering burnout-prone occupations. Research confirms this, with a Gartner survey revealing that 71% of respondents reported increased burnout levels compared to the pre-pandemic period, while 45% found it more challenging to manage conflicting demands.

The longstanding issue of HR practitioners prioritising others' wellbeing over their own persists. During the pandemic, the saying "Put on your oxygen mask first" became a cliche, but its relevance hasn't diminished. Many current wellbeing challenges are masked by busyness or perceived dedication.

WHY IS THE WELLBEING OF HR PROFESSIONALS A CRITICAL ISSUE

Many HR professionals still feel the pandemic's impacts. This is due to HR's central role in managing the disruption caused by the pandemic, which has resulted in a 'liaison role strain' for HR professionals. They often lead difficult conversations, such as redundancies and performance management, while dealing with staffing challenges.

Compounding the situation is that HR professionals tend to be highly empathetic and caring individuals, which can make the challenges of their work cut deeper and linger longer. This can lead to compassion fatigue, emotional depletion, and exhaustion.

Organisations must recognise the importance of a replenished and energised HR function. Strategic people leaders are needed now more than ever to guide them through the challenges ahead. Organisations can only function effectively with a well-functioning HR department.

HOW TO IDENTIFY SIGNS OF BURNOUT (OR GETTING CLOSE)

Although burnout and depression may share similar symptoms, they are distinct conditions. Burnout is a state of emotional and physical depletion brought on by prolonged workplace stress, while depression is a mood disorder characterised by persistent sadness and low energy.

Left untreated, burnout can potentially lead to depression. However, in many cases, burnout can be addressed by eliminating the sources of stress. On the other hand, depression usually necessitates more extensive interventions.

Three steps can help you assess if you're experiencing burnout:

1. Assess Your Work Performance: Has the quality of your work deteriorated lately? Do you find yourself lacking motivation or struggling to concentrate? A decline in work performance can signal burnout, although other factors, such as an overwhelming workload or personal stressors, could also be at play.

2. Reflect on Your Work Satisfaction and Attitude: What is your level of job satisfaction? How often do you feel disinterested or emotionally disconnected at work? While it's normal to have occasional moments of frustration or annoyance, experiencing genuine satisfaction and joy during the workweek is crucial. It could indicate burnout if you increasingly dread your job or become cynical about your work

3. Evaluate Your Overall Wellbeing: Burnout can significantly impact your health. If you're experiencing lethargy, emotional exhaustion, social withdrawal, or even physical ailments, consider whether your work environment might be a contributing factor.

HOW TO PREVENT BURNOUT IN HR

While burnout is a serious issue, it is essential to remember that it can be prevented. This requires a deliberate and proactive approach and a supportive environment.

Here are four strategies to manage or prevent for HR practitioners:

1. Add a buffer

After emotionally demanding situations, like a challenging conversation with an employee, it's crucial to avoid immediately jumping into the next task. Your mind requires time to absorb and recover. This could involve debriefing with a colleague or taking a brief walk.

To ensure this transition, schedule a 15-20 minute buffer in your calendar after any meeting you anticipate could be challenging or emotionally draining. This buffer will prevent you from being rushed into back-to-back meetings without allowing sufficient time to process your emotions and calm your nervous system.

2. Say "no" more often

Professionals often encounter many distractions, including notifications from collaboration tools, requests from colleagues, and a constant stream of emails requiring time-consuming responses. This deluge can be particularly overwhelming for HR practitioners, who frequently receive requests from the leadership team and employees. Consequently, HR professionals must learn when and how to politely decline meetings or requests.

When declining a request, it is advisable to keep the response concise. While it may seem necessary to provide detailed explanations, doing so can inadvertently create opportunities for negotiation. HR practitioners can use a checklist to determine whether a request is worth declining. The checklist includes questions such as:

• Is this something I am interested in doing?
• What will I have to give up if I take on this task?
• What potential benefits could I gain by accepting this request?
• How would I feel if I accepted this request?

Failing to consider these questions can lead to hasty "yes" responses. While the initial inclination may be to accept a request, further reflection may reveal potential consequences, such as working late into the evening and missing out on personal activities like family dinners or exercise routines.

3. Set Realistic Expectations in Your Work

To prevent burnout, it's crucial to be realistic about your work goals and responsibilities. Start by jotting down the tasks you accomplish in a typical day and week and estimating how much time and energy each requires. Also, try to gauge the percentage of your week consumed by unexpected requests or "pop-ups" throughout the day. If you routinely work overtime or have trouble keeping up, you may need to reassess your workload or adjust your expectations.

Once you have a clear picture of what's realistically achievable during a standard work week, you can avoid setting yourself up for unnecessary stress or failure by setting more realistic benchmarks.

Additionally, temporarily reassign your responsibilities to reduce stress caused by a particular aspect of your HR role. For instance, if engaging with employees becomes too overwhelming, focus on completing other tasks on your to-do list.

4. Seek assistance

Don't forget to ask for help from your support networks when feeling overwhelmed. Communicate your capabilities and when you need additional resources or support and delegate tasks to colleagues or use tools to streamline your workload.