What is burnout and how does it affect my business?

Burnout is a state of exhaustion caused by prolonged stress at work. It can lead to serious health conditions, reduced performance and lost productivity – costing UK employers billions each year.

How can time off help prevent burnout?

Regular breaks allow employees to recharge, manage stress and protect their physical and emotional health. Spreading time off evenly through the year stops staff feeling overwhelmed and keeps teams happier, healthier and more focused.

Why is it important to set boundaries around leave?

Boundaries ensure employees feel safe taking time off without guilt or disruption. This supports emotional well-being, helps avoid burnout and reduces stress across the team.

What should I look for when spotting early signs of burnout?

Look out for emotional exhaustion, irritability, reduced performance, poor sleep, and physical symptoms such as headaches or frequent illness. Spotting burnout symptoms early allows you to take action before someone reaches breaking point. This blog has some more useful tips and advice.

How does this checklist help prevent burnout at work?

The checklist gives you simple, practical ideas across five key areas – from policy to culture – to help you reduce stress, prevent burnout and support your team’s well-being.

Is this resource suitable for small businesses?

Absolutely. This checklist is designed for SMEs and offers easy-to-implement suggestions that work whatever your size or structure.

What can I do if my team feels overwhelmed by work?

When teams feel overwhelmed, it’s often a sign that workloads or expectations need reviewing. Encouraging regular breaks, offering flexibility, and creating space for open dialogue can help. Overcoming burnout is a gradual process – it starts with recognising the signs and making consistent, small changes that support physical and mental well-being.

Can physical health be affected by burnout?

Yes, burnout doesn’t just affect mental health. It can also impact physical health through symptoms like headaches, fatigue, and disrupted sleep.

What role does physical activity play in preventing burnout?

Physical activity such as regular exercise supports both physical and mental well-being. It helps manage job stress and can reduce burnout symptoms over time.

Are there behavioural signs of burnout to watch for?

Yes. Behavioural signs include withdrawal from social interactions, irritability, reduced motivation, and performance dips. Spotting these early can help you seek support and prevent further decline.

What are some other factors that contribute to burnout?

Work related causes such as unrealistic workloads, lack of autonomy, and insufficient support can all contribute. Other factors like a lack of sleep and unclear communication play a role too.

Is burnout a medical condition?

Burnout isn’t classified as a medical condition, but it can lead to serious health conditions if left unaddressed. Getting support early and encouraging rest are key to recovery.

What do burnout researchers say about overcoming burnout?

Burnout researchers agree that overcoming burnout is a gradual process. It involves addressing the root causes, setting boundaries, seeking support, and making space for self care and enough sleep.

What’s the link between job stress and sleep habits?

High levels of job stress often disrupt sleep habits, which in turn worsens emotional symptoms and reduces resilience. Encouraging good sleep hygiene is part of a healthy work culture.

Avoiding Burnout: A Practical Checklist to Encourage Time Off

Burnout is on the rise, and it’s affecting not just individual mental health, but team-wide performance. When people feel able to switch off and take proper time off, they protect their emotional and physical health, improve productivity and prevent burnout symptoms.

But in a busy workplace, that’s easier said than done. That’s why we’ve created this free checklist to help you review your current approach to time off – and make small changes that can prevent burnout before it starts.

What's inside?

Practical suggestions to prevent workplace burnout across 5 key areas:

1. Booking and planning leave
Make sure time off is easy to arrange and well-used – with clear processes, reminders and tools to avoid job burnout and reduce stress. Establishing clear guidelines around holiday planning helps manage stress and prevent burnout symptoms.

2. Policies and processes
Use simple templates and shared systems to manage stress and support people before, during and after leave. Effective policies and processes can prevent burnout and help prevent mental exhaustion caused by prolonged pressure.

3. Disconnecting
Help people truly switch off – by setting expectations with managers, clients and the wider team. Avoiding burnout means time off must be protected, and regular breaks should be seen as essential for maintaining physical and mental health.

4. Burnout spotting and support
Know what to look out for – from emotional exhaustion to physical symptoms. Spotting early signs of burnout symptoms means you can step in before someone reaches their breaking point. Encouraging self care and support can help prevent health conditions from developing further.

5. Culture and communication
Create a culture where taking time off is encouraged, supported and role modelled. Promoting work life balance, clear boundaries, and awareness of mental exhaustion builds long-term resilience and helps prevent burnout across the team.

This checklist makes it easy to spot what’s working – and where a few small changes could have a big impact.

Get the checklist

Why mental health and burnout prevention matter

Our research shows burnout isn’t just a personal issue, it’s a team-wide one. And one of the biggest contributors is holiday hoarding - when employees don't use their annual leave or take time off.

In a poll of over 2,000 UK workers, two-thirds (66%) said they’d taken less than half their holiday by July. A third (33%) had taken less than a quarter.

2_3 of UK workers are not taking their holiday (2)

This is taking a toll on both physical and emotional health:

Nearly half of holiday hoarders feel emotionally drained and burnt out by autumn
Over 1 in 4 take more than six sick days a year
Millions are missing out on the well-being benefits of regular breaks

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Those who take time off regularly report better mental health, fewer health conditions, and feel less overwhelmed. The issue? Many feel unable to take time off due to heavy workloads, staff shortages or little or no control over their schedule. This can quickly lead to burnout symptoms and mental exhaustion.

The cost of ignoring these signs is high. Burnout leads to reduced performance and lost productivity, which has a direct financial impact on businesses. As job burnout builds, so do absences, disengagement and turnover, adding pressure to already stretched teams.

That’s why we created this checklist – to help employers take practical steps to support time off, avoid burnout, and foster emotional well-being across their team. By making leave more accessible and reducing stress at work, you support healthier teams.

Because preventing burnout isn’t just about self care. It’s about creating a work environment where rest is respected, flexible working is encouraged, and mental exhaustion doesn’t become the norm. Setting clear boundaries and offering tools to manage stress can stop issues before they reach breaking point.

Get your free checklist to prevent job burnout in your workplace

Start building a workplace that champions breaks, protects mental health and helps your people thrive.

Get the checklist

Frequently Asked Questions

What is burnout and how does it affect my business?

Burnout is a state of exhaustion caused by prolonged stress at work. It can lead to serious health conditions, reduced performance and lost productivity – costing UK employers billions each year.
How can time off help prevent burnout?

Regular breaks allow employees to recharge, manage stress and protect their physical and emotional health. Spreading time off evenly through the year stops staff feeling overwhelmed and keeps teams happier, healthier and more focused.
Why is it important to set boundaries around leave?

Boundaries ensure employees feel safe taking time off without guilt or disruption. This supports emotional well-being, helps avoid burnout and reduces stress across the team.
What should I look for when spotting early signs of burnout?

Look out for emotional exhaustion, irritability, reduced performance, poor sleep, and physical symptoms such as headaches or frequent illness. Spotting burnout symptoms early allows you to take action before someone reaches breaking point. This blog has some more useful tips and advice.
How does this checklist help prevent burnout at work?

The checklist gives you simple, practical ideas across five key areas – from policy to culture – to help you reduce stress, prevent burnout and support your team’s well-being.
Is this resource suitable for small businesses?

Absolutely. This checklist is designed for SMEs and offers easy-to-implement suggestions that work whatever your size or structure.
What can I do if my team feels overwhelmed by work?

When teams feel overwhelmed, it’s often a sign that workloads or expectations need reviewing. Encouraging regular breaks, offering flexibility, and creating space for open dialogue can help. Overcoming burnout is a gradual process – it starts with recognising the signs and making consistent, small changes that support physical and mental well-being.
Can physical health be affected by burnout?

Yes, burnout doesn’t just affect mental health. It can also impact physical health through symptoms like headaches, fatigue, and disrupted sleep.
What role does physical activity play in preventing burnout?

Physical activity such as regular exercise supports both physical and mental well-being. It helps manage job stress and can reduce burnout symptoms over time.
Are there behavioural signs of burnout to watch for?

Yes. Behavioural signs include withdrawal from social interactions, irritability, reduced motivation, and performance dips. Spotting these early can help you seek support and prevent further decline.
What are some other factors that contribute to burnout?

Work related causes such as unrealistic workloads, lack of autonomy, and insufficient support can all contribute. Other factors like a lack of sleep and unclear communication play a role too.
Is burnout a medical condition?

Burnout isn’t classified as a medical condition, but it can lead to serious health conditions if left unaddressed. Getting support early and encouraging rest are key to recovery.
What do burnout researchers say about overcoming burnout?

Burnout researchers agree that overcoming burnout is a gradual process. It involves addressing the root causes, setting boundaries, seeking support, and making space for self care and enough sleep.
What’s the link between job stress and sleep habits?

High levels of job stress often disrupt sleep habits, which in turn worsens emotional symptoms and reduces resilience. Encouraging good sleep hygiene is part of a healthy work culture.

Free burnout checklist:

Avoiding burnout: Help your team take (and enjoy) time off

What's inside?

Why mental health and burnout prevention matter

Get your free checklist to prevent job burnout in your workplace

Frequently Asked Questions

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