Burnout, like generalized stress, affects executives and managers at all levels. While the phenomenon emerges differently and to variable degrees in different individuals, it appears to have some identifiable common traits. To begin, let’s have a look at the characteristics of the situations. In one or more instances, the situations are as follows:
• are repetitive or long-term in nature;
• impose tremendous burdens on the managers;
• promise huge success but made it nearly impossible to achieve;
• expose managers to assault for carrying out their duties without providing them with a means of retaliation;
• elicit strong emotions such as sadness, fear, misery, compassion, helplessness, pity, and rage; To survive, managers would attempt to suppress their emotions and conceal their anguish;
• overwhelm managers with complex details, opposing forces, and problems at which they threw themselves with increasing intensity but with no effect;
• exploit managers but leave them with little to show for their exploitation;
• elicit an unavoidable sense of inadequacy and, frequently, guilt;
• leave managers with the impression that no one knew, much less cared, about the price they paid, the contribution or sacrifice they made, or the punishment they absorbed;
Those who research such cases concur that a unique phenomena happens when people exert enormous effort, intense to the point of fatigue, without achieving obvious benefits. Individuals who find themselves in these circumstances feel angry, helpless, stuck, and depleted: they are burned out. This is a more intense experience than what is commonly referred to as stress. The primary defining trait of burnout is that managers are unable or unwilling to continue doing what they have been doing.
Burnout is often identified by the following characteristics: (1) chronic exhaustion; (2) anger at people who make demands; (3) self-criticism for putting up with the expectations; (4) cynicism, negativity, and irritability; (5) a sensation of being besieged; and (6) hair-trigger emotional display.
These feelings are typically accompanied by a variety of activities, some of which are disastrous. Burned-out restaurant managers may improperly vent their anger at employees and family members, or they may withdraw from even those who need their support the most. They may fully isolate home and work. They may seek temporary psychological refuge in meditation, biofeedback, or other types of self-hypnosis in order to escape the source of pressure. They may adopt more restrictive views or look aloof and disconnected.
The majority of people, including good managers, will likely experience near-burnout at some point throughout their careers.
Personality tests revealed that these restaurant managers showed a larger want to do a good job for the sake of doing a good job than the majority of their peers did, as well as a greater initial desire for advancement (although it declined over time). They have a greater desire to dominate and lead, and a decreased willingness to yield to authority, than other managers. While they could still put in a decent day’s work, they are unable to invest in others or the organization.
When restaurant managers with a strong desire to succeed fail to accomplish their goals, they can become resentful toward themselves and others. Additionally, they channel their hatred into more defined job tasks than in the past, thereby limiting their efforts. If they do not enhance their involvement in family concerns during these periods, they are prone to approach burnout.
The Best Cure Is Prevention
Top management can take preventative measures to keep restaurant managers out of situations that are likely to result in burnout. While something as subtle as psychological exhaustion cannot be entirely prohibited by law, the following insights can help mitigate its occurrence:
To begin, as with any other phenomenon, acknowledge that burnout can do, and will occur. The individuals responsible for orientation programs, management training courses, and discussions of managerial practice should acknowledge to employees that burnout can occur and that the organization recognizes and cares about people’s vulnerability to it. Restaurant managers should be candid with new employees about the psychological aspects of the work they are about to begin, even more so when the work entails the type of intense effort described above. When pressures begin to mount, the more people understand, the less guilt they are likely to feel about their perceived inadequacies.
Keep track of the length of your time spend in particular jobs and rotate them out of potentially exhausting positions. Changes in pace, changes in demands, and shifts into less depleting situations allow restaurant managers to replenish their energies and gain new and more accurate perspectives on themselves and their roles. Additionally, change enables people to anticipate a time when they will be able to leave a shackling job.
Time constraints in the workplace are critical for avoiding burnout. Allow your employees to work no more than 18 hours per day, even on critical issues. Allow no one to repeatedly act as the savior of troubled situations. Managers, understandably, rely on their best people; however, the best people are more prone to burnout. Over conscientious individuals, in particular, require time away from the pressures of their role and must spend that time engaging in rejuvenating activities.
You must retrain and improve your restaurant managers as technology advances. However, some individuals may be unable to advance to greater levels of responsibility and will certainly feel dejected if they are unable to succeed in their current position. Top management must swiftly retrain, refresh, and reenergize these managers by arranging for them to attend seminars, workshops, and other activities outside the restaurant.
Restaurant managers who are on the verge of burnout require the assistance of others who can provide psychological support. In an ideal world, those others would be their supervisors—persons who respect them as individuals and insist on their withdrawal, seeking proper assistance, and putting themselves first. It is critical for managers to maintain personal contact with their subordinates at times of extreme strain.
