If you’re constantly exhausted by work, having a rough day every day, or find yourself disengaging from tasks that used to excite you, you might be moving from stress into burnout.
That’s because burnout doesn’t usually hit all at once. It takes time and will take a significant toll on both workers and their organizations. Recent research from SHRM revealed that workers experiencing burnout are three times more likely to be looking for a new job. They’re also less likely to go above and beyond what’s expected of them in their roles.
It’s a serious problem, and it’s coming for workers everywhere. So, how do leaders prevent burnout in the workplace? By paying attention to behavioral cues. Every person has a baseline behavioral style, which is the way they naturally show up when they’re energized and engaged. This style can be revealed through using the right tools—when you understand what your team needs, you can discover when their behavior shifts in response to stress.
Here’s how to understand baseline behavioral styles, spot the warning signs, and take practical steps to support your team.
Direct communicators are ambitious, decisive, competitive, confident, and positive. As natural leaders who like to take charge, they prefer clear, concise conversations that focus on facts and details over enthusiasm.
In times of stress, Direct communicators can become rigid and overly controlling. They might become impatient with routine tasks and avoid communicating or asking for the opinions of others because they feel they don’t have time. Direct workers in burnout often are quick to make impulsive or risky decisions just to “get it done.” Their usual confidence can harden into arrogance or combative behavior.
Direct communicators need to protect their decision-making time. Remove unnecessary meetings and help them prioritize what matters most, reinforcing boundaries around work hours.
The good news is that Direct people tend to be clear with their behavioral cues. It’s easy to spot their burnout under extended periods of stress. If your Direct peer comes across as extra controlling or aggressive, they might be experiencing burnout.
Reflective communicators are modest, adaptable, low-key, cooperative, and agreeable. They engage others by being outcome-focused and agreeable, prioritizing clear, precise, and thorough communication.
In times of stress, Reflective communicators tend to slip into a “follower” role. They can become timid and conflict-avoidant, withdrawing from their responsibilities and cancelling commitments. Burned-out Reflective communicators may appear detached, hesitant, and unwilling to make decisions, even simple ones. They might constantly defer to others and leave projects in limbo.
Reflective communicators need small, clear wins to rebuild confidence after experiencing burnout. By creating safe opportunities for repeatable success, Reflective workers will likely feel more confident and comfortable voicing their opinions and speaking up. Make sure to clarify expectations in writing!
Outgoing communicators are people-oriented, optimistic, and enthusiastic. They are creative problem solvers and are skilled at negotiating conflict. They want action and intention upfront and tend to strongly believe in their own ideas and dreams.
In times of stress, Outgoing communicators tend to double down on their enthusiasm. This heightened talkativeness can come across as insincerity. They can appear self-promoting or lacking focus, and may mask their fatigue by expending more energy, which can contribute to faster burnout.
Outgoing communicators need help setting parameters. Set clear deliverables, give them accountability partners, and over-communicate needs.
If you focus on empathy and collaboration when offering this instruction, you’ll likely get buy-in from the Outgoing person. They’ll appreciate the consideration and feel better supported to handle stress.
Reserved communicators are logical, precise, and straightforward. They attempt to influence people using facts and figures rather than through emotions or storytelling. They are alert and highly aware of their environment.
In times of stress, Reserved communicators tend to make themselves scarce. They will likely let a silence linger, provide curt or cynical responses, and withdraw from group conversations. This isolation can only contribute to their caution and will compound stress as they experience burnout. They may stop volunteering input altogether, avoid team interactions, and even appear resentful or skeptical toward leadership and coworkers.
A Reserved worker will thrive with more structure during times of hard stress. Leaders should schedule private one-on-one check-ins to get a better understanding of their experience without the pressure of a crowd.
Reserved communicators can also appreciate a verbal invitation back into discussions via specific, actionable questions directed their way.
Steady communicators are considerate, compassionate, and accepting of others, but might seem indifferent or hesitant on the surface. They prefer a slow pace, defined responsibilities, and clearly outlined expectations.
In times of stress, Steady communicators can become possessive of their work. They might not want to share responsibilities or details for fear of being derailed, and tend to slow down under pressure, seeming stubborn and anxious about change. They can become defensive about small requests and show visible signs of fatigue when their workload increases.
Steady communicators care deeply about the quality of their work, so burnout can take an especially severe toll on them. Get back to basics with your Steady team member and re-evaluate timelines with built-in buffers for more working and thinking time.
Reframe priorities together and help them trim down responsibilities so they aren’t taking on extra work. Acknowledge their contributions and let them know how much they are valued!
Dynamic people are open and confident when it comes to sharing information, and they prefer lively, fast-paced conversations. They love jumping from idea to project to task, without slowing down.
In times of stress, Dynamic communicators can come across as pushy and unwilling to slow down or consider others’ needs. They may appear scattered, impatient, or even reckless, taking on too much, overpromising, then struggling to deliver. This can turn their impatience into real conflict.
Help your Dynamic team member set realistic goals with lots of room to pivot. By clearly framing the project and understanding the end goal, they can pivot as needed within the constraints of the work.
Coach them to understand others’ perspectives and consider what their teammates need. By adopting different points of view, they can gain some of the momentum they need to work effectively.
Precise communicators are dependent, neat, careful, and compliant. They want to get the job done right and thrive on establishing routines and processes to follow in the workplace.
In times of stress, Precise workers tend to double down on their processes, becoming rigid and inflexible. They might micromanage their teammates and want to do everything themself so it’s done “right”, and can become critical of feedback and irritable when plans change. During burnout, they can become hypercritical, nitpicky, and paralyzed by the need to be perfect.
While experiencing burnout, your Precise worker needs clear criteria more than ever. Establish what a project looks like when it’s completed and limit the refinement period for their work.
Help them see the quality of their work by celebrating progress over perfection. While you do that, make sure to prevent changing things up on them as much as you can.
Pioneering communicators are independent, unconventional, and outspoken. They strive to find the best outcome with the most effective means, regardless of whether it is random or experimental. They prefer an uninhibited work environment.
In times of stress, Pioneering communicators can become scattered and disorganized, disregarding structure even when it's necessary. Warning signs for burnout include a loss of creative drive and constant frustration with rules. They will likely struggle to follow through with their work, abandoning projects midway when their energy crashes.
Help your Pioneering worker by breaking ideas into smaller milestones. Don’t present projects as enormous, monolithic tasks; instead, give a Pioneering communicator micro-projects to encourage momentum and energy.
Encourage them to show their work and do the same in return. Give them wiggle room as often as possible; you might be surprised at the alternative options they come up with in response.
Burnout doesn’t look the same for everyone, and neither does recovery. The good news is that by understanding the baseline behaviors of your team, leaders can catch stress before it shifts into burnout with early intervention and increased awareness of what each team member needs.
Want to dive into your team’s behavioral style? We can help. Get access to the tools you need now.