Burnout and work engagement
I read a blog post saying that burnout is the opposite of work engagement.
I Googled, and I found these two papers:
While after reading the short blog post, I was like: “wow, that’s the opposite”.
After reading linked studies, I am not that sure.
Maybe, the core dimensions of burnout are emotional exhaustion and cynicism.
Maybe, the core dimensions of engagement are vigor and dedication.
However, papers say it is not ok to put them as polar opposites on a Likert scale.
So it looks like we need to work on both: burnout and engagement. Not just on the first to convert it into the latter.
And we need to remember to have limited trust in what people write on their blogs, including that guy from Sorry Engineering.
Can it be like they are not opposite factors, but they have the same root? I mean if you are naturally engaged in some activity, then doing it does not burn you out. If your engagement drops, that means you lost your drive because of smth and you are one step closer to burn out? That would mean that they are not opposite, but keeping people engaged and motivated helps to prevent burning out.
That comes to the point: keep people engaged in what they do. Because routine is boring in a long run, make sure they have enough challenges, appreciate their work and celebrate their wins.