Your letter could have been written by me; I've danced the same dance more than once.

While I claim no in-depth training in therapy, here are a few thoughts/ questions:

These are just some starter questions, to help you begin to assess your almost subconscious response to something you are experiencing in your work environment. By considering these points, I have finally interrupted my own "burn-out tango" before it became really destructive.

Burnout is not just an individual issue. It has been shown to be far higher in certain jobs and in unhealthy organization climates. That issue not withstanding, research suggests, as the article implies, that the single most powerful predictor of true burnout in sseeimingly untenable job situations is "percieved inability to leave". The simplest and most powerful solution, I tell my coaching clients, is to go out and discover that you have options. As a preventative measure, every year, test the waters in jobs that you are qualified for and demonstrate to yourself that you are not chained to the job you are in; that you are desireable and that people will hire you. For the vast majority of potential burnout victims, this not only helps with the feelings of being locked in, but simultanteously makes the job more tolerable, just by knowing can leave if you so choose.

I think there are many factors to consider one being that many people are in jobs that pay the bills. Some studies I have read indicate that many people are not happy with their job because it's not the career path they realy want. The other thing to consider is growing debt and job security. Many people wanting to make the move into something else are not able because they have incurred in debt and have to "stick it out" unless something better were to come along. It seems that nowadays we are searching for what can make us more money rather than the what will make us happy because of the financial mess people are in.

The causes of burnout are numerous and far more complex than is portrayed in this article. One only has to look to the research conducted on this topic.While there are certainly personal characteristics that predispose people to burnout, poor human resource management practices can also lead to destructive levels of stress. I am studying HRM, and am currently employed as a nurse working in community nursing. We are paid very little, work 12 days on 2 off, working days and nights, year in year out.This week I entered a home to find a body. By no stretch of the imagination can my job be seen as pleasant or exciting. I do it because, untill I finnish uni this is my only qualification, I have to support my family and I live in rural australia with high unemployment. We work very long hours because we have a critical shortage of nurses here. If we reduce our hours, people usually ageing, go without. That might seem perfectly reasonable to you untill someone dies, then the community point the finger and say 'where were the nursing staff'. When you say 'well I cut back my hours because of burnout' the public have a habit of saying 'you can't do that, that person needs you'. Get out of the office, work in jobs that require working with terminal and chronic illness, death and grief support, with innadequate gov funding and then tell me that burnout is entirely the responability of the employee.

I am a major candidate for job burnout. I sit here sick at the thought of going to my present job! I am rarely ill. I came home from work ill yesterday! My headache turns to a migraine the closer I get to work. I'm at the shaking and throwing up point as I enter my work floor. Burn out?! I'm also a customer of the company I work for and can't get financial assistance from them! Sad huh?! So, I'm not happy with the company that I work for too. I'm ready to pull my 401K money, heavy penalty, and say bye to the corporate enviroment. My coworkers are like the song, They smile in your face, the back stabbers. I think it is time to work for myself and be happy for a change. I'm not burnt out on working, just doing the job I do now!