In another instance, a young couple discovered that they had made Christmas into an obligation with a trip home to visit both sets of parents every year. One year, they all got the flu just before the holidays and discovered that they could enjoy Christmas much more without all the shopping, wrapping, decorating, and traveling. Now they stay home and enjoy a simplified Christmas at a less frantic pace. In our business, we know we must make adjustments if team members are out sick or away with family emergencies. Together, we have learned to reevaluate options and create a reasonable workload by using existing handouts rather than creating new ones, packing lighter for long-distance trips, or asking each person to pick up a part of the missing partner's responsibilities.
Executive neglect can protect precious lives from needless burnout and expensive chronic illnesses.
Heart disease, hypertension, cancer and ulcers are just a few of the most serious of the illnesses that can result from burnout. Constant thought, imagination and reevaluation of priorities are required to decide what does not need to be done in order to save the time, energy, and sanity of co-workers. Here is a technique I accidentally found that helps me to be both more convergent and more creative. Put yourself in a similar emergency situation. I gathered a great idea from a busy mom who invited her two sons, ages ten and fifteen, to start a catering business.