How can you support late career public engagement mentors dealing with burnout?

Burnout is a common challenge for public engagement mentors, especially those who have been in the field for a long time. Public engagement mentors are professionals who help researchers, practitioners, and communities collaborate and communicate effectively on social and environmental issues. They may work in academia, nonprofits, government, or media, and they often juggle multiple roles and responsibilities. If you are a public engagement mentor or you work with one, you may wonder how to support them and prevent burnout. Here are some tips to help you.

1 Recognize the signs

Burnout is not just feeling tired or stressed, but rather a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion that can detrimentally affect your motivation, performance, and overall well-being. You may be experiencing burnout if you feel cynical, frustrated, or detached from your work or colleagues; lose interest in your projects or goals; have difficulty concentrating, making decisions, or solving problems; feel overwhelmed, helpless, or hopeless; experience physical symptoms such as headaches, insomnia, or fatigue; have mood swings, irritability, or anger; isolate yourself from others or avoid social interactions; and neglect your personal needs or interests. If you recognize any of these signs in yourself or your peers, it is essential to take action and seek help.

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Dr Rockson Samuel

Dentist | Full Stack Marketer | AI Enthusiast
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Offer resources for stress management, encourage self-care practices, and facilitate peer support groups. Additionally, emphasize the importance of setting boundaries and delegating tasks to alleviate workload pressure.

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2 Seek support and feedback

Reaching out to others for support and feedback is one of the most effective ways to cope with burnout. Your colleagues, supervisors, or managers can offer recognition, appreciation, and constructive criticism; your peers, mentors, or mentees can share experiences, insights, and advice; your friends, family, or partners can provide emotional, practical, and financial support; your professional network, associations, or communities can connect you with opportunities, resources, and events; and your counselor, therapist, or coach can help address your mental health and well-being. Seeking such support and feedback can help you feel less isolated, more valued, and more confident in your work.

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Nikita Singh

Learning & Leadership Consultant | EY UK
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Once you recognise the signs of burnout, take action. Burnout can worsen if you don't address it in a healthy manner. Ignoring the signs of burnout will not only impact your energy and ability to be the effective in what you do, but also, it can impact your health significantly. This might have a knock-on effects to the other areas of your life.

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3 Set boundaries and priorities

To prevent burnout, it's important to set boundaries and priorities for both work and life. This may involve saying no to requests that don't align with goals, values, or capacities; negotiating workloads, deadlines, expectations, and compensation; delegating or outsourcing tasks; scheduling breaks, vacations, and days off; creating a work-life balance that works for you; and pursuing hobbies or passions that bring joy and fulfillment. Establishing these boundaries and priorities can help you manage your time, energy, and resources more effectively.

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Nikita Singh

Learning & Leadership Consultant | EY UK
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One lifestyle habit that can help reduce burnout and stress is Meditation. Meditation helps bring down levels of the stress hormone cortisol and increases the levels of serotonin (wellbeing hormone) in our body. It also helps enhance our resilience, i.e., the ability to bounce back from adversity. As you make Meditation a part of your life, you will notice you feel more relaxed, develop the ability to have a say over your mind (effortlessly), and you feel productive in all that you do.

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4 Learn and grow

To avoid burnout, it's important to learn and grow from your work and challenges. This can include seeking new skills, knowledge, or perspectives to enhance your work or career; taking on new projects, roles, or opportunities to challenge or inspire you; getting feedback, evaluation, or assessment to help improve your work or impact; celebrating achievements, successes, or milestones to boost morale and confidence; and reflecting on your work, goals, or values to find meaning and purpose. Learning and growing can keep you curious, motivated, and engaged in your work.

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5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Nikita Singh

Learning & Leadership Consultant | EY UK
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One of the reasons for burnout can be that you've taken on too much. In these situations, ask yourself, "is there anything I can delegate? If yes, to whom?" Also consider what is stopping you from asking for help - is it that you don't know whom to ask or could it stem from a sense of control or a need to get it done yourself. Like I mentioned earlier, lifestyle plays a huge role in preventing as well as managing burnout. This includes exercise, quality sleep, good company, the right food, a disciplined routine etc. If you think you are experiencing burn out because of a specific person or situation, reflect on how you can manage that so it doesn't bother you as much. Learn from it and slowly start to move on.

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How can you support late career public engagement mentors dealing with burnout?

1

2

3

4

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1 Recognize the signs

2 Seek support and feedback

3 Set boundaries and priorities

4 Learn and grow

5 Here’s what else to consider

Community Organizing

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How can you support late career public engagement mentors dealing with burnout?

1

2

3

4

5

1 Recognize the signs

2 Seek support and feedback

3 Set boundaries and priorities

4 Learn and grow

5 Here’s what else to consider

Community Organizing

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