After various regions across the country went into lockdown seemingly overnight, people may have wondered how they would fill their newfound free time. For many, work was the answer.
As companies shifted to remote operations, the normal 9 to 5 schedule that millions of people were adjusted to altered. Working from home seemed like a silver lining for being in the midst of a pandemic, but this arrangement began to hinder the mental health of several workers.
Without the appropriate boundaries in place, people can suffer from exhaustion and burnout, which can have a direct impact on their quality of work. So how can you identify if you are suffering from burnout?
One trait that many remote workers share is the inability to take time off even if you’ve earned it. In fact, a survey by Monster found that 59% of remote workers are taking less time off than normal and 42% do not set aside time for self-care.
Another telltale sign of approaching burnout is using work as an escape from stress. Instead of using time off to relax and connect with loved ones, people may use working to avoid the new realities of the world. Our jobs are familiar to us, so using it as an escape from the new way of living may be a source of relief for people.
Along with using this stress-relief method, remote workers often struggle to set boundaries between their home and work life. Without dedicating a specific schedule and space to conduct work and squeezing in work tasks throughout the entire day, workers become high risk of burning out.
