Steven Berglas's (he is an adjunct faculty member at Harvard Medical school) remarkable book is a must read for all of us invoilved in some rat race or another. He focuses on people who have or have had extraordinary succesful careers and nevertheless found themselves to be extremely unhappy - partially up to the point of self-destruction.
The difference between stress and burnout
Stress is characterized primarily by anger, frustration, and aggression. Burnout is a sense of boredom and depression. So the two states, while both psychologically negative, are really different. Believe it or not, you can be in a very prominent career and suffer what I call supernova burnout, which is when you have all the accoutrements of success, but still engage in nonchallenging, psychologically [nonrewarding] activity.
Some common signs of burnout
Look at an entrepreneur -- they never care about long hours. They live on a cup of coffee and a Twinkie for three weeks. When you have passion about what you're doing, time flies.
The symbol of burnout is work avoidance. Long hours are predicated either on being trapped by golden handcuffs -- having a job, not a career -- or enjoying yourself. Labor Day weekends are punishment for entrepreneurs, because they can't work. Labor Day weekends are punishment for the careerist who wants to launch a new product. They're a reprise for someone who can't stomach what they're doing.
What to do when you think people are feeling burnt out
Ask people: "What do you want to do? How do you want to restructure your job so you can add value?" People know what they want. Instead of imposing a program, you have to keep asking them.
The solution
You do not change vocations if you love it.You never burn out when you're passionate. You only burn out when you don't see an intrinsic reason for doing something. Finding your passions in life is the key. And being angry about something often helps.
[From the Great Books Series. Also see The Success Manual - Encyclopedia of Advice, which contains summaries of 100+ Most useful books.]
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