Instructor (or designer) burnout is a possibility both during difficult economic periods as well as during times of financial stability. It is the equivalent of a tea candle that you light up and allow to burn until the wax turns liquid and later evaporates leaving the metallic piece that held the wick bare with no more flame to offer. Yet, after 9 years with Langevin – and extensive traveling, I have learned to keep the flame burning! How do I do it, you ask? Let me tell you!
Become Aware
The first step to prevention is awareness. Although in different ways, whether we’re an instructor or a designer, we are constantly focusing and directing our energy to other people and navigating through multiple egos and personalities from the people we instruct or consult with for content. That alone can be very energy depleting. In either position we need to look for some of the most common signs of burnout. See if you’ve experienced any of the following in the past three months:
- Lack of enthusiasm
- Falling behind on administrative duties
- Isolating yourself during weekends and time off
- Oversleeping
- Feeling disconnected from your job
- Experiencing uncommon irritability
Any of these items are quite common symptoms of burnout in the Training & Development field. Add any travel required on the job and that kicks it up a few notches.
Prevention Ideas
So what are some effective ways to prevent or manage burnout in our career? I prefer trying a variety of them altogether and alternating them as I go along. Again, awareness of all my options is the best way to make use of them. Here are some of the ways I have dealt with burnout:
- I am always planning (seriously planning) my next big vacation trip somewhere. (Keeps me focused.)
- When I have a tedious reading to complete, I do it while I tan at the beach. (Gives me a sense of reward for a difficult task.)
- I look for opportunities to coach other instructors. (Gives me the opportunity to reconnect with people I seldom see, but admire and care about, and helps me to sharpen my saw on whatever I am coaching them on.)
- I am comfortable asking for help if I feel overwhelmed. (Asking for help is a sign of team spirit not of weakness.)
- I set aside ME TIME. I lock myself in. I sleep, listen to music, read, cook, watch movies, and take showers in MY bathroom. (Small personal rituals help me reconnect with my sense of ‘home’.)
- I drink lots of water.
- When I have to travel to a place I’m not crazy about, I focus on how many miles the airline is giving me so that I can go back to the top bullet above! (I like continuity, ok?)
Alright…so now it’s your turn. You need to give me a hand here, so please post your comments. Tell me how you prevent, or manage, burnout. Feel free to also post questions related to the topic or to recommend any favorite columns, articles, or books that may help. Thanks.
José
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Comments RSS
I look for the gratitude in whatever it is that is burning me out (or up). Difficult task at hand? I’m grateful my manager thinks I’m competent enough to complete it. “Difficult” personality in the classroom? I’m even more grateful for the love I receive from my husband. Traveling to a crummy location? I’m even more grateful for my office when I return. And so on…
Well said Stef,
Often focusing on what we have to be grateful for brings on a more balanced perspective on life and that in itself re-energizes us quite a bit. Every situation we face is always there as an invitation to see what our elasticity level is, our ability to “grow through it”. And it certainly helps me to go that extra mile when I am feeling physically burned out until I can make more time to rest and replenish.