A little boredom at work? Totally normal. Constant boredom that makes it nearly impossible to focus? That’s another story. Today, more employees are struggling with “boreout” — the burnout-like state of being chronically bored and completely unmotivated.
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Boreout versus burnout
Many people are familiar with burnout on the job. Boreout is a bit different, though the two can overlap.
Burnout is a state of emotional and mental exhaustion that often results from being overworked. Consistent long hours, tight deadlines and a lack of on-the-job support can lead to burnout.
People experiencing burnout tend to dread going to work and experience high levels of stress. Sometimes, the symptoms can be physical. If those physical symptoms lead to poor sleep and a weakened immune system, it could result in employee absences – and lost productivity.
Boreout is a little different. It’s a state of mental detachment that results from being disinterested in work. People who fall victim to boreout may not experience the same physical symptoms and levels of stress as people who are suffering with burnout.
Boreout is no joke. When work feels mind-numbingly dull, it’s tough to stay motivated — and constantly being handed busywork can take a real toll on your confidence.
Here’s an example: You’ve been grinding out 11-hour days for two months straight, yet the deadlines keep piling up. You can’t catch a break, your stress is through the roof and now it’s even wrecking your sleep. That’s burnout.
Now, let’s say you’re working your standard eight-hour days but the tasks you’ve been assigned are so mind-numbing you dread going to work, and the quality of your work is slipping because you’re so disengaged you can’t focus. That’s boreout.
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Boreout and burnout are major problems
If you’re overwhelmingly bored at work, you’re not alone. But you should know that it’s not just your problem — it’s an issue for employers as well.
A study from the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that disengagement (which is a fancy term for boreout) and burnout cost U.S. employers an average of $3,999 per year for hourly employees, $4,257 per year for salaried non-management employees, $10,824 for managers and $20,683 for executives [1].
All told, the average U.S. company with 1,000 employees earning average wages may be looking at losses of $5.04 million per year because workers are stressed out, strung out and disinterested in what they’re doing. And a big reason may be that workers who are bored and stressed may be more likely to get distracted or fail to pay attention to details, among other things.
Meanwhile, Gallup reports that employee engagement in the U.S. fell to its lowest level in 10 years in 2024, with only 31% of workers saying they feel engaged on the job [2]. Further to that, only 39% of workers feel strongly that their employers care about them as people.
Worse yet, with regard to burnout, data has shown that working longer hours does not necessarily increase productivity. A 2014 Stanford University study found that productivity at work starts to decline once someone puts in more than 50 hours per week [3]. And after 55 hours, there’s a point of diminishing returns where it doesn’t even pay to keep putting in time due to a decline in productivity.
That means not only do people who work long hours risk burnout, but they’re not even necessarily adding much value beyond their standard work week.
How to cope with boredom and burnout
If you’re feeling overwhelmed or bored on the job, it’s important to speak up about it. Otherwise, your circumstances may not improve.
Remember, your manager may not know that you’re bored or burned out if you don’t say something. And if you’re still at a point where the quality of your work hasn’t started suffering, they may not take notice. But it’s important to address the issue before your output and work quality start to decline – and your good standing at work is compromised.
To that end, sit down with your manager and, if appropriate, a human resources representative and explain how you’re feeling. But also, propose solutions.
If burnout is the issue, identify a few tasks you’d like to unload, and suggest ways that other team members can share the load so there’s not as much pressure on you.
If boredom is the issue, identify the tasks you find the most tedious and ask if there’s a way to reassign or automate some of them. Then, tell your manager what sort of tasks you’d rather spend your days working on.
You may never reach the point where you’re 100% thrilled with every single task you do. And it’s natural to be stressed at work from time to time. But if things have reached the point where you’re constantly feeling strained or bored, it’s time to speak up about it.
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[1]. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. “The health and economic burden of employee burnout to U.S. employers”
[2]. Gallup. “U.S. employee engagement sinks to 10-year low”
[3]. Stanford University. “The productivity of working hours”
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
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