How Can Women Prevent Burnout In The Workplace?

Bazaar India speaks to four inspiring female leaders—from different walks of life—to understand the potential source and solutions for women facing burnout in high-pressure work environments.

- PRIYANKA KATHURIA

Burnout, defined as chronic physical and emotional exhaustion, is a significant health concern taking over workplaces, across the globe. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), burnout is classified as an ‘occupational phenomenon’, resulting from long-standing workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. While it can affect anyone, research shows that women—especially those in high-pressure work situations—are particularly vulnerable, owing to myriad challenges they face in their personal and professional lives.

Here’s a sobering statistic: after the pandemic, women are facing what experts are calling an ‘exhaustion gap’, with a whopping 68 percent feeling burned out, less driven, and less inspired (compared to 50 percent men). For many women, the problem is more than just about a pressure-packed working environment. Because once their work day is over, many have to return home to unpaid responsibilities like parenting, household chores, domestic work, and caregiving (studies say women spend four times the hours on domestic duties, than men).

As one might expect, this situation is not helping women close the gender gap in organisations—according to research by 360Learning, burnout is the number-one reason why women (25 percent of respondents, to be exact) have already quit their job...or are planning to. Whether this applies to women in leadership positions or not, the distressing consequence is that we stand to be left with fewer females in the workforce, and a significant lacuna in decision-making profiles.

And so, Bazaar India spoke with four female leaders to better understand the different aspects of burnout, and to explore ways in which women can alleviate stress and exhaustion in a demanding work ecosystem.