Have you ever told your manager that you were feeling burned out? Has an employee ever shared that with you?
Always be intentional about what your ask is. Are you asking for a week off? Are you asking for a sabbatical? Are you asking to change departments? Are you asking to change teams? What is it that you need — be very direct about what that ask is.
Don’t just go in and say, “I’m stressed out.” Help paint the picture for the person that you’re talking to, in terms of what is it that you’re experiencing and what is it that you seek out of the conversation.
The point is: You need to know what you want before you talk to your boss. Otherwise, you may end up getting some vague promises about lightening your workload, or your manager may think you’re just having a bad day.
To figure out what you want (and to figure out what the problem is in the first place), consider keeping a log of the work tasks that deplete and energize you. You might also bounce ideas off a colleague or close friend.
Hope this helps!
