I had an interesting conversation with a client recently. She was, like many others, struggling with burnout due to a reactive, confrontational, and unappreciative boss.
Burnout costs individual employees their health and wellness and over $1.8 billion dollars of productivity due to absenteeism, decreased performance, and high turnover. In their 2023 survey Gallup noted that three-quarters of employees reported having experienced stress the day before; a quarter indicated daily stress at work. In reviewing over 100 reasons Gallup identified the top five as unfair treatment, unmanageable expectations, unclear communication, lack of support, and unreasonable time pressures.
My client was experiencing all top five reasons for burnout due to her difficult boss. And yet the effort and energy she was putting into establishing boundaries were failing, leaving her hopeless, battery low, and looking to leave. She needed an approach that shifted her energy from focusing on her boss to fueling her battery.
What would it look like to manage your battery instead of your boundaries?
Fueling Your Battery
While every boundary demands energy, refueling one’s battery is different for each individual and based on an individual’s unique talents, experiences, and environment. For my client the refocus on managing her energy instead of her boss’s boundaries offers an important reframing of her agency, both in dealing with her current boss and searching for her new next role.
Managing Energy
There are three general categories of energy management - time to think, move, and connect - and an intentional combination of any can be right-sized for anyone.
Time to Think - In times of low battery and borderline burnout, everyone needs to have a way to find time to think or, ideally, not think. Some ideas to consider (and note that no screens involved):
Schedule dedicated thinking/unthinking time on your calendar. This can be as short as 10 minutes to explore ideas with a pen and blank paper.
Listen to music - Choose music that is calming, and soothing, or consider exploring 528 Hertz playlists.
If you're in a busy place consider taking a leisurely drive
Read a short story, a poem, or a chapter of a book that is not work-related
Visit a bookstore and browse quietly
If you meditate, take five minutes to sit and practice, focusing on your breath
If you don’t meditate, try box breathing.
Try free writing. Pick an object or start with the prompts: I am looking at…I am thinking of…
Play a strategy game or do a puzzle. Try Quordle or Soduku.
Do a low-concentration, repetitive activity like knitting, weeding, or coloring.
Time to Move - Sometimes it is not quieting the mind that gives us energy but moving our body. A few ideas to consider:
Block time for a daily stroll around the block. Even ten minutes of moving can help you reset your energy and perspective
Take a walk in nature. Stuck on a city block? Do a color walk, ie look for blue and you might see a blue car, a blue bin, a blue poster, or a blue coat.
Consider walking meetings with teammates or clients. This can be in person or via cell. Ask what changes in the conversation.
Try yoga, stretching, and dancing. Anything to move your body from one static position into another.
Time to Connect - While others prefer solitary time, time connecting to others is another way to refuel one’s energy. The right people can, like water, fill your cup. A few ideas to consider:
Texting a friend. Pebbling - sharing and sending memes - can be a quick and positive way to share connections.
Checking in with a friend in a different time zone.
Scheduling a future commitment - having something to look forward to can bring energy.
Consider signing up for a class with others.
Block time for cell- and screen-free connections on weekends with family and friends.
Managing our energy will not change others’ behaviors but will change ours. What do you do to fill up your battery and those of others?
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