Do I need to quit my job after burnout?

Does burnout mean you have to quit your job or else be doomed to experience burnout again? What is burnout anyways? Can you recover from burnout in the environment that you burnt out in - or is it time to get on the job market?

You might need to quit job or you might be able to stay. Either way, something about how you’re working will need to change given that burnout is the result of chronic, unmanaged job stress. If you’re experiencing signs of burnout, it’s a good indicator that what you’re doing right now is not working.

While I can’t give you a definite answer (there is no one size fits all here) I can give you a new way to think about this conundrum.

How to decide if you need to quit your job due to burnout

There are both individual and job-related factors that contribute to burnout. Sometimes you’re the problem, sometimes your job is the problem - often it’s a bit of both.

Organizations have a responsibility to create an environment where wellbeing is possible. You also have autonomy and a responsibility to care for yourself. When it comes to deciding whether to leave your job due to burnout, the answer lies in looking at both sides.

I’ve seen it go both ways with members of the teams that I work with and for myself. When I burnt out in 2017, it was 100% my fault. There was no one but myself and my Type A patterns to blame. No manager, no system, no organization was at fault - that was all me.

Several years later, though, I worked in an organization where it seemed like nothing I did made a difference. I had great personal wellbeing practices by then, good boundaries, and excellent strategies for making work more brain-friendly - and yet, I was constantly on edge and talking to leadership made things worse instead of better.

Personal factors were taken care of and my efforts to address job factors were unsuccessful… so I left.

Let’s break down the factors for you to consider when trying to decide whether to leave your job due to burnout.

Personal Factors of Burnout

These are things that are on you - personal factors that contribute to burnout are your responsibility. Other people may be able to support you in addressing anything that you are doing that is contributing to burnout, but ultimately it’s up to you to make a change.

If you change jobs without addressing these patterns, you might just be taking your bad habits with you. The grass is always greener at first when you get a new job, but eventually bureaucracy and your own habits catch up to you again.

The personal factors that contribute to burnout can be largely summed up as what I like to call the Burnout Personalities; Type A, perfectionism, people pleasing.

Type A

Hello, friend. If you’re Type A, you’re in good company - I too am incredibly Type A. I’m so Type A that I once dedicated 11 hours to working to writing a research proposal over again (literally repeated all the work) because I was stuck and thought that I just needed to think harder.

When you’re Type A, you are driven, competitive, prone to tunnel vision, and tend to derive your sense of accomplishment from work. You push through even when you’re exhausted and put made up tasks on your calendar. You hold excess stress if your body and you’re a little high strung.

If you’re Type A, you need to focus on personal wellbeing habits. This means doing things to relieve stress, training yourself to stop thinking about work, and scheduling your breaks. Don’t wait until you’re tired to take breaks, just set an alarm!

Perfectionism

If you’ve ever heard the phrase “done is better than perfect" and known deep within your soul that it’s a lie… you might be a perfectionist.

As a perfectionist, you have likely have unattainable standards. Your drive for flawlessness is accompanied by diminished self-perceptions and concern for how others see you. Worst of all, you’re doing a ton of extra work that no one else can see.

Perfectionists need personal wellbeing practices like the Type A people (alright, we all need that) and you need to start taking “done is better than perfect” to heart. Get very clear on your job expectations and start asking where you’re going above and beyond - then stop doing that.

People Pleasing

Our favourite people to delegate to! As a people pleaser, you’re focused on gaining the favour of others and avoiding conflicts at all costs. You want to be perceived as kind and helpful but are cultivating this perception at your own expense. It leaves you resentful and exhausted.

If you’re a people pleaser then the name of the game is boundaries. It’s time to stop saying yes to every request that comes your way or answering the phone while you’re at the beach.

Job Factors of Burnout

Confident that your Type A, perfectionist, people pleasing patterns aren’t to blame? Researchers have identified common causes of workplace burnout that you can use to determine whether your job is the source of burnout.

In this case, I still recommend being proactive before quitting. Brainstorm ways for you to address the job factors, either by things you implement yourself or a sit down with your manager. If these efforts turn out to futile, it may be time to consider your next move.

Work Overload

The demands of your job are too high for you to meet with the time or resources given. Addressing workload may look like setting boundaries or talking to your manager about expectations and deadlines.

Lack of Community

There is a lacking sense of community within your team. This is especially likely to be a problem if you work from home. Cultivating community in your team can be anything from fun Slack channels to working on running better meetings.

Unfairness

You feel like things aren’t fair at work - whether it’s the outcomes of the process behind decisions. Draw this to your managers attention, because sometimes they really don’t know, and ask to participate more actively in your developement.

Under-reward

All work, no rewards? This is a surefire way to burnout because there is nothing that feels worse than wasting your resources on nothing. If you’re feeling under-rewarded, start by ensuring you’re using every reward you can - take all your vacation days! Talk to your superiors about expectations for rewards.

Lack of Control

Control is a crucial buffer against the effects of stress. When employees have control and autonomy, they feel more satisfied at work. This can look like taking ownership of a progress, taking on new responsbility, and setting boundaries around micromanaging.

Misaligned Values

When your values and your company values don’t mesh it’s a recipe for burnout. You might be able to cultivate a sense of value alignment by doing things that increase meaning - like looking for variety at work or getting outside your bubble to see the community impact. If you’re working somewhere that does something you are morally opposed to, though, it may be tough to do.

Do you need to leave?

Whether or not you leave your job due to burnout is your call in the end. Can you do things that will make work enjoyable again? Can you address burnout job factors with management?

On more consideration: work environment may just be straight up toxic. Check out the 5 Marks of a Toxic Work Environment. If you’re in an unbearably toxic environment start sprucing up your resume. Cultural toxicity is very hard to address - and you don’t need to be the hero at your own expense.

If you reach a point where you realize that you cannot address job factors and you cannot even change your personal approach in your current environment, it’s probably time to move on.