I work in a customer contact center with about 13 direct reports, who all speak with customers throughout the day. Typically customers have an issue that needs resolving, which is why they called into our customer service department. Dealing with a number of hostile customers can produce a great amount of stress in a work environment, especially when these customers are escalated to supervisors for assistance. However, the ability to handle stress is a technique that has to be exercised when dealing with customers, because having that control will assist in retaining customers and providing them quality customer service. My results from the burnout self-test revealed, “little sign of burnout here, unless some factors are particularly severe” (“Burnout Test”, n.d.). From taking the quiz, I learned that I am not as overwhelmed as I sometimes feel. I take more control over outcomes than I feel that I do during stressful times. Sometimes when you are in the mist of stressful times, you can not really gauge or determine how well you are dealing with situations, but this test helped me but things into a better perspective. Future steps I will take to ensure stress does not negatively affect my ability to be a productive and effective employee is to …show more content…
Michelle Randall (2013) explains that “delegating is a great way to ensure that more tasks get done in less time, and it builds team capacity” (Randall, 2013). Delegating helps relieve some responsibilities in areas that do not require close supervision and the opportunity to focus on more important tasks. Hopefully through delegating I am able to coach and develop my direct reports in being quality customer service associates that are capable of deescalating issues in a non stressful matter. Focusing on delegating will eventually create a less stressful environment for all and hopefully increase
One of the keys to eliminating burnout in the counseling field, is for the counselor to recognize when they are experiencing some of the symptoms. Kottler (2010) reports some of the signs of burnout include experiencing emotional exhaustion, having negative attitudes for your clients, feelings of lack of accomplishment, and becoming easily discouraged. Therefore, if we notice ourselves without the enthusiasm or drive for that passion which once drove us into this field chances are we may be experiencing symptoms of burnout. Oser, Biebel, Pullen, and Harp (2013) report it is always good to have
You can de-escalate a tense situation with ease and grace—working through a tough issue or bug with an upset customer not only doesn’t scare you, it’s a challenge you’re eager to take
I feel that I work well under pressure and I do not let such pressure affect my performance and eventually my quality of work. When I am under pressure, I try to keep calm and treat the customer in front of me as if he was the only customer in line so that I am not affected by other variables in order to give the best possible service to each and every customer. Furthermore, angry clients are not unusual. I deal with such customers by keeping calm and understand the origin of their anger. I listen actively in what the customer has to say and empathise with them and try to recommend the best possible solution.
Delegation…. Having the knowledge to know how to delegate efficiently is the key to advantaging yourself and increasing your importance to any company. Transferring responsibility permits you to shift from what you can do yourself to what you can supervise. Delegating tasks is one of the utmost significant and efficient managerial tools there is today. Lacking the capability to delegate efficiently and effectively, is unmanageable for you to progress in a supervisory position to an even advanced position of accountability.
In fact, I am currently experiencing burnout concerning my college degree. When I have an objective, I invest everything in my power to accomplishing it; it is almost as if I have tunnel vision- the accomplishment of the objective supersedes everything else. I invest so much of myself that I reach a point when there is nothing left to give. I also become stressed and anxious when I cannot achieve my goals to my standards. Whatever the particular situation, when I reach the burnout stage, I become disillusioned and lose my commitment to the
All of the definitions of burnout mention the main factor of burnout to be stress. Pamela Patrick, in her book about Health Care Worker Burnout, defined burnout as “the feeling of emotional exhaustion, a negative attitude shift, and a sense of personal devaluation that occurs over time and in relation to high stress work environment”. Whiton Paine in his book on job stress and burnout used the concept of burnout stress syndrome, or BOSS, which is due to “high levels of job stress, personal frustration and inadequate coping skills”.
49. Shriom, A. & Melamed, S. Does burnout affect physical health? A review of the evidence. In A.S.G. Antoniou & C.L. Cooper (eds.), Research companion to organizational health psychology (pp.599-622). Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar, 2005
Burnout is a gradual onset with symptoms coming on over time slowly. Burnout symptoms may include physical exhaustion, hopelessness, negative self-concept, having difficulty leaving home, and inability to concentrate are just some of the symptoms. Due to the gradual onset of symptoms, it is often hard to detect early (Dass-Brailsford, 2007). In McCann and Pearlman’s article they discuss burnout as a, “psychological strain from working with difficult populations” (McCann & Pearlman, 1990).
Burnout is a direct effect of too much stress. People know if they’re stressed. Stress hormones, like adrenaline, help us react to extreme situations, but if those hormones don’t turn off, they can wear the body down. Symptoms of stress can cause nervousness, fatigue, insomnia, heartburn, headaches, stomach aches, and constipation. Lasting stress increases the risk of heart disease, impairs memory, weakens the immune system, and can accelerate the aging processes.
Burnout in the field of Mental Health Counseling is a serious concern for everyone involved, whether the person is just beginning their journey, or if they are a seasoned veteran with years of experience. Unless, the person has a prevention plan in place and adds it into their busy schedule and does not stray from their commitment of their self-care program. It is easy when we get busy to skip a day here and there and the next thing you know we have not taken care of ourselves for a month or longer. Once we permit ourselves to neglect our self-care program the symptoms of burnout and begin to develop very quickly. Personally, I believe with a good self-care program, it is easier to circumvent burnout, then it is to overcome it once you are in its grips. Here are some of the things I implement into my schedule to help myself from becoming burnt out.
Within the MyManagmentLab for the Managing People in Organizations, class there is a section called Personal Inventory Assessments. These are short questionnaires to evaluate different aspects of a person’s life. I did multiple ones but the three personal inventory assessments I found most useful where the stress management assessment, the self-awareness assessment and the time management assessment. The stress management quiz analyzed how I manage and react during stressful situations with my results being 24. My results said that I have a high resilience to stress and do not get worried very easily, however, I am not very effective at eliminating stress or developing coping strategies when I do ultimately get stressed. I can definitely relate to this because when I am stressed about something, I usually just give up on it and quit or push it off until the last minute, which usually results in more stress.
A plan of self-care to prevent the burnout is first taking care of yourself. Reach out to colleagues and supervisors and support from friends and family. Try to add nonprofessional activities like yoga, walking or listen to
Firstly, I knew ahead of the Burnout and Stress assessment that I was pretty stressed and out of it. Then, when I learned that my numbers were off the chart, I took a time out from my school work, etcetera to sit back and think deeply of my life. Putting myself in a state of relaxation, I thought about all the things that were going wrong around and within me. The thoughts were so depressing, but surprisingly, the first thing that came to mind was Maslow 's Hierarchy of Needs theory.
Burnout is a combination of factors, including emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and the reduced sense of personal accomplishment (Maslach, 1982). Emotional exhaustion is accompanied with a lack of compassion and motivation to work, while depersonalization leads to irritability.
It is critical to understand important stress management skills. If stress is not dealt with, it can result in a burnout, or perhaps worse, "People who experience high levels of anxiety are four to five times more likely to die of a heart attack or stroke" (Morrison