The Geography of Burnout - Managing the “Always-On” Culture
By: Dr. Andrew Cuthbert
About this series: This article is part of our 8-part collection, The Whole Professional: Integrating Identity, Purpose, and Mental Health at Work. In this series, our therapy team explores the deep psychological relationship we have with our careers—offering reflective insights for individuals navigating modern work stress, and systemic strategies for leaders looking to foster resilient workplace cultures. Catch up on the full series or learn about our Workplace Mental Health Workshops by emailing consult@timbercreekcounseling.com
Did you know that there is a cost to too much technology time? Did you know that it’s not helpful to always be in “work mode?” Of course you do! For better or worse, we are far beyond the stage of awareness of the costs of technology and “always-on” cultures. Most articles I read spend a lot of time diagnosing the problem, which is what I typically do as well. This isn’t that type of article because I think you are already onto the fact that most of us have an unhealthy relationship with technology and struggle to be “off.”
Forgive me if we jump too quickly into solutions - I do so because you’ll see they’re not always simple.
Let’s take the reality that work goes with us wherever we go. Most of us work in somewhat hybrid environments - either we work some from home or we at least have a phone in our pocket. I still remember when I didn’t even carry a “dumb” phone in my pocket. When I went to work or was home, it was truly hard to reach me. Now, the phone not only can take calls but of course it has email and so much more. Personally, even knowing my email is within reach creates a low level of anxiety. What if somebody needs me!?
Most of us have tried a variety of different version of being off, but let’s be honest - while there are many in-between solutions out there, this one is more clear cut. We must have boundaries with technology. If we don’t control our relationship with it, it will control us. One of my favorite (in an annoying way) studies showed that even the presence of a laptop in the room lowered people’s attentiveness and executive functioning. It did not need to be on or even nearby. Technology controls our brain, so get away from it.
Instead of giving tidy solutions, let me just name what I’m trying poorly at right now:
Plugging my phone in away from my bed - I’ve been trying to finish my phone stuff in a chair on the other side of the room and not take it to bed. I go on streaks with this but then end up failing. I need to stay on this one for a variety of reasons but mainly because of how I know it impacts my sleep (which then impacts everything else)
Work hours/commute - I mostly work close to home, so I don’t have a commute. Instead I do silly things like put on a hat when I switch modes or I set clear hours where I tell myself not to work. It’s hard. But we all need to clearly define some sort of break.
Phone breaks - honestly I haven’t done this in a while, but I need to schedule a time to just be away from technology. I’d like to even start with a couple of hours since a day seems too wild right now - but I’ll work on that.
There’s little point to this blog if you don’t now sit down and reflect for yourself. What can you do with technology? Even if work pulls you to be on tech more than you’d like, I can always find some control that each person has - what can you control and make goals towards?
Finally, if you’re in a position where you can help define the culture of your workplace - how can you help to pop the bubble that you expect others to be productive 24/7? Have you named that with your workplace. Workplaces can help name their needs - perhaps they need to find ways to be competitive and timely, which does result in nebulous boundaries, but even then, their can be limits. Naming those boundaries for a workplace will make people more creative, have better executive functioning skills, and generally have more cognitive bandwidth.
Let’s give all of our brains a rest from technology and being constantly on. Write me an email if you disagree with this - but I’d dare say a walk in nature for an hour is going to do far more for your happiness and productivity then anything you could do on technology for that hour.
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If you find yourself trapped in a workplace dynamic where you are struggling with guilt, people-pleasing, or a total lack of boundaries with your employer or coworkers, our therapy team is here to help. We specialize in helping individuals recognize relational patterns like transference and establish healthy boundaries that protect their emotional well-being. [Click here to book a one-on-one consultation with our practice.]
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