In today’s fast-paced, constantly connected world, it’s no surprise employee burnout has become a crisis. With technology at one’s fingertips 24/7, employees are always accessible and on the go. The demand for their time and energy can take its toll, leaving them burned out and exhausted.

Here are three factors that could lead to employee burnout:

Mental health

This involves how you think and react to events. Oftentimes, stress, anxiety or exhaustion can lead to negative thinking, which could in turn lead to the feeling of burnout.

Negative thinking includes:

• all-or-nothing thinking: you see things in black and white, believing you’re either a complete success or an utter failure, with no middle ground;
• overgeneralisation: you take one small event and assume it will always happen this way – for example, you make a mistake at work and subsequently believe you’re always going to screw up;
• disqualifying the positive: you brush off any good experiences or accomplishments, telling yourself they don’t count;
• catastrophising: you always expect the worst to happen – for example, you might be worried about a project coming up at work, and instead of thinking you’ll do your best, you immediately assume you’re going to fail miserably;
• personalisation: you blame yourself for things that are out of your control – for example, if your team doesn’t do well on a project, you might believe it’s all your fault.

These thought patterns can lead to a whole host of emotional problems, including anxiety, depression, and anger. You might start calling in sick more often, or your performance might start to suffer.

Physical health

When you don’t feel good, you won’t be able to do your best work. Unfortunately, the demands of modern life make it easy to let one’s physical health slide. You might skip meals, or eat unhealthy foods on the go, not get enough sleep or exercise, or not see your doctor for regular checkups.

All of these things can contribute to physical problems that make burnout more likely.

Environment

This includes both your physical environment and the people you work with. If your workplace is stressful, chaotic, or disorganised, or if you don’t feel supported by your colleagues or bosses, it can cause burnout.

Employee assistance programmes

One solution is to enrol in an employee assistance programme (EAP), a workplace service that provides workers with resources to manage stress and other mental health issues. EAPs are offered by many employers around the world, even in Malaysia, as a way to promote wellness.

EAPs typically provide confidential counseling services to those who are struggling with anxiety, depression, or other mental health issues. They also offer stress-management programmes, workshops, and other resources that can teach employees how to better manage their time and energy, and cope with stress in healthy ways.

Some EAPs provide work-life-balance resources, such as childcare referral services and financial counselling, so employees can juggle their work and personal responsibilities without feeling overwhelmed.

Benefits of EAPs

EAPs offer many benefits to those who are struggling with mental health issues. Counselling services help them identify the root of their problem and develop a plan to address it.

EAPs also provide staff with tools to better manage their time and energy, and cope with stress in healthy ways. These resources can help them stay productive and satisfied with their jobs.

Finally, EAPs can help reduce absenteeism and turnover, and improve workplace morale. If you’re feeling overwhelmed at work, consider talking to your employer about enrolling in an EAP. It could be just what you need to get back on track.

Dennis Relojo-Howell is the managing director of Psychreg and host of ‘The DRH Show’. Connect with him on Twitter @dennisr_howell.