Exhausted, but still smiling: The dangerous myth of strong leadership
The following contribution comes from Louis Carter’s website, which describes itself as follows: Louis Carter is the founder and CEO of the Best Practice Institute (BPI) and Most Loved Workplace® (MLW), as well as a leading organizational psychologist recognized worldwide for his work on leadership, culture, and emotional connection in the workplace.
He created the Most Loved Workplace® certification and the Love of Workplace Index®, tools that measure and improve the employee experience through respect, alignment, and connection at work. Currently, MLW promotes the annual list of the 100 Most Loved Workplaces®, published by The Wall Street Journal, highlighting companies that achieve measurable excellence in their culture.
Author: Louis Carter
They smile. They remain present. But inside, they are crumbling.
That is the image of many leaders today: exhausted, isolated, but afraid to say so. They’ve been taught that strength means silence, that resilience means hiding the cracks. But what if that’s not leadership at all? What if it’s dangerous?
We need to talk about it. Really talk about it. Because the way we view mental health in leadership is broken, and lives, careers, and companies are paying the price.
The culture of perfection is killing us.
Let’s be clear: executive well-being is NOT a trivial matter. It’s not optional. In fact, leaders influence the emotional tone of organizations. However, if they are burned out, anxious, or disconnected, that mood is contagious. And yet, many continue to suffer in silence.
They feel the pressure to always be «on.» The strong leader, the one who has all the answers, the one who embodies the myth of constant positivity, is ingrained in the leadership culture, and it’s toxic.
The World Health Organization defines burnout syndrome
as a syndrome caused by chronic work-related stress that has not been successfully managed. However, many leaders refuse to admit they are struggling. Why? Because there is a stigma. And because showing vulnerability is still perceived as a failure in many boardrooms.
They feel they will be judged for their burnout.
The true cost of «Overcoming difficulties»
Let’s look at the data. A 2022 Deloitte survey revealed that 70% of executives seriously considered leaving their jobs due to mental health reasons. Nearly 80% of senior leaders stated they would rather look for a new job than talk to someone internally about their mental health issues.
Infographic showing that a 2022 Deloitte survey revealed that 70% of executives seriously considered leaving their jobs due to mental health reasons.
Unfortunately, this translates into much more than a simple health issue; it represents a retention crisis. Yet, in most leadership manuals or corporate cultures, this conversation is absent.
When leaders don’t receive support, they can’t lead effectively.
They become reactive, emotionally distant, and sometimes even aggressive. This impacts teams, affects performance, and creates a cycle of silence where everyone wears a mask.
As I said in one of my sessions, “Leadership is about knowing when to pause. The best executives I coach don’t just push themselves harder; they recognize when their own well-being is key to their team’s success.”
When Mental Health Takes a Backseat
However, some companies are starting to notice. Others continue to act as if it’s just a trend. The problem? Initiatives are often performative: meditation apps, informal Fridays, or perhaps a workshop. But the core issue—how we define and reward leadership—remains unchanged.
For real change, we need more than perks. We need cultural honesty.
That starts at the top. Leaders must lead by example. Not just by sharing burnout stories once, but by normalizing openness. That’s the real test: How do you respond when someone says, «I’m not okay»? Do you offer support or silence?
Toxic positivity does more harm than good.
However, let’s not confuse optimism with denial. Toxic positivity encourages leaders to ignore pain, hide doubts, and maintain a strong presence. But at the same time, it creates a false image of leadership.
Emotional pressure creates toxic environments.
Research on emotional suppression in leadership shows that when leaders feel pressured to hide their emotions, it creates a climate of detachment and burnout, ultimately harming team performance (APA Study). This suppression leads to reactive decision-making, strained relationships, and a culture where employees hesitate to seek help.
Studies have shown that executive well-being depends heavily on psychological safety. Leaders need permission to be human. They need space to rest, reflect, and reset. Without it, people not only burn out, but they also end up broken.
Who’s doing it right?
However, not all companies are making mistakes. Some are leading by example. TravelPerk, a Spain-based corporate travel platform and MLW-certified company, made global headlines in 2023 for expanding its partnership with iFeel, a mental health provider. The program offers anonymous therapy sessions, wellness check-ins, and access to professional help for all staff, including senior executives.
Why is this important? Because it sends a clear message: mental health is not a weakness. It’s a fundamental part of leadership.
And TravelPerk isn’t alone. Roth Staffing Companies, another MLW-certified organization, implemented «mental health days» across the board. But more importantly, they empowered their leaders to talk openly about stress, anxiety, and work-life balance. It’s not about pretending to care. It’s about embedding self-care into how leaders work. These actions may seem small, but they build a culture where the mental health of leaders is valued, not punished.
How the Stigma of Burnout in Leadership Is Built
Let’s dig deeper. Why do so many executives hide their burnout? Because, at some point, ambition became associated with self-neglect.
We praise leaders who push themselves, sacrifice, and persevere. We rarely reward those who pause, question, or protect their energy. This creates the stigma of burnout. Leaders don’t just fear being judged. They fear being replaced. Or worse, being seen as incapable. So they fake it.
They show up, smile, and perform. Even when they’re exhausted.
However, that performance comes at a cost. It affects their families. Their bodies. Their ability to think clearly. And it spills over to others, because when leaders model burnout, teams imitate them.
Redefining Strength at the Top
It’s time to ask: What if strength in leadership meant knowing your limits? At Louis Carter’s executive coaching firm, we challenge this myth daily. We teach leaders to see vulnerability not as weakness, but as wisdom. Because admitting burnout isn’t giving up. It’s taking a step forward.
Mental health in leadership should be part of the framework, not a footnote. Executives must learn to spot the early signs of stress, regulate their emotions, and build support systems. That’s true strength. And it’s more than personal.
A Harvard Business Review study found that emotionally open leaders
increase trust and loyalty within their teams. This drives performance, retention, and innovation. It used to be «desirable.» Now, it’s essential.
Why Executive Wellbeing Is Everyone’s Business
You might be thinking, «I’m not a CEO. Why should I care?»
Because leadership behavior shapes culture. When leaders suppress emotions, they create silence. When they embrace honesty, they open doors. That affects how safe others feel. This goes far beyond the need for therapy in the boardroom. It’s about permission. Permission to pause. To feel. To be authentic.
That doesn’t mean leaders share every emotion. It means they stop pretending they don’t have them. Executive well-being is a signal. If it’s ignored at the top, it’s ignored everywhere.
Burnout Isn’t What You Think
Many people imagine burnout as a breakdown. But most leaders keep going. That’s the danger. They answer emails. They lead meetings. But inside, they feel numb. Disconnected. Exhausted.
This silent burnout is harder to detect and more dangerous. Because it often ends in bad decisions, sudden departures, or emotional breakdowns. By the time someone realizes it, it’s usually too late.
That’s why early intervention is important. That’s why support must be consistent, not reactive. And that’s why leadership must change its narrative: from «always strong» to «always self-aware.»
Let’s Lead Differently
So what do we do? We stop pretending. We ask better questions. We create space for honesty.
At Louis Carter’s Coaching, we work with leaders to develop emotional agility and sustainable leadership models. We help them face stress without shame and lead without hiding. It’s a new way forward.
But it only works if leaders are willing to embrace discomfort. To stop smiling through pain. To stop using force as a mask. Because true leadership is more than simply pretending you’re okay to boost employee morale. It’s more about creating cultures where it’s safe not to be.
The future of leadership depends on emotional honesty.
What kind of leader do you want to be? One who hides the cost of success or one who redefines it?
The world is changing; the pressure is mounting, and burnout is becoming a silent epidemic in leadership. If we don’t talk about it, we stagnate.
But if we do? We build stronger companies. Safer teams. And more human leaders.
Let’s make leadership a space where people can thrive, not just survive. Let’s stop applauding burnout and start honoring balance.
Lead with truth. Take the Louis Carter Burnout Risk Assessment. Identify the gaps in your culture and let’s do something about them today.
The Strange Truth Behind Leadership Burnout in 2025
The following contribution comes from the VANTAGE CIRCLE portal, which describes itself as follows: Discover our journey
We help organizations around the world deliver a fulfilling employee experience and foster meaningful connections among colleagues through innovative recognition and well-being solutions.
The article is by Tanya Ahmed, a digital marketing expert at Vantage Circle, a cloud-based employee engagement platform. She is a leadership enthusiast and holds an MBA in Leadership from Queen Mary University of London. Her experience spans diverse fields, including customer relations, content creation, sales, and marketing.
Global Employee Recognition and Well-being Platform
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase “leadership burnout”? Images that immediately spring to mind include physical exhaustion, mental fog, and emotional depletion.
As an entrepreneur, you’re probably used to pushing yourself and persevering. But how long can you keep this up before your health, your business, or your family suffers?
According to Gallup survey data from 2020 and 2021, «manager burnout is only getting worse.»
Experts say that pandemic fatigue in its final stages is affecting many managers and business leaders, with some feeling completely exhausted.
Among the many challenges the pandemic brought, the Great Quit is perhaps one of the most significant. Managing the day-to-day details of a remote workforce while watching your best employees leave is a recipe for stress and anxiety.
As a leader, you’ll feel the responsibility to serve, support with positivity, and have answers to all the uncertainties.
The pressure, isolation, and weight that come with being at the top can be overwhelming, making things seem hopeless and difficult to manage. Symptoms of burnout can include emotional exhaustion, detachment, loss of motivation, and decreased efficiency. All of which can have a ripple effect throughout the workplace.
Burned-out leaders become slow and indecisive when faced with important decisions.
They feel much less confident in their decisions. Low confidence can lead to poor choices, missed opportunities, and reduced employee engagement and morale.
What is leadership burnout?
A leader working on a laptop with full energy vs. a burnt-out leader with no energy.
Leadership is an active role; «to lead» is a verb. But the leader who tries to do it all is headed for burnout, and fast. – Bill Owens
Leadership burnout is the feeling of physical and emotional exhaustion experienced by senior executives and high-performing managers when they overload themselves with too much work or neglect their wellness practices, or it can be caused by isolation.
There’s a saying: «At the top, it’s lonely.» In a wide-ranging interview in 2016, five years after succeeding Steve Jobs, Apple CEO Tim Cook spoke candidly about the challenges of leading one of the world’s most iconic companies.
«It’s quite a lonely job,» he admitted.
The World Health Organization defines burnout syndrome as an occupational phenomenon in the International Classification of Diseases chapter on «Factors influencing health status.»
The WHO notes that burnout syndrome results from chronic work-related stress and is characterized by three dimensions:
Energy depletion.
Increasingly negative feelings toward work.
Reduced professional efficacy.
Burnout syndrome is what happens when you try to avoid being human for too long. – Michael Gungor
Burnout has become a buzzword lately. But what does it mean?
Burnout is when your body says, «Enough! I’m out!» Burnout goes beyond simple exhaustion; it’s not just «I’m tired.» It’s more like «I have no mental energy left.»
Development Dimensions International’s 2021 Global Leadership Forecast
reveals that nearly 60% of leaders reported feeling exhausted at the end of the workday, which is a strong indicator of burnout.
Burnout can occur when you experience prolonged stress at work or when you’ve held a demanding position for a long time.
You can also experience burnout when your work efforts haven’t produced the expected results, and as a result, you feel deeply disillusioned.
Stress, uncertainty, and long workdays can also cause distress in leaders.
If left unchecked long enough, it’s a condition that can manifest as exhaustion, disengagement, depression, and burnout.
So, what drives people to this point? What signs can you, as a leader, look for to know if you’re heading toward burnout?
Let’s look at some ways to identify these signs.
The Silent Crisis of Burnout in Leadership Teams
The following contribution comes from the motional hub portal, which defines itself as follows: We equip organizations with clinically validated, AI-powered voice analytics that provides real-time insights into employee well-being: no surveys, just actionable data.
Our goal is to redefine workplace well-being by making AI-powered tools the global standard, enabling organizations to improve health, resilience, and performance.
Discover why burnout in leadership teams is a hidden risk and how CEOs can build a sustainable and resilient leadership culture from the top down.
The Silent Crisis of Burnout in Leadership Teams
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In recent years, workplace well-being has become a key issue for organizations. Mindfulness programs, wellness weeks, meeting-free days, and mental health benefits have been introduced… And, without a doubt, these initiatives have helped create more humane and sustainable environments.
However, there is a group within organizations that, despite being central to performance and culture, often remains overlooked: leaders.
We’re talking about department heads, middle managers, unit leaders… even the executive team itself.
In too many companies, these are the people who hold their teams together, absorb the stress, ensure performance under pressure, and withstand the uncertainty of change. All while maintaining a facade of strength.
This article aims to give voice to a growing and dangerous reality: silent burnout in leadership teams. Why don’t we see burnout in leaders?
Mental exhaustion in leadership roles is often masked by several factors:
Role stigma: Leaders are expected to be strong, clear, and in control. In many corporate cultures, showing vulnerability is still considered a weakness.
Isolation: The higher the position, the smaller the support network. Leaders often lack safe spaces to express their emotions without political repercussions.
External focus: Many wellness policies are designed for the organization as a whole, not for the decision-makers.
Self-denial: A strong sense of duty or a drive to perform can lead leaders to ignore their own signs of burnout.
This hidden exhaustion is especially dangerous because it affects those with the most influence over others. An exhausted manager cannot support their team. When senior leaders lose touch with their teams, decisions become reactive and misaligned. An overwhelmed leader transmits anxiety to everyone around them.
Symptoms CEOs should learn to identify:
Leadership fatigue is not always easy to detect. Beyond the physical, signs can include:
Reduced strategic thinking: Difficulty seeing beyond the short term, poor prioritization.
Lack of creativity or innovation: Leaders who previously contributed new ideas now only put out fires.
Detachment from team dynamics: Signs include less empathy, increased irritability, or distant behavior.
Higher staff turnover in their teams: Tacit burnout indirectly impacts the environment.
Denial or avoidance: «I’m fine, I just need a vacation,» when in reality there’s a structural problem.
Most of these signs don’t appear on dashboards or in traditional reports. That’s why the CEO’s role as an active observer of the relational dynamics within the leadership committee and middle management is crucial.
Why is this a structural problem?
Because the conditions that generate burnout in leaders are not personal, but organizational:
Incentive systems focused solely on results, not on sustainability.
Lack of a culture of upward feedback.
Ambiguous role boundaries: «Solve it, but don’t ask for help.»
Lack of safe spaces to discuss personal challenges.
Digital over-connectivity: meetings, notifications, chats, constant decision-making.
In short, leaders are expected to be constantly present and responsive, without the tools or the authority to manage the weight of that responsibility.
What can the CEO do?
CEOs play a key role in reversing this dynamic. It’s not about implementing new policies, but about redesigning the leadership environment to be truly sustainable.
Here are some essential steps:
- Normalize conversations about well-being at the senior management level.
When a CEO speaks openly about mental health, boundaries, or managing well-being in challenging contexts, they create a culture of permission. Leading with vulnerability doesn’t weaken leadership; it humanizes it.
- Seek and receive feedback as a leader.
Demonstrating openness to listening to how your leadership style emotionally impacts others sends a powerful message. 360-degree feedback tools and anonymous surveys can include well-being dimensions.
- Design shared leadership environments. Not all problems have to be solved alone. Create collaborative and co-leadership mechanisms (e.g., peer or tandem systems) to alleviate psychological demands. 4. Include burnout indicators in leadership meetings
Just as business metrics are reviewed, there should be a regular space to discuss signs of fatigue, turnover, strain, or bottlenecks. This is where tools like MotionalHub can provide objective, real-time signals—no surveys required.
- Take care of the team that cares
Leadership teams need spaces for support, coaching, guidance, and planned recovery. Not after a breakdown, but as part of the system itself.
What role does technology play?
Today, tools exist that can detect burnout patterns without relying on self-assessments or surveys. MotionalHub, for example, analyzes voice to identify signs of stress, disengagement, or demotivation. This gives CEOs a proactive radar on their leadership team, helps identify long-term trends, and supports data-driven decision-making, not reactive observation. It’s not about control. It’s about building a culture that listens before people start shouting.
Well-being isn’t just an individual responsibility. It’s an organizational design principle.
And leaders, who so often look out for others, also need to be cared for. A CEO who identifies and addresses burnout within their leadership team not only cares for individuals but also safeguards the strategic health of the company. Because an organization can only grow to the extent that its leadership can embrace that responsibility.
The Leadership Energy Crisis
The following contribution comes from “The Influence Journal,” which defines itself as follows: it is aimed at leaders who reflect deeply, lead decisively, and refuse to settle for superficial strategies.
We explore the psychology of leadership, the mechanisms of influence, and the hidden dynamics behind confidence, clarity, and performance. Each article is designed to stand out, based on perspective, shaped by experience, and action-oriented.
Authorship by the team
Why You Feel Tired Even When You’re Not Overworked
Many leaders ask themselves, “Why am I so tired?” even when they aren’t overloaded. Discover 5 hidden drains and 5 strategies to avoid the silent burnout of leadership.
One spring morning in 2022, sitting at my desk looking at my calendar, nothing seemed overwhelming. I had slept decently. I only had one meeting scheduled before lunch. No major deadlines, no crises, no twelve-tab chaos to sort through. And yet, I felt empty. A weariness that coffee couldn’t match. My limbs felt heavy. My thoughts were sluggish. I wasn’t exhausted in the classic sense of overwork fatigue. But something inside me was depleted.
That day, I realized I wasn’t dealing with temporary fatigue.
I was dealing with leadership energy fatigue, a quieter, less visible form of exhaustion that stems not from doing too much, but from carrying too many responsibilities for too long.
And I’m not alone.
Across all sectors, leaders are reporting record levels of emotional burnout, even when their workloads haven’t technically increased.
According to a 2023 Deloitte report, 70% of executives said they were seriously considering leaving their positions due to mental health reasons, despite working fewer hours than during the peak of the pandemic. This points to a deeper problem: one that has less to do with the number of hours we work and more to do with the current psychological toll of leadership. The Myth of Time-Based Burnout
We tend to think of burnout as a problem of too much work and too little rest. That approach makes sense, to a certain extent. Undoubtedly, working twelve hours a day without limits will eventually break anyone. But in leadership, it’s not always the hours that break you, but the weight.
The leader burnout model, developed by Christina Maslach and Susan Jackson,
identifies three key components of real burnout: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization (a feeling of detachment), and reduced personal accomplishment. Interestingly, only one of these is related to time. The other two refer to the disconnect a leader experiences from their own internal compass.
In other words, you can be emotionally exhausted even if your work schedule seems perfectly manageable in theory.
If your job requires constant emotional regulation, transforming the work culture, and making decisions under conditions of uncertainty, you will burn out from the weight, not the workload. This explains why so many leaders feel exhausted after what should be a relaxed day. It’s not the physical labor that wears them down, but the emotional labor.
What is it that truly exhausts leaders (and that no one talks about)?
Let’s identify it: leadership is emotionally costly, not just cognitively demanding. But unlike athletes or artists, leaders are rarely given the language or tools to manage their emotional energy. Most simply assume they need more sleep, more coffee, or a better morning routine.
In reality, the modern leader is navigating a minefield of invisible energy drains.
Here are four of the most significant:
- Constant Context Switching
The demands of leadership encompass strategy, operations, coaching, crisis management, innovation, and caring for people. Most of us switch between these roles in five-minute intervals. One minute you’re reviewing a budget forecast, the next you’re defusing tension between two team members, and ten minutes later you’re preparing a motivational speech for everyone. Each role requires a different mindset, tone, and emotional stance.
This kind of context switching weakens executive function at a neurological level. Research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology confirms that task switching decreases accuracy and increases cognitive load, especially when alternating between emotionally contrasting tasks. The average leader not only switches context between roles but also changes emotional tone. That’s a recipe for burnout.
- Emotional Stabilization
Whether they admit it or not, most teams see their leaders as emotional stabilizers. In healthy organizations, this is a privilege. But in broken or ambiguous ones, it becomes a silent torment.
- Emotional Stabilization
Whether they admit it or not, most teams see their leaders as emotional stabilizers. In healthy organizations, this is a privilege. But in broken or ambiguous ones, it becomes a silent torment. You’re the one who absorbs everyone else’s fear, doubt, and anxiety, and you’re expected to maintain composure and self-confidence throughout. The moment you seem too anxious or insecure, people project a meltdown. And so you learn to compartmentalize. To endure the tension without releasing it.
But here’s what science says: Chronic emotional suppression raises cortisol, causes physical tension, and significantly reduces the immune response. In a study published in Emotion, people who routinely suppressed negative emotions during conflicts exhibited higher cardiovascular strain and lower emotional resilience. Repressing emotions doesn’t make you stronger. It desensitizes you and, over time, makes you sick.
- High-Risk Ambiguity
Most leadership decisions aren’t based on complete information. Decisions are rarely made under clear conditions. There’s usually too much at stake, too little data, and too many people waiting for clarity. The higher you climb, the more ambiguity you inherit.
This “gray zone leadership,” as some have called it, generates a low-level anxiety that rarely goes away. You may not even realize how tense you are until it explodes, or until it wears you down to the point of losing all interest in decisions. That’s when disengagement sets in.
- Low-Trust Environments
This is perhaps the most devastating and underdiagnosed drain on leadership energy. If you don’t trust your team, your board, your boss, or your colleagues, you’re in performance mode 24/7. Every meeting becomes a chess game. Every word must be calculated. There’s no rest when psychological safety is lacking; only performance. And performance isn’t a renewable energy source.
- Mission Deviation Disguised as Productivity
There’s a type of leadership burnout that doesn’t stem from chaos, but from doing everything right and still feeling nothing. It’s the burnout of someone who executes flawlessly with the wrong objective. Whose schedule is full, the team is functioning perfectly, the metrics are on the rise, but who silently feels like they’ve lost their way. As if they were doing excellent work instead of pursuing a purpose.
This is what I call mission-deviation fatigue, and it might be the most disorienting burnout of all.
You don’t feel burned out because you’re failing. You feel burned out because your work no longer seems to matter. Or worse: it matters to everyone but you. That disconnection is subtle at first: just a mild sense of apathy or detachment. But over time, it turns into exhaustion. You start dreading Mondays not because they’re difficult, but because you feel empty.
Researchers call it values mismatch, and it’s a major predictor of burnout, even in high-performing, high-functioning professionals.
In a 2021 study published in Frontiers in Psychology, employees who reported a high values mismatch
with their organizations were 3.6 times more likely to experience burnout symptoms, regardless of hours worked or workload intensity.
In leadership, this misalignment can creep in quietly, especially if your position gains prestige, your platform grows, or your influence expands. You start doing more of what seems important, but less of what used to make your work feel alive.
And the catch? From the outside, everything still looks great. Which means no one questions it, except you. That’s what makes this kind of burnout so dangerous. It’s invisible. But it eats you up inside.
The Personal Cost of «Being the Strong One»
There was a period during my transition from leadership in a large organization to building something new—something uncertain, untested, and deeply personal—when I realized I couldn’t go wrong. I was carrying my family’s financial stress, my kids’ emotional adjustment, the pressure of starting from scratch, and my own self-doubt. I wasn’t working 80 hours a week. But I felt completely burned out. And I didn’t know why.
It wasn’t until I looked back on a week that I saw it. I had spent hours advising others on decisions I wasn’t clear about. I was optimistic in public and unraveling in private. Every conversation required me to control their emotions, while mine remained locked away in a drawer I hadn’t opened in months. My exhaustion wasn’t physical. It was spiritual. Emotional. Existential.
That was my energy crisis. And I know I’m not the only one who’s experienced it.
How to Reclaim Leadership Energy (Without Quitting Your Job or Moving to a Monastery)
You don’t need a sabbatical to start recharging your energy, although one might help. The first thing you need is to be aware of what’s draining you and then develop a strategy to gradually rebalance the equation.
- Energy Map: Know Your Leaks Before You Collapse
Most leaders know their calendar, but not their energy map. They know when meetings are coming up, but they don’t know when they start to fizzle out. They can list their priorities, but not the parts of the day that consistently leave them feeling fragmented, reactive, or emotionally numb.
That’s a problem. Because energy, not time, is your most limited resource. And unlike your calendar, your energy doesn’t respond to intention. It responds to friction, fear, and focus.
Psychologist Jim Loehr and performance coach Tony Schwartz argued in *The Power of Full Engagement*
that performance is best understood not through time management, but through energy management. The most effective leaders aren’t the busiest; they’re those who know how to optimize, protect, and replenish their energy throughout the week.
Start by logging a week: not what you did, but how you felt afterward. What left you tense? What drained your energy? What kept you going?
This isn’t about escaping all the draining work. Some of your most important responsibilities will cost you energy. The key is to stop wasting energy without realizing it. That recurring meeting where no decisions are made? That daily log that’s really just anxiety disguised as accountability? That takes a toll. Be mindful of what you’re spending.
Once you have the map, you can start making decisions based on your energy, not just your job title. You can design your week with intention: building reserves, fostering recovery, and saying no to what drains you before you even begin.
- Create processing zones: Stop acting and start feeling again.
The higher you climb in leadership, the less you have to be authentic. That’s not just lonely. It’s dangerous.
Because leaders who don’t have a space to process eventually start filtering pain into the wrong places: meetings, emails, relationships, even their bodies.
You don’t need 15 friends or a group of geniuses. You need one or two safe and honest processing zones. It could be a therapist. It could be a coach. It could be a friend who has earned the right to hear your unfiltered side. But you need someone to talk to without translation.
Leadership is emotional work. And emotional work without a space to metabolize emotions leads to emotional numbness, then resentment, and finally breakdown.
This isn’t a personal preference. It’s a human need. As researcher Brené Brown points out, «We can’t selectively numb emotions. When we numb the darkness, we also numb the light.» If you want to reclaim joy, vision, or connection in your leadership, you have to start by acknowledging your pain, your fear, your burnout.
Your processing zone doesn’t need to be eloquent. It just needs to be safe. A place where your sentences don’t have to lead to strategic outcomes. A place where you don’t have to protect anyone from the truth.
You can’t heal what you don’t allow yourself to say out loud.
- Ritualize Micro-Recovery: Recharge Before You Run Out
We’re conditioned to think of recovery as a retreat: weekends, vacations, sabbaticals. But leadership doesn’t work that way. You don’t burn out every few years. You burn out every day. That means your recovery strategy needs to be daily, ritualized, and small enough to repeat.
Think of it like hydration. You don’t drink water once a week. You sip it throughout the day. Leadership is the same. If you only try to recover when you collapse, you’re managing a crisis, not your health.
Micro-recovery is the art of giving your nervous system space to reboot before it forces you to shut down. Here’s what neuroscience says: Just 10 minutes of exposure to nature, quiet reflection, or slow breathing can significantly reduce cortisol, lower blood pressure, and reset the central nervous system (Nature Neuroscience, 2019).
These aren’t magic tactics. They’re survival skills for anyone whose job involves emotional regulation, mental stimulation, and on-demand decision-making.
For you, it might be 20 minutes of journaling before heading to work. A slow walk after your toughest meeting. A calendar block labeled «deep reset» instead of «recovery.» You don’t need to «earn» these moments. You need to integrate them into the structure of your week, just as you would client meetings or payroll.
Because if you don’t rest, you don’t lead. You react. You take a stand. You perform. But you don’t lead.
- Lead from rest, not from role: Reclaim your identity before it costs you.
Most leaders start by leading from identity. They have deep conviction, a grounded purpose, a clear idea of who they are and why they matter. But over time, especially under stress, that identity gets replaced by role performance. We become the title. The image. The expectations. And, over time, we lose track of where we end and the work begins.
That’s where the real breakdown happens. Because you were never designed to derive your value from a role, not even a noble one.
In a 2022 meta-analysis on leadership burnout published in Occupational Health Sciences,
researchers found that identity detachment was one of the strongest predictors of emotional resilience. In other words, leaders who maintained strong self-esteem outside of work handled pressure better, made clearer decisions, and reported higher levels of satisfaction, even in high-stress roles.
That’s why rest isn’t just physical. It’s existential. You need places and people that remind you who you are when you’re not «on.» You need rhythms—spiritual, relational, intellectual—that aren’t tied to your productivity. You need to hear, from someone or something bigger than you, that you are not your results.
This isn’t soft talk. It’s strategic wisdom. Because the leaders who endure are the ones who know how to come home: to themselves, to God, to family, to places that don’t demand performance.
That kind of rest doesn’t just restore your energy. It restores your humanity.
- Prioritize Deep Work (and Nurture It Like a Vital Sign)
In a leadership position, it’s easy to become a full-time firefighter and a part-time thinker. You spend your day running back and forth between Slack messages, impromptu meetings, and the chaos of organizational maintenance, and by the end of the week, you’ve made hundreds of decisions, resolved a dozen minor crises, and still haven’t tackled the strategic work that truly drives things forward.
This isn’t just a productivity problem. It’s an energy crisis in disguise. Because the most draining part of your job isn’t necessarily doing difficult things, but never having the mental space to do meaningful things.
Cal Newport, in his book «Deep Work,» defines it as «professional activities
performed in a state of undistracted concentration that push your cognitive abilities to the limit.» He argues that this type of focused thinking is not only uncommon in the modern workplace, but also key to both performance and personal satisfaction. And the research backs him up. A 2017 study published in Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience found that sustained concentration activates neural patterns associated with satisfaction and flow, while constant distraction leaves the brain in a state of cognitive fragmentation and mental fatigue.
Leaders need space to think deeply not only to be effective, but to feel human again.
Without it, they react instead of design, act instead of reflect. Over time, this leads to strategic drift, emotional apathy, and the feeling of working hard without accomplishing anything meaningful.
The solution: Set aside time for deep work each week and consider it a non-negotiable leadership practice, not a luxury. Turn off notifications. Skip meetings. Use it for anything that requires calm thought: reflecting, writing, working on the vision, or simply understanding complexity. You’ll notice something strange after a few weeks. Not only will your thinking improve, but your emotional energy will begin to stabilize.
Because focus doesn’t just produce results. It creates peace.
Conclusion: If you feel tired but don’t know why, start here: Your burnout might not be from time. It might be from weight.
You carry people, culture, ambiguity, expectations, and fear, and most of it is invisible. That’s why no one gives you permission to rest. But the price is real.
The leadership energy crisis isn’t about effort. It’s about the slow erosion of your emotional center. And the good news is this: You can rebuild it.
But start by naming it.
Studies in Social and Healthcare Services in Times of Coronavirus: How Leadership Influences the Risk of Burnout
The following contribution comes from the Positive Leadership portal, which defines itself as follows: it seeks to ensure that the manager’s leadership style actively creates a work environment that promotes the development of employees’ potential.
Furthermore, this leadership style recognizes and leverages the individual strengths of employees rather than focusing predominantly on their weaknesses. This creates a win-win situation: the company, managers, and employees all benefit equally.
The authors are:
Dr. Markus Ebner, MSc.
Organizational Psychologist/Founder of the PERMA-Lead Model
Antonia Longinus
Psychologist
Personal Support at Neuroth
Meaningful work that connects with people and helps others: this is the main reason why many people choose a career in the social and healthcare system, a vital element of solidarity in our modern society.
The coronavirus pandemic has brought these professions into sharper focus. Care workers are now more highly valued for their importance to the social system.
At the beginning of the pandemic, in many European countries, people expressed their gratitude to those who continued to provide essential care, including, of course, medical, nursing, and social care professionals.
However, kind gestures like regular applause from balconies and individual expressions of gratitude felt almost cynical to many social and healthcare workers. For too long, they have been deprived of adequate social and, above all, material compensation.
Every day, social and healthcare workers endure considerable stress
from hazardous materials and radiation, loud noises, time pressure, the need to work overtime, irregular shifts, and emotionally stressful experiences such as deaths.
The current staff shortages only intensify this pressure. A vicious cycle is created: increased workloads lead to fewer people wanting to work in caregiving, and in turn, the growing shortage of qualified staff leads to even more workloads. Adding to this dilemma, a study of Austrian high school graduates revealed that most students considered caregiving professions very unattractive.
Burnout and stress: an interaction between personality and underlying illnesses
Social and healthcare professionals experience above-average levels of psychological stress in their daily lives.
Burnout syndrome can be considered the final stage of the stress process and, with its extremely debilitating symptoms, can lead to individuals becoming completely unable to work.
Employees in helping professions have a significantly higher risk of burnout. Furthermore, they also have a higher risk of developing mental illness in general. These caregiving professions exhibit more depressive symptoms, as indicated by higher rates of antidepressant prescriptions and a tendency toward higher levels of substance abuse.
Psychological research reveals that certain personality traits increase the risk of burnout in some individuals.
However, these studies do not consider external factors, such as the work environment.
Scientific research also demonstrates that work-oriented prevention measures have a more stable and long-term positive impact on employee mental health than a people-centered approach.
Therefore, organizational culture plays a significant role in burnout prevention! Numerous studies have also shown that leadership style has a significant impact on organizational culture.
Burnout: It’s not an illness, but a challenge for everyone
Burnout not only causes immense suffering for those who experience it directly, but also has serious consequences for employers, the healthcare system, and, consequently, for society as a whole.
Around 80% of Austrians suffer from stress; nearly one million people are considered vulnerable to burnout, and this number is increasing due to the pandemic. The highest incidence of burnout is observed in the healthcare and social care sector, where around 30% of employees are at risk of suffering from what is sometimes called «the most widespread illness.» Unfortunately, burnout does not fit conventional definitions of psychological disorders, at least according to the current standard of psychological diagnosis.
Since the symptoms overlap with those of other illnesses, scientific research has struggled to define a single condition. Therefore, the syndrome does not appear in the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD) nor in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), developed in the USA.
However, the World Health Organization points to the growing sociopolitical relevance of burnout syndrome and includes it among the «factors that influence health and lead to the use of the health system.» For example, the German Federal Association of Occupational Health Insurance Funds reports that burnout-related disability increased eighteenfold between 2004 and 2012.
Positive leadership instead of sleeping pills!
As a behavior-oriented leadership style, Positive Leadership with the PERMA-Lead approach seeks to actively increase employee well-being and enhance opportunities for workers to utilize and contribute their strengths.
PERMA-Lead is based on five specific aspects of leadership (positive emotions, commitment, relationships, meaning, and achievement), whose positive effects have been confirmed by numerous studies that also consider key performance indicators. Positive leaders create an environment that strengthens a multitude of personal resources.
This has a significantly positive effect on mental health and reduces burnout among employees. A few years ago, we conducted a study in the hotel sector that demonstrated that employees working with a positive leader experience significantly less job stress than those whose leader has an adversarial leadership style.
In our study, conducted at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, we analyzed the connection between positive leadership and burnout symptoms in employees of the social and healthcare sector. In previous research, we were able to determine that the social and healthcare sector exhibits significantly lower-than-average levels of positive leadership, which (unfortunately) was confirmed again in our current study. Nearly 200 people from the social and healthcare sector participated in our survey, in which employees were asked to provide a detailed description of their leader’s specific behavior. Other relevant data were also collected to diagnose the degree of individual burnout risk.
The results clearly indicate that the risk of burnout in the social and healthcare sector for employees with a positive leader is more than 50% (!) lower than for employees with leaders who do not utilize elements of positive leadership. Therefore, high levels of burnout are clearly linked to low levels of positive leadership among managers (PERMA-Lead). In other words, low or nonexistent positive leadership doubles the risk of burnout. The study confirmed that the predominant leadership style is clearly linked to burnout and thus convincingly demonstrates how a positive leadership style can significantly contribute to employee mental health.
We delved even deeper into the study. Given that sleep quality is a relevant factor for maintaining health, we were also interested in knowing to what extent leadership style relates to perceived sleep quality. These are the results:
Employees with a Positive Leader enjoy significantly better sleep quality than their colleagues. Restful sleep is important for maintaining mental and emotional strength. Scientific research has shown that sleep problems lead to various disabilities, increased irritability, and decreased responsiveness, alertness, and problem-solving abilities. Long-term sleep disorders increase the risk of physical or mental illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease or depression, and with them, the risk of burnout. Leadership can have a significant positive influence in this regard, as the results of our study demonstrate.
Ability to perceive positive emotions: an important component of health
Most of us know that in times of stress, we are less able to create space for positive emotions. However, positive psychology demonstrates the importance of these emotions.
They not only have psychological effects, such as a greater overall sense of well-being or an increased ability to concentrate, but they also have a demonstrable effect on other measurable factors, such as our immune system.
Stress is a part of life, as is the fact that we can’t always experience positive emotions. However, stress becomes a problem when even achievements fail to generate positive emotions.
Australian researcher Peggy Kern conducted a study indicating that one of the most effective factors for preventing burnout is perceiving the achievement of goals positively («Achievement» – the letter A in the PERMA model). Furthermore, consciously acknowledging our successes demonstrates that we can positively influence our own lives. A burnout mindset loses this ability. People with burnout tend to feel like a helpless piece of driftwood adrift on a river.
In our study, we also analyzed the extent to which a positive leadership style influences how people feel about their achievements at work. The results speak for themselves:
The more a leader applies positive leadership, the more employees enjoy their successes. This is where the positive cycle begins: greater joy leads to a lower risk of burnout. This demonstrates, once again, the important influence of the leader, especially during these challenging times for the healthcare and social systems due to the pandemic.
What to do?
Detailed analysis of the study shows that the «Relationships» and «Engagement» areas play a key role in leadership. This study clearly indicated that employees have very high expectations for the «Relationships» factor of the PERMA Lead. More specifically, a leader must actively work to ensure that team members support each other, leading by example and expecting solidarity.
Leaders have a mandate to establish interactions of appreciation, trust, and support within the team.
Appropriate measures can vary considerably from team to team and, ideally, should be discussed jointly. For example, spending time together outside of the work routine and using team-building activities to strengthen bonds between employees can be beneficial.
Joint supervision within the team also helps create a sense of belonging.
Several studies empirically demonstrate that team supervision and external training opportunities have a significant effect on preventing burnout among hospital employees.
Another factor that proved particularly relevant in the study was engagement. This means that leaders enable individuals to develop, recognize their strengths, and support them in a goal-oriented manner. The study shows that leaders generally pay less attention to this behavior, while employees have exceptionally high expectations for this type of leadership.
Engagement is the main PERMA factor that is significantly related to burnout, as our results show. This means that the factor with the lowest average score appeared to have the greatest predictive power—an unfavorable situation. Therefore, effective leadership involves focusing intensely on employees’ strengths and, as far as possible, assigning tasks that align with their personal strength profiles.
Especially in a work environment where patients or clients always come first, employees must also feel valued by their managers.
Study data suggests that the more an organization is committed to its staff, the less frequently employees experience burnout.
Managers who consciously and regularly focus on employees’ strengths also have the positive effect of improving their overall competencies.
To specifically measure this Positive Leadership behavior, various assessment tools exist for real-world leadership situations and for organizations.
Currently, more than 600 certified PERMA® Lead Consultants provide professional support through seminars, coaching sessions, and organizational development processes for the ongoing development of more Positive Leadership.
Leadership Burnout: How to Lead When You’re Running Out of Energy
The following contribution comes from the website of Dr. Michelle Rozen, a globally sought-after keynote speaker and leading authority on change, trusted by Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 organizations, including Pfizer, Coca-Cola, and the American Banking Association, to help leaders and teams navigate uncertainty, execute strategies, and perform at the highest level.
She is the author.
The Hidden Struggle of Burned-Out Leaders
A senior vice president at a financial services company approached me after a keynote address and said quietly, “We’re hitting our goals, my team is performing, but I wake up with a knot in my stomach. I’m not enjoying any of this anymore, and I can’t tell anyone.”
If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. I’ve heard variations of this story from leaders in different sectors: technology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, education, and more. Beneath a polished exterior, many leaders struggle with burnout, silently wondering how much longer they can keep pretending everything is fine.
This isn’t a rare experience; it’s a crisis we don’t talk about enough.
The Myth of Invincible Leadership
Leadership has long been equated with tenacity, emotional resilience, and unwavering control. Somewhere along the way, we’ve come to believe that strong leaders don’t get tired, don’t get overwhelmed, and certainly don’t burn out.
But burnout isn’t sudden. It seeps in through the cracks: through Sunday jitters, growing detachment, mental fog, irritability. You keep producing results, but you feel empty. You’re not proud, just relieved to have made it through another day.
Even worse, burnout in high-performing leaders is often a mask.
It may look like ambition. You keep solving problems, driving strategy forward, but inside you’re disconnected and drained. Here’s what I want you to know: You can’t overcome burnout. And you don’t have to.
What the data says about executive burnout
The statistics on leadership burnout are alarming. A 2024 Deloitte survey revealed that more than 70% of senior leaders feel significantly more stressed today than they did just three years ago. A Future Forum report published by Slack showed a 40% increase in executive burnout in just the last 18 months.
Despite this, most leaders feel they can’t express it openly—not to their teams, not to their peers, and often not even to themselves. That silence comes at a high cost. Because when a leader suffers burnout, the consequences ripple throughout the entire organization: in productivity, morale, and retention.
Burnout reduces your leadership capacity. It breaks your connection to purpose.
It reduces your ability to think clearly, connect with your team, and lead with presence.
High-Functioning Burnout in Leaders
Why It’s So Easy to Overlook
For high-performing leaders, burnout isn’t like a breakdown. It’s like a way of coping. You keep showing up, meeting deadlines, delivering results. You do your job, but without joy, energy, or commitment. You’ve normalized the numbness.
That’s why high-functioning burnout is especially dangerous. It’s easy to hide from others—and from yourself—until you reach a breaking point, whether it’s physical, emotional, or both.
The Identity Crisis of a Burned-Out Leader
When you’re the person everyone relies on for vision, clarity, and strength, reaching your limit can feel like an identity crisis. You start wondering if you’re losing your edge, if something is wrong with you, if maybe you’re just not cut out for this anymore.
But that’s what burnout is. And the truth is, burnout doesn’t make you any less of a leader; it’s a sign that you’ve been leading without the support, structure, and self-care that true leadership requires.
How to Break the Burnout Cycle
The 0 to 10 Rule for Prioritizing
In my book, The 6% Club, I talk about how only 6% of people actually achieve their goals, not because they’re incapable, but because they’re drowning in noise and overthinking. That’s burnout: capable people crushed by chaos.
One of the most effective tools I teach leaders is the 0 to 10 Rule.
Here’s how it works: For every task, request, or meeting, ask yourself, “On a scale of 0 to 10, how aligned is this with my highest leadership value and impact?”
If the answer isn’t a 7 or higher, it’s a no. Either delegate it. Or restructure it.
It’s not about doing less. It’s about making space for what matters most. It’s about reclaiming your energy by protecting it with unwavering clarity.
Strategies for Reclaiming Clarity and Energy
Start your day with a short list of three “10s.” Write them on a sticky note. These are the actions that truly make a difference.
Set micro-boundaries. Set aside 30 minutes each day where nothing is scheduled: no calls, no emails, no comments. Just think. Breathe. Reset.
Make the pause powerful. High performers hate slowing down. But a brief, deliberate pause often makes the difference between reacting and responding, between burnout and progress.
These simple shifts create space. And space is where clarity, creativity, and energy return.
Why Mental Health Is a Leadership Priority
Prioritizing your well-being isn’t selfish. It’s strategic. Your mindset sets the tone for your entire organization. You are the thermostat. If you feel burnt out, your team will absorb it.
Strong leaders don’t avoid vulnerability; they embrace it strategically. They build systems that support sustainable performance. They know when to ask for help. They don’t wait for a breakdown to change.
Mental health isn’t a side project. It’s a leadership imperative.
Final Thoughts: You’re Still the Leader, Even When You’re Struggling
Here’s what I want you to learn: Challenges don’t make you less of a leader. In fact, facing your burnout, acknowledging it, and addressing it makes you stronger. You’re still the leader, even when you’re tired. Even when you’re questioning yourself. Even as you rebuild.
This isn’t about lowering your ambition. It’s about refining your strategy. It’s about building a leadership rhythm that works for the long haul.
You don’t have to stagnate. You don’t have to do it alone. You can lead and heal simultaneously. And when you do, you set a powerful example for your team: that leadership isn’t about perfection, but about presence, purpose, and the courage to keep moving forward.
You’re not alone. And you don’t have to stay here. Take the first step to reclaim your identity and lead forward, stronger than ever.
Executive Coach Summary: How to Avoid Burnout in Leadership
The following contribution comes from the Jody Michael Associates website, which describes itself as a leading coaching firm specializing in:
Executive Coaching
Professional Coaching
Workshops
Resumes and LinkedIn Profiles
Headquartered in Chicago, we also have offices in Atlanta, San Francisco, and New York.
Authorship by the team.
I can’t take it anymore.
No matter how hard I work… I’ll never achieve it.
I wish I could retire tomorrow and move to a remote island.
Sound familiar? As a leader, you may be even more vulnerable to burnout, a condition that lies at the intersection of overload and absolute exhaustion. We live and work in a fast-paced culture that rewards activity.
Companies lack resources and are forced to do more with less.
Our goals, both professional and personal, are higher. We want to achieve more, have it all; essentially, become better jugglers. While we rise to the challenge in some ways, it can take a significant toll on our well-being. Our adrenaline systems are under constant attack, with little capacity for recovery.
Overload is a chronic and prevalent problem that, over time, becomes unsustainable.
We get tired… we get exhausted… we burn out. Is burnout preventable? The answer is a resounding yes! Our executive coaches share their insights, backed by experience and expertise, on the topic, including how to keep stress, overload, and burnout at bay.
What are the signs of burnout in leadership? When your energy levels are so low that you feel you need the entire weekend (or longer!) to recover, it’s a clear sign that you’re heading toward burnout, or are already experiencing it. While neglecting self-care due to lack of time might seem heroic or selfless, it’s actually quite the opposite. Taking good care of yourself benefits you and those around you because it allows you to perform at your best.
When you’re in burnout mode, you lose perspective and do whatever it takes to get through your days. Exhausted, you deprive yourself of the opportunity to relax, recharge, and rejuvenate, and the downward spiral continues. Fantasizing about quitting your job, especially one that used to fulfill you, or losing interest in activities you once enjoyed could be other signs that you’re overwhelmed and headed for burnout. Don’t ignore or underestimate them! – Jody Michael
“You know you’re heading toward burnout when you notice any of these three things, and especially when you see all three at once:
1) You struggle to motivate yourself to go to work in the morning when you wake up and/or you start to feel like you’re in Groundhog Day, where each day blends into the next and nothing seems interesting or inspiring anymore.
2) You’re incredibly drained and exhausted. This could be because you’re pushing yourself too hard to get everything done and going to bed too late, or even once you’re in bed, you can’t fall asleep or stay asleep because of work worries and anxieties that are invading your thoughts.”
3) It seems you can no longer control your mood, or even your temper, at work. Although you know you need to act professionally and keep your emotions in check, you begin to feel like all your negative emotions are seeping into your work and relationships almost daily.”
– Jo Ilfeld
“One sign is that a leader will have difficulty finding their inner enthusiasm, energy, or motivation in aspects of their work they once thoroughly enjoyed. As committed, achievement-oriented workers, it simply doesn’t occur to them that burnout might be the cause of this internal shift. They are more likely to worry about whether there is some more general problem with themselves or their professional development.”
– Nancy Scheel
What causes burnout, especially among leaders?
“One of the most obvious causes of burnout is when a leader works a schedule that lacks consistent and adequate opportunities for physiological rest and recovery. By burning themselves out completely, the leader treats themselves like a machine that never needs maintenance. This practice is not sustainable in the long run.”
Related: Do you live to work or work to live?
Perhaps a less obvious cause of burnout is when a leader is highly motivated to achieve results but consistently encounters strong resistance within the organization.
The resistance may come from senior management, be ingrained in the cultural DNA, or be localized within a department.
But when a capable and motivated leader feels their hands are tied, that they have tried time and time again, with multiple approaches, without success, they are likely to experience burnout.”
– Nancy Scheel
“Many factors can contribute to burnout in anyone, especially leaders. The primary cause of burnout is poor mental hygiene.
Worrying, ruminating, and overthinking are unnecessary wastes of energy. Coupled with a lack of resilience, these unhealthy mental habits can lead to overwhelm and, ultimately, burnout.
As a culture, our focus is inherently negative. Most people, including leaders, tend to focus on what went wrong, what could go wrong, and what is happening to them.” The average American spends 70 to 80 percent of their day dwelling on negative thoughts, perpetuating a catabolic state. This constant flow of adrenaline and cortisol exhausts both mind and body.
Given that only 33 percent of the American workforce is engaged, according to the most recent Gallup statistics, it’s no wonder people are burned out.
Contrary to what one might think, leaders are not immune to the engagement dilemma. If you’re not doing what you love, you have to work harder, expending more energy and energy on your workdays.
Of course, other factors also play a role, such as digital overload. We are receiving more and more information vying for our attention, at a faster pace than ever before. Because it is highly addictive and difficult to disconnect from, we have little time left to rest and recover, both physically and mentally. – Jody Michael
“Several factors can contribute to leadership overload, including over-commitment, which results in a feeling of being overwhelmed. Over-commitment is often a direct result of the inability to say ‘no’ or to establish and maintain healthy boundaries. Leaders who value integrity, quality of work, and have a strong work ethic may be particularly susceptible. With perfectionists, the consequences are even greater. A lack of direction or clear expectations about the role can be overwhelming, especially when expectations change mid-execution, requiring a change in strategy or adjustments in approach. A communication gap, whether between colleagues or stakeholders, can exacerbate the feeling due to the amount of time and energy invested in trying to understand and address the situation.”
We all find energy in the things we enjoy and do well. Conversely, stepping away from a busy workflow to spend time on tangential (possibly administrative) tasks can contribute to burnout, especially for leaders. In a sense, all of the above stems from worry. Therefore, one could say that worry causes burnout. Worrying about not performing well; about having too much to do (and not being able to do it all at the desired level); about not understanding what’s being asked of you; about those you delegate to not doing the job properly; about not having enough time; or about wasting time.
– Anna Bray
“There are many reasons why leaders may experience burnout at work, but among the leaders I’ve worked with, these are the three most common reasons I see:
1) There’s a work sprint that seems endless. Look, it happens to all of us: a big goal requires everyone’s collaboration, a new reorganization demands that everyone work longer and harder to reach the finish line. However, when a work sprint becomes the new normal, even previously motivated and energetic leaders may find they’ve lost their optimism and don’t see an end in sight.
2) A personal situation begins to take over a leader’s mind. Whether it’s a marital crisis, the illness or death of a loved one, or a personal or family situation that suddenly demands much more time and attention, leaders are human, and their capacity is limited. While sometimes a leader’s capacity may be depleted by work, other times, a leader managing high-pressure work combined with increased personal stress may also find themselves heading toward burnout.
3) A Escalating workplace conflict. Sometimes, the work itself doesn’t need to take up more hours of the day to be incredibly draining. This is especially true when you don’t get along with a key person at work. Whether it’s your boss, a colleague, or a direct report, if an important working relationship is constantly strained, it seriously affects the leader’s psyche and can start to set them on the path to burnout.
—Jo Ilfeld
What proactive steps can a leader take to avoid burnout?
The most important thing a leader can do to avoid burnout is to have a regular self-care routine. When I say self-care, many leaders think this just means exercising and eating healthy. And yes, that’s important, but even more important is that a leader has regular ways to rebalance and reconnect with themselves so that when they become unbalanced, they can recover.
Many leaders today have found that a regular meditation practice is a ritual that helps them take care of themselves daily and protect themselves from burnout. But that’s not the only way; spending time outdoors regularly, a spiritual practice, or A gratitude journal is a proven way to help leaders prevent burnout.
In addition to self-care, I recommend regularly disconnecting from devices.
Again, research shows that leaders who completely disconnect one night midweek (just one, folks!) are much more eager to go to work in the mornings and feel more fulfilled. Taking one night off each week is a small price to pay for sustained energy, and it also sets a great example and gives your team permission not to burn out as well.
—Jo Ilfeld
“In some cases, increasing efficiency—by streamlining processes and delegating tasks—can mitigate overload. This might involve setting aside time for specific activities, such as checking emails between 8:00 and 9:00 a.m.; working on projects that require concentration from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.; and scheduling meetings after lunch, whenever possible.” Be more discerning about the work you take on (when possible) and learn to clearly communicate what you can and cannot realistically handle. And perhaps the best way to manage overload and prevent burnout is to gain perspective. Notice if your energy is being diverted to soothing worry or other negative thought patterns, and then take action to adopt a more productive mindset.
– Anna Bray
“Perhaps the most important thing a leader can do is be aware of the signs of burnout, especially regarding its onset and progression. By the time a leader notices and feels burned out, they can be sure that the level of exhaustion is already acute. It’s like someone with severe pneumonia who thinks they only have a cold, when in reality they need emergency medical attention! If a leader recognizes the signs of burnout and checks in with themselves roughly once a month, they can catch it much earlier. It’s worth it, because the worse the burnout, the longer it takes to reverse the damage and recover.”
– Nancy Scheel
“Events, conversations, projects… none of these are inherently ‘stressful.’ By definition, stress is a perception. When you change the thoughts on your mental playlist, you regain control of your mood and can better maintain your emotional balance. If you feel like you’re battling burnout, take ownership and find ways to manage it.” Developing greater mental fitness is the best way to avoid burnout, recover from it, and protect yourself from relapse.
— Jody Michael
How to Prevent Burnout in Leaders
The following contribution comes from the DDI portal and is described as follows: Why leading organizations trust DDI to transform their leadership.
Leaders are overwhelmed by constant change. Workflows break down under pressure. We help you develop confident, capable leaders, ready for any challenge.
The article is co-authored by Stephanie Neal, Director of the Center for Behavioral Analysis and Research (CABER). She leads market research and trends focused on leadership and business innovation and is Managing Director and lead author of DDI’s Global Leadership Forecast. The article is co-authored by Rosey Rhyne, Senior Research Director on the DDI Center for Behavioral Analysis and Research (CABER) team, where she applies her expertise in I/O psychology and people analytics to better understand how to improve leadership and employee experience.
Burnout is not just a leadership challenge, but a business risk. Discover proven ways to solve the workplace problems that burn out leaders and build lasting strength.
Statistics show: «71% of leaders say their stress has increased since taking their current role.»
Burnout at work isn’t just a personal struggle, but an organizational crisis. Globally, 51% of employees reported feeling stressed «much of the day.» And the stress among leaders is even higher.
According to the Global Leadership Forecast 2025,
71% of leaders say their stress has increased since taking their current role.
Furthermore, nearly one in six leaders worldwide experiences burnout. Leaders in education, healthcare, and technology report the highest burnout rates of all sectors. When burnout is left unchecked, its effects can be severe. Stressed and burned-out leaders are:
34% less effective than their peers.
Half as likely to be engaged in their leadership role.
3.5 times more likely to leave their position to improve their well-being.
Faced with increasing stress and burnout among leaders, organizations must proactively address the root causes and take steps to create healthier and more sustainable work practices.
Below, we will analyze the key factors of burnout in leaders, as well as measures to prevent it and improve organizational resilience.
What is workplace burnout?
Burnout is such a common workplace phenomenon that the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a syndrome that «refers specifically to phenomena in the occupational context… resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.» The WHO went a step further, stating that burnout «should not be applied to describe other areas of life.» Leaders experiencing burnout often report:
Decision-making fatigue and difficulty concentrating. Longer workdays with lower productivity.
Increased irritability and impatience with team members.
Decreased enthusiasm and passion for previously interesting projects.
Neglect of self-care and personal needs.
Physical symptoms such as headaches, sleep disturbances, or digestive problems.
alinearse con decisiones en las que no creen, lo que genera angustia moral.
Burnout is deeply personal. However, it stems from systemic workplace issues that organizations must address to prevent long-term damage to their leadership pipeline.
The Impact of Stress and Burnout
Leadership burnout is more than an individual problem: it can silently erode an organization’s performance.
When leaders face chronic stress and burnout, they struggle to make sound decisions, motivate their teams, and drive results. Over time, this can create domino effects that undermine the company’s financial health, culture, and ability to retain talent.
Here’s how the impact manifests:
Performance Risk
Leaders experiencing burnout are 34% less likely to rate their effectiveness higher than their peers than those who don’t. **Why it matters: Less effective leaders miss opportunities, make poor decisions, and cause slow progress that hurts profits.
Retention Risk
Stressed and burned-out leaders are 3.5 times more likely to leave their position to improve their well-being. **Why it matters:** When leaders quit, workflow is disrupted, creating stress for other leaders and teams.
Risk of Commitment
Leaders experiencing burnout are half as likely to be engaged in their roles as those who are not. **Why it matters:** When leaders lose interest, it spills over into their teams, damaging morale and weakening the work culture.
What causes stress and burnout in leaders?
Today’s leaders face unprecedented challenges. Their roles are more complex, their responsibilities are increasing, and the expectations placed upon them continue to rise. While all leadership roles involve stress, research shows distinct workplace patterns that lead to leader burnout. Three key factors are closely linked to stress and burnout in leaders:
- Lack of time
Time scarcity is a critical issue for leaders. According to the Global Leadership Forecast 2025, only 30% of leaders feel they have enough time to do their jobs well. The pressure to perform without sufficient time leads to:
- Work overload: Leaders extend their working hours at an unsustainable pace, sacrificing their mental and physical well-being.
- Chronic frustration: The disparity between time and workload generates stress, resentment, and burnout.
- Resource and information limitations: Leaders often lack the tools and information they need. When this happens, they are twice as likely to worry about burnout. This challenge manifests as:
Fatigue from making important decisions without complete information increases stress and cognitive overload.
Lower perceived competence: Leaders who lack adequate resources feel less confident in their abilities, a key factor in burnout.
- Lack of trust: Trust is the currency of any organization, but it is alarmingly low. Only 29% of leaders trust their immediate managers, and 31% trust senior leaders. The impact is significant: leaders who don’t trust their direct managers are 3.2 times more likely to worry about burnout. Those who distrust senior leaders face an even greater risk—4.3 times greater. This lack of trust significantly amplifies the risk of burnout through:
Psychological insecurity: Leaders who don’t trust their organization’s leadership remain in a state of heightened stress.
Communication strain: Without trust, leaders must carefully filter their messages, increasing emotional stress.
Values conflict: Leaders may struggle to align themselves with decisions they don’t believe in, leading to moral distress.