Signs of burnout: the three markers, the six causes and what helps

The three signs the WHO names

The WHO’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) describes burnout as a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It has three dimensions:

• Exhaustion: feelings of energy depletion.
• Distance: increased mental distance from your job, or cynicism about it.
• Reduced efficacy: feeling less effective at work.

The WHO calls burnout an occupational phenomenon, not a medical condition, and says the term applies to work, not other areas of life.

When it is more than burnout

Burnout and depression overlap. If low mood or loss of interest lasts most days for two weeks or more, or spreads beyond work, talk to a doctor or licensed professional. Depression is common and treatable.

What helps

1. Name the mismatch. Score the six areas and pick the worst one.
2. Change one thing you control. A boundary, a delegated task, a protected hour.
3. Restore the body first. Sleep, movement and food carry everything else.
4. Rebuild structure, not just rest. APSP’s 70/30 rule keeps about 70 percent of your week planned and 30 percent open.
5. Check the fit. If the values mismatch is the core, the free career test shows which work fits you better.

Where APSP fits

APSP treats your work as one domain among five. When it overloads, the others pay: health, relationships, money, creative life. The first chapter includes the Five Domain Diagnostic, so you can see the whole cost and choose where to rebuild first.

Do it with others. A change is easier to hold when other people see your progress. In a meta-analysis of 138 studies, people who reported their progress publicly or recorded it reached their goals more often (Harkin and colleagues, 2016). Vcom is 12 months of self-directed accountability among professionals who work from the same model, so you are not redesigning your life alone.