For the past couple of weeks, we’ve been talking about metabolism; the need for healthy organizations to create systems for getting the most out of people, ideas and revenue. And to break those base ingredients down into the energy organizations need to accomplish the mission. Just like an athlete or soldier.
Today is my last post on metabolism and, before I move on, we need to talk about one of the dangers of this. Something real that happens all the time. Something our systems have to account for, guard against and provide accountability for if those systems fail.
Often times in organizations metabolic systems underperform. Our people feel underutilized. They aren’t growing at a consistent pace, they aren’t progressing in their careers, they aren’t seeing the future we promised them when they came to work for us. So, they leave. The other side of that coin is what happens when our systems over-process our people. What happens we pull too much out, when we move too fast, when we put too much forward, when there’s too much pressure, when there’s not enough support, when the cup runs dry, and when the gears grind down for running out of oil? What happens when our systems and our companies take more life than they give?
The last thing we need is another blog post on the warning signs of burnout, so this isn’t that. And this part will be brief. In her groundbreaking research, Dr. Christine Maslack at the University of California in Berkley identified three symptoms of occupational burnout. 1) Emotional Exhaustion 2) A feeling of a lack of professional efficacy and 3) Cynicism. Knowing these three things formed a safety net of awareness that I was sorely lacking when I first started Hölmetrics. And this week, after closing an investment round, selling our house, and preparing to move, I’m feeling all three. And it makes me ask the question I asked six years ago that started the entire Hölmetrics journey, “If you could look closely enough at my life, could you predict I was going to burn out? And if you could predict it, could you prevent it?” That’s our obsession.
I’m going to rest. I need you to do the same.
– Chad Verity, CEO, Hölmetrics