End-of-year Burnout : its a thing….

The end of year strikes a cord in all leaders – from a flurry of activity to get things done and completed to the dreaded team wind down, or even worse BURNOUT.

We’ve all experienced it. That long awaited end. Your eyes firmly fixed on that Christmas shut down period or ‘silly season’. Its  a given isn’t it? To feel lethargic and fatigued and to start checking out before shutting down?

In fact, a studyof 614 U.S. HR professionals, conducted by Morar Consulting from Nov. 14-19, 2016, found that 95 percent of HR leaders said employee burnout is sabotaging workforce retention.

Workplace burnout sabotages productivity, increase absenteeism, and undermines engagement that ultimately causes some of your best talent to leave the business all together.

This kind of burnout is at its peak towards the end of the calendar year.

Nothing really happens anyway….

“Ah” you say, “But nothing really happens in December/January anyway”. WRONG!!

There is a lot happening in the hearts and minds of your team at this time.

December and January is THE time when our team members start to reflect. They start asking themselves questions like “Am I appreciated here? Am I making  a difference? Do I even want to work here anymore?”

In fact, Monster.com, a global online employment solution company for employees and employers, reported that nine out of 10 of their busiest days for job applications in 2017 were during the first month of the year.  The most significant jump in job applications being at the end of January, when the number of job applications increased to 75% above the daily average.

This makes NOW the time to invest in your team. To lift motivation, instill appreciation and ignite intentions for the new year.  The end of year is a natural time of completion and renewal. It has a rhythm all of its own. It is the ideal time to nurture your teams well-being and set the scene for a new year.

Nature has a way of showing us the cycles…

Over the weekend I was sitting on my patio drinking coffee and looking over my backyard at the big gum trees that I’ve watched expand and grow over the 15 years I’ve lived here.

I noticed, as I do every October, that they are beginning to lose their bark.  Ah, its that time of year again, I say to myself.

….THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN….when the bark starts to peel, strip, shed and fall to the ground, or get caught by the wind and blown into the pool, onto the patio, all over the yard.  It’s a messy process, but also quite beautiful, and very cathartic.

The tree is flourishing.  It is a necessary cycle of growth.

They grow out of their skin, which must be shed to allow their trunk to enlarge.  The old growth falls away in strips over time, gently peeling off and naturally floating to the ground, preparing itself to make way for new development and expansion.

The exposed trunk that is revealed looks fresh, bright, shiny, and renewed.  Ready for the next growth to begin.  Making way for beginnings.

MY TREE

It’s your choice…..

Your team is a bit like this tree and the process it goes through as it sheds its bark ready for renewal.  And it happens every year, at this exact time.

Its your role, as Leader, to make a choice.  You don’t have to watch your team limp to the end of year feeling flat,  unmotivated, unproductive and perhaps contemplating their next career move.

You can choose to ignite your team. Spend time together and;

• Rejoice in the achievements and expansion of the year gone,
• Review and shed challenges met
• Create goals and intentions for the new year, making way for new growth.

This is your choice. To shed or burn?

If you would like help to set your team up for success in the new year, please reach out and contact me for more information or Book your free clarity session.