Bore-out, not to be confused with burn-out, is starting to spread. It is a psychosocial risk defined by burnout by boredom (unlike burnout caused by overwork). What are its causes ? And how to get out of it?
According to a 2011 article, published in the International Journal of Psychology and Management of Organizational Behavior, 30% of Western employees are affected. This is a risk that is difficult for others to understand. Boredom is permanent, everyday and doesn’t just happen during periods of slack activity.
Causes
- Uninteresting tasks
- Quantity of work available too low
- Lack of interest in the job
- Overqualification
- Shelving
- Activity requiring little action, reflection
- Professional downgrading
Symptoms
- Simulate a busy or normal activity in order to hide the problem and not lose your job
- Appear to be stressed, overwhelmed so as not to get an extra boring task
- Pretend to be professionally involved by staying at his post, even outside working hours (impression of continuous work by having lunch at their desk for example)
Consequences 
For the employee:
- Tired
- Demotivation
- Feeling of shame
- Sleeping troubles
- Anxiety
- Loss of self-esteem
- Increased risk of heart attack and cardiovascular disease
For the employer:
- Financial charge
- More frequent sick leave
- Low loyalty to the company
Who is concerned ?
Anyone can be affected. However, it seems that the civil service and the tertiary sector are the most affected.
Advice
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- If only one employee is affected: Request an interview with his superior to indicate his desire for investment, show his real motivation. The distribution of tasks and the assigned missions will surely be studied.
- Consult your personal training account to try to obtain training or professional development, or retraining.
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