Dear Colleagues! This is Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1289 for Pharma Veterans. Pharma Veterans Blogs are published by Asrar Qureshi on its dedicated site https://pharmaveterans.com. Please email to pharmaveterans2017@gmail.com for publishing your contributions here.
Preamble
This blog post is based on a recent INSEAD article by Professor Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries. Link at the end.
Burnout Is More Than Exhaustion: What Every Leader Must Learn About the Human Cost of High Performance
For decades, burnout has been treated as a personal problem. Employees who complained of exhaustion were advised to take a vacation, sleep more, exercise, practice mindfulness, or improve their work-life balance. While these suggestions are well intentioned, they often miss the heart of the problem.
A thought-provoking recent article from INSEAD, “Looking Out for the Burnt-Out One,” challenges this conventional thinking. It argues that burnout is not simply the result of working too many hours. Rather, it is “exhaustion compounded by betrayal.” It occurs when dedicated people repeatedly give more of themselves to an organization than it can reasonably expect, only to feel unsupported, undervalued, or even blamed when they can no longer sustain the pace.
This perspective should make every leader pause. Burnout is not merely an employee wellness issue. It is a leadership issue, an organizational culture issue, and increasingly, a strategic business issue.
The Hidden Cost of Commitment
Ironically, burnout rarely affects people who are indifferent to their work. It most often strikes those who care the most.
High performers, committed professionals, healthcare workers, teachers, social workers, nonprofit employees, entrepreneurs, and senior executives frequently invest their identity in their work. They willingly accept extra responsibilities, stay late, solve crises, and consistently deliver under pressure. Initially, these behaviors are praised. They become known as dependable people. Gradually, however, dependability becomes expectation. Their competence becomes the reason they are assigned even more work. Their willingness to help becomes difficult to refuse. Over time, commitment quietly transforms into chronic overextension.
As the INSEAD article observes, people often reach a point where they feel not only exhausted but also betrayed by systems that once rewarded their dedication.
Burnout Is More Than Being Tired
We all experience fatigue. A demanding week, a major project, or a family emergency can leave anyone feeling exhausted. Burnout is different. Ordinary fatigue improves with rest. Burnout often does not.
The INSEAD article describes burnout as affecting people emotionally, physically, and cognitively. Individuals may feel emotionally numb, physically drained despite adequate sleep, and mentally unable to concentrate on even simple decisions. Tasks that once seemed routine suddenly become overwhelming.
Many also experience something less visible. They begin to lose meaning. Work that once inspired pride becomes something merely to survive. This loss of purpose is often more damaging than physical exhaustion itself.
The Psychology of Betrayal
Perhaps the article’s most powerful contribution is its emphasis on betrayal.
Most discussions describe burnout as excessive workload. INSEAD suggests something deeper.
Employees often believe that if they work harder, demonstrate loyalty, and sacrifice personal time, the organization will value and protect them. When this expectation is broken, through constant overload, lack of appreciation, unrealistic demands, or indifference to wellbeing, the emotional damage can be profound. People may begin questioning not only their employer but also themselves.
Why Leaders Often Miss the Warning Signs
Burnout rarely appears overnight. It develops gradually.
Unfortunately, organizations often celebrate the very behaviors that precede it. Employees who answer emails at midnight are praised. Those who never take leave are admired. Individuals who continually accept additional work are considered “team players.”
Managers frequently mistake these behaviors for resilience. In reality, they may represent early warning signs. By the time visible performance begins to decline, burnout may already be severe. The greatest risk is that leaders evaluate only results while overlooking the human cost required to achieve them.
Listening Before Solving
The INSEAD article offers particularly valuable advice for managers.
When someone appears emotionally exhausted, our instinct is often to solve the problem immediately. Instead, the article recommends something much simpler, and much harder.
Listen.
Allow people to describe their experience without immediately correcting, reassuring, or minimizing their feelings. Genuine listening communicates respect. It tells employees that their struggles are being taken seriously rather than explained away. For leaders, this requires emotional maturity.
Sometimes the most helpful response is not advice but presence.
When Burnout Becomes Dangerous
Most burnout discussions focus on reduced productivity. INSEAD reminds us that the consequences can be far more serious.
In severe cases, burnout may lead to profound hopelessness. The article advises managers, colleagues, family members, and friends not to avoid direct conversations about suicidal thoughts when warning signs are present. Research shows that asking compassionate, straightforward questions does not create suicidal thinking; instead, it can open the door to getting timely professional help. This is a crucial leadership lesson.
Mental health concerns should never be ignored because they are uncomfortable to discuss. Recognizing when professional support is needed is an essential part of responsible leadership.
Building Organizations That Prevent Burnout
Preventing burnout requires more than employee wellness programs. It requires healthier organizational systems.
Leaders can make a meaningful difference by setting realistic workloads and priorities, encouraging employees to disconnect after working hours, recognizing effort as well as results, providing autonomy rather than excessive control, creating psychologically safe environments where concerns can be raised without fear, ensuring adequate staffing for critical functions, and modeling healthy behaviors themselves.
Employees notice whether leaders take leave, protect personal time, admit limitations, and seek help when necessary. Culture is shaped less by written policies than by everyday behavior.
Redefining Leadership Success
Traditional leadership often celebrates relentless effort. The most admired leader is frequently portrayed as someone who works the longest hours, sacrifices personal life, and expects others to do the same.
Modern leadership requires a different model. The most effective leaders are not those who extract the greatest amount of work from people. They are those who create conditions in which people can perform exceptionally without sacrificing their health, dignity, or sense of purpose.
High performance and human wellbeing are not competing priorities; they are mutually reinforcing. Organizations that care for their people typically experience stronger engagement, lower turnover, greater innovation, and more sustainable performance over time.
Sum Up
Burnout is no longer a fringe issue confined to a few high-pressure professions. It has become one of the defining workplace challenges of our era.
The INSEAD article reminds us that behind every burnt-out employee is often a story of dedication, loyalty, and a desire to make a difference. The tragedy is that these qualities, the very qualities organizations value most, can become the pathway to exhaustion when they are not matched by support, fairness, and trust.
Concluded.
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