Burnout is a real risk for project managers,
and as a project manager,
it is something that you wanna learn
how to identify and control so you don't get burnt out.
And in this video, I'm gonna share with you just that,
some really great tips to help you avoid burnout
so that you can be great at your job always.
And since we're talking about burnout,
you wanna make sure you avoid project mistakes,
'cause that leads to burnout,
and I have you covered.
At the end of this video,
I'm gonna give you a link
that you can download my free guide
on how to ensure your projects
don't have some critical mistakes.
Hi, if you're new here, welcome.
My name is Adriana Girdler
and you have come to the best channel on project management.
So if you're interested in learning more,
definitely subscribe to this awesome community.
Now, project managers,
if you are interested on how to avoid burnout,
(Adriana claps)
let's get to it.
Limit your overtime. All right.
This becomes really interesting as a project manager
because if we're...
We can, at times, be constantly fighting fires
and if you're always fighting fires,
then you're constantly doing overtime
to keep things organized.
So it becomes really important
that you take a look at to how are you managing things?
Are you constantly overworked
and working those overtime hours
just to feel like you're getting on track?
You really need to monitor that.
One of the great things that you can do
in order to help minimize that, not necessarily stop it,
because firefighting is part of project management.
You wanna just minimize the amount that you're doing
is in your preparation and your planning.
So really getting clear in initiation.
And at the beginning stages of your project
of really getting yourself organized,
getting all your documentations in place
and setting up expectations for your team.
Now, something else you have to consider
in regards to overtime and ensuring you don't have burnout
is don't take on all the responsibility.
It's not your job.
Your job is to manage and be organized.
It's okay to say no.
Now in the corporate world,
this becomes a very interesting thing,
because a lot of times we feel the pressure
to be a team player to say yes to everything.
And what can happen
is we can sometimes overload ourselves leading to burnout.
Now in projects, in particular, this becomes very tricky
because we get bombarded with external noise,
so to speak, of people outside of the project team.
"Oh, can you just add this? Can you just do this?"
And it all seems simple and innocent enough
but it can actually lead to a lot of burnout and stress,
because now you're scrambling to get things done.
So what I'd like to ask you and actually invite you
is learn how to say no,
because it's okay when you do it professionally,
respectfully, and you do it in the guise of strategy.
So as a project manager, it's scope, time, and budget.
So if you're gonna say no,
you do it in the context of that scope, time, and budget.
And if you properly planned,
you will have a really clear idea of your timelines
and what exactly your scope is,
and you probably would've done
a project priority matrix as well,
which would give you that guidance too.
So saying no is okay
and it's gonna help ensure that your projects stay on track.
So learn to say no.
Before we jump into the next tip,
I wanna remind you to stay tuned to the end of this video
where I'm gonna tell you how you can get your hands
on the top 10 mistakes project managers make
and how to avoid them.
Now for the next tip, what can you do to avoid burnout?
Well, plan, plan, and plan.
So one of the big causes of burnout is stress,
and one of the big causes of stress
is that we're not organized.
So planning and really getting in the beginning stages
of your project, very clear with what you're gonna do
has huge impact.
It's only gonna help guide you in your decision making
and really give more guidance to your project team
so they themselves can take on more accountability,
which is really important.
For people to take on more accountability,
they have to be really clear with what they're gonna do.
So that's why your project plan
and getting all of those elements really settled
so people can really work on their own
is critical to helping you manage your stress.
So therefore, hopefully not giving you any burnout.
Now, other things, too, to consider
in the middle of projects
that you really should be looking at is risk management.
Risk management is something
that has to be looked at throughout the project
and to formalize that.
So taking a look at what are the risks,
what are your mitigation plans,
and your contingency plans accordingly
is also gonna be part of that planning.
Don't leave things to chance.
But as long as you have 80% planned,
it's gonna make your life less stressful,
in essence, avoiding burnout.
Learn to pause.
This can times be difficult for project managers
because we are organizing, we're planning,
we're doing everything that we need to do
and hours can slip away as you're trying to get organized
particularly if you have upcoming meetings
and you're trying to get that all settled
and ensuring that you have everything ready
for your project team members,
but you do have to learn how to pause.
You do have to ensure that you step away from the computer
and you walk away from your desk.
You even wanna think about having some mindful moments
so that you can just reduce the stress, calm down,
connect to the present moment,
not getting caught up in the world wind vortex
of what is it next that I have to do
or thinking of any of the firefighting.
Those stuff will always be there.
That's a constant. It's just how you deal with it.
So you don't wanna get sucked into it.
So learning to pause,
taking multiple breaks throughout a day
so you're not really constantly looking
at your computer screen or organizing things accordingly.
You really wanna learn how to take a mindful moment.
Really, deep breaths are really great technique.
Walking outside is another great technique.
And if you're into meditation, how wonderful is that?
'Cause that's just gonna keep you grounded
in very stressful situations.
So that when that happens,
you're not gonna be impacted by the stress.
Therefore, ensuring that you're not gonna have burnout.
So really learn how to take care of yourself.
Just like on an airplane,
when we're asked to bring down the oxygen mass,
we don't put it on our child first, we put it on ourselves.
Same thing for a project manager.
You gotta take care of yourself in order to help your team.
Now that you have some very tangible tips
on how to avoid burnout.
Remember, I said stay tuned
and I'm gonna give you something that's awesome.
It's right here. How to avoid project mistakes?
You need this if you're feeling any stress,
because you wanna know how to mitigate it
and it's free for you under this video.
So go grab it. Why not?
Now, I really appreciate you watching this video.
If you can give it a like
because you connected with the content,
that helps us grow our community.
And I look forward to seeing you at the next video.
Have a great day.