How to avoid burnout
In Australia, burnout costs our country around $300 billion a year. And even more important, it can cost individuals their health, the ability to work full time and more.
Every single one of us has a responsibility to look after ourselves and avoid burnout – it’s no longer acceptable to wear burnout as a badge of honour.
As the CEO of a payroll service specialising in IT contractors, I see too many instances of burnout, brought about by contractors who believe they cannot take a break, as they get paid only when they are at work. It’s heartbreaking to see.
And so, I’m very passionate about helping people avoid burnout and encouraging people to take time out from work to recharge their batteries and be the best they can be.
Owing to this, I have set about educating contractors and their love ones about the services contractors can use to help avoid burnout. This includes a trusty leave account.
While we all say we want to save, how many times do we spend because we have and simply leave only the basics in our bank accounts? While some people are great savers, others are not. And so, we want to help.
Recently, we helped a long-term contractor who never used to take leave because he couldn’t afford it. He’d turn up to work sick, only take the shut-down time at Christmas, and he was burning out.
I had a chat with him about his situation and looked at what would work best for him. We determined that he could live on $1500 per week, and so anything he earned over that he wanted set aside in his leave account.
This meant that the rest of his pay got transferred to his leave account, helping him pay his car and other personal expenses when he needed to take a break for fun or for recovery.
Taking breaks then helped our contractor avoid burnout, become more productive, and earn more in the long run. It was a very good move for his health and wellbeing, as well as his career.
Burnout should not be a normal occurrence. Let’s all look for ways to help each other and ourselves take the time out we need when we need it!
Christine Marr is the CEO of Bookssorted Payroll Services with a passion for helping IT contractors maximise their pay. Bookssorted prides itself on being a team of real people who give a damn. Find out more at Bookssorted.com.au