Your company is all about collaboration. They value team players, individuals who make time to work with others, you know, people who are open to offering their expertise or just serve as someone to bounce ideas off of.
And so you’re careful about being available, helpful, and generous with both your time and knowledge. Sometimes, though, it’s at the cost of putting your own work dead last. Or turning to your solo assignments after hours, when none of your colleagues are likely to seek your assistance.
It turns out that there’s such a thing called generosity burnout and if the above rings true for you, you could be headed there.
Not sure if you’re doing an OK job of balancing your workload and devoting resources to co-workers who’re asking for help?
Take this eight-question quiz from Harvard Business Review to discover if you’re a selfless giver, an inconsistent giver, or a sustainable giver.
Depending on where you land, you might want to reevaluate how far you’re willing to be the office’s go-to savior. Burnout, in any shape or form, isn’t a desirable direction to be headed.
And don’t worry, it’s not that you can’t lend a hand ever again—but rather that you need to set boundaries and clear expectations for your colleagues. In an article on setting boundaries at work without making anyone resent you, Muse career coach Melody Wilding recommends taking “a moment to evaluate the individual demand and its potential effect on your schedule, well-being, and goals” before saying yes to any request.
Do that, and you should be able to find some kind of balance that works for both you and your teammates.