Burnt Out, Not Burnt Down
Shayne M. Phillips
University of Illinois Springfield – MGT310 According to the NonProfit Times, one of the main reasons that nonprofit professionals are less likely to take on new jobs with charities is burnout (The NonProfit Times, 2008). Working in the nonprofit sector, I can attest to feeling some of the types of burnout. Of the three, exhaustion is the category that is most relevant to my experience; however, there were also times when a sense of inefficacy contributed to feelings of burnout. My current position as Executive Assistant of Teen Writers and Artists Project, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, involves many stressful situations. Some stressors discussed in lecture were role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload (Walsh, 2015). An example in my position of role overload, where there were greater demands of the job than I could handle, is when my employer contacted me asking me to design a specific graphic under a short time restraint. This caused a …show more content…
One interesting strategy that I have come across in in previous research, mentioned briefly in lecture, is utilizing the “flow psychology” concept (Walsh, 2015). Using “flow psychology” from a management position could entail developing and delegating tasks that allow an employee to enter the “flow zone” which lies somewhere within the employee’s skill level, while also giving an appropriate level of challenge. This could address the workload and job demands factor, which is lacking in attention, by rearranging tasks among employees so they are a better fit with the resources, such as individual skills. Another strategy to address the workload factor may be increasing the amount of advance scheduling, so that time is managed more effectively and does not cause stress for
Shayne M. Phillips
University of Illinois Springfield – MGT310 According to the NonProfit Times, one of the main reasons that nonprofit professionals are less likely to take on new jobs with charities is burnout (The NonProfit Times, 2008). Working in the nonprofit sector, I can attest to feeling some of the types of burnout. Of the three, exhaustion is the category that is most relevant to my experience; however, there were also times when a sense of inefficacy contributed to feelings of burnout. My current position as Executive Assistant of Teen Writers and Artists Project, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, involves many stressful situations. Some stressors discussed in lecture were role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload (Walsh, 2015). An example in my position of role overload, where there were greater demands of the job than I could handle, is when my employer contacted me asking me to design a specific graphic under a short time restraint. This caused a …show more content…
One interesting strategy that I have come across in in previous research, mentioned briefly in lecture, is utilizing the “flow psychology” concept (Walsh, 2015). Using “flow psychology” from a management position could entail developing and delegating tasks that allow an employee to enter the “flow zone” which lies somewhere within the employee’s skill level, while also giving an appropriate level of challenge. This could address the workload and job demands factor, which is lacking in attention, by rearranging tasks among employees so they are a better fit with the resources, such as individual skills. Another strategy to address the workload factor may be increasing the amount of advance scheduling, so that time is managed more effectively and does not cause stress for