Why Boreout at Work is More Dangerous than Burnout

Burnout is such a common word that even an elementary school student in the second grade could give a pep talk. However, it’s a different case for boreout, a silent mental trend often referred to as the familial cousin of burnout.

While burnout is more or less a plain exhaustion from overworking and overdrive—qualities a good number of companies love, boreout usually reflects a lack of drive and a dwindling sense of achievement from what you do.

That’s a state of motivation where employees feel deflated even when there are tons of assignments on their desks. Surprisingly, less than 50% of workers are motivated out of 2500 survey respondents conducted by MT, and that’s a big risk for both employees and businesses.

Let’s see why boreout can be more dangerous than burnout at work.

What is boreout?

There are thousands of definitions of boreout on the Internet, but it’s best to approach this from a boredom standpoint.

Typically, boreout is a chronic form of boredom.

Mariam Webster calls boredom a state of being weary and restless through a lack of interest. Psychoanalyst Adams Philips expands this definition and calls boredom

that state of suspended animation in which things are started, and nothing begins, the mood of diffuse restlessness which contains that most absurd and paradoxical wish, the wish for a desire.

James Danckert, a neuroscientist, and John D. Eastwood described boredom as a state in which one feels something is missing but cannot pinpoint exactly what it is. Others call it a state of desire for unfulfilled desires.

Boredom, however, becomes boreout when it negatively influences not just your productivity at work but also your health in general. At this point, you are just sitting at the desk, unenthusiastic about your work, not finding meaning in the effort you put in, and gradually losing it.

Inferring from these public takes, Maryanne Fiedler, Director of Marketing at Psychic Source, defines Boreout “as a profound state of disconnection and stagnation, where a lack of meaningful engagement in work drains enthusiasm, leaving one feeling unfulfilled, unproductive, and emotionally weary. This feels like being trapped in a cycle of unmet potential and diminishing purpose.”

What could be causing boreout?

Margaret Talbot, in a New Yorker piece, illustrated why most boredoms come to be. “Expectations grew that life would be, at least some of the time, amusing, and people, including oneself, interesting—and so did the disappointment when they weren’t.” This disappointment leads to being unfulfilled and unexcited about other things, especially at work.

Besides expectations not being met, boreout could also result from having to do the same tasks every time. That’s a typical worker’s life—wake up, go to work, input random data on Excel for analysis, drink coffee by 2 pm, go home by 6 pm, sleep, and do the same the next day. According to Hubspot’s survey, marketers spend about 16 hours out of 45 hours workweek on repetitive tasks.

These routine tasks might initially have been intriguing. It’s just like when a high schooler gains admission into college and resumes on the first day of school. But as time passes, and you keep doing the same thing, you lose your sense of purpose or meaning. You want to do more, but you’re forced to stay in the loop either due to rigid workplace rules or the inability to.

“Another tangible cause of rising boreout among employees is the pandemic syndrome—a term highlighting the adoption and boom of remote work during COVID-19. While remote working has numerous perks like flexibility and better work-life balance, it also shuts employees off from vital aspects of workplace interaction”, says Grant Aldrich, Founder of Online Degree.

This isolation limits spontaneous social engagement, collaborative creativity, and informal problem-solving, which are often the catalysts for excitement and purpose at work. The monotony of working in the same environment and blurred boundaries between personal and professional life can amplify feelings of disconnection, purposelessness, and stagnation.

Hidden and overlooked: the catalyst for danger

Michael Nemeroff, Co-founder & CEO at RushOrderTees, says, “Unlike burnout, which is widely recognized and condemned, boreout is mostly swept under the rug and goes unaddressed. And because boreout appears as personal ineffectiveness, your employer is more likely to dish you the ‘lazy worker’ title.”

These stigma-like responses cause most workers to suffer in silence. Most times, people engage in other things like cyberloafing—using the internet for non-work-related activities during work hours—or chit-chatting with coworkers to unhealthily escape boreout. You might end up becoming a procrastinator as well.

“The delayed response and lack of attached importance to boreout make it more dangerous than burnout. Workers end up quietly disengaging, losing motivation, and feeling trapped in a cycle of unfulfillment, which gradually erodes their mental health, self-esteem, and overall well-being, often going unnoticed until the effects become deeply ingrained”, Reyansh Mestry, Head of Marketing at TopSource Worldwide adds.

Several researches have shown that boredom, a precursor of boreout, can result in depression, anger, irritability, anxiety, poor work performance, and higher susceptibility to abusing drugs. This reflects the potential consequences of chronic boredom or boreout, as said.

Most importantly, it’s easy to misdiagnose the presentations of boreout, whether at work or in the hospital. For instance, you could be working 30 hours a week and still suffer from boreout manifesting as depression. A doctor might attribute this depression to burnout, whereas, in reality, you simply lack arousal, satisfaction, and feelings of fulfillment doing your job.

Underproductivity and errors

Since boreout often plays a background role, it takes longer to realize you or someone else is already a victim. In the course of battling with the lack of interest, you become less productive and less engaged. Surprisingly, only 23% of workers are engaged, according to Gallup’s State of 2024 Report.

Source: Gallup’s State of 2024 Report

Disengaged employees are likely to make more avoidable mistakes than those engaged. Each error costs your business a lot. On the other hand, engaged employees increase a brand’s profitability by over 23% and productivity by 14%.

Market dynamics are also unfavorable for people suffering from boreout, as businesses often prioritize retaining employees who “keep their mental health issues” at home. And that adds job loss to the laundry list of complications from boreout.

A cue to a career change?

According to an article in the NY Times, employees who find purpose and have passion for their work are three times more likely to stay with an organization. The reverse is the case when your job lacks purpose and a passionate drive.

You feel like you’re on the wrong desk, working for the wrong boss or company, and doing the wrong task—even if it was once your best. These feelings of unfulfillment and purposelessness often reduce your emotional commitment at work and can result in switching careers for a more exciting role.

Source: NY Times by The Energy Project

Nearly 50% of employees say they’re thinking of quitting their jobs this year, up from 40% in 2021. And the trend keeps growing, with GenZs moving out in troves, switching skills, or trying to become bosses themselves.

4 Proven ways to overcome boreout

While boreout might be a good reason to assess your career path, not all cases warrant a career change. Sometimes, you just need a break from everything. Or implement a few things, which we’ll quickly explore below.

1. Find new areas of excitement

Gary Hemming, Owner & Finance Director at ABC Finance, says, “Life is definitely not Nollywood, and we can’t script everything to excite us. But we can find newer areas of fulfillment despite doing the same thing. This could mean setting personal goals within your role, tackling tasks with a fresh perspective, or even taking on small challenges outside your usual responsibilities.”

For instance, volunteering for a project outside your department, starting a passion project, joining team activities, or pursuing professional development can inject a sense of purpose into your routine.

2. Open up to your supervising manager

Fixing boreout is not only an employee’s responsibility. Your supervising project manager and the organization are also crucial to driving the needed changes by developing a robust action plan.  So, open up to them and communicate the areas where you feel improvements can be made—not only to enhance your engagement but to improve the overall work-life experience for all employees potentially.

“During your annual feedback sessions or informal check-ins, discuss how your current responsibilities align with your strengths and interests. Highlight areas where you could contribute more meaningfully or grow professionally. For example, you might express interest in learning a new tool, tackling a different type of project, or even mentoring colleagues. These conversations can open doors to more engaging opportunities within your current role”, Jonathan Feniak, General Counsel at LLC Attorney, suggests.

3. Break the monotony

According to Chris Aubeeluck, Head of Sales and Marketing at Osbornes Law, task monotony is a significant contributing factor to boreout.

“If doing the same thing repeatedly gets mentally overwhelming, consider discussing it with your manager. Propose ideas for diversifying your responsibilities or request to be part of a new project. Many organizations are open to supporting employees who proactively seek professional growth, and this dialogue can lead to opportunities you didn’t know existed”, he says.

Moreover, skill-based hiring is taking precedence over role-based hiring nowadays. This allows employees to work across departments that require their skills instead of being restricted to role-based routine tasks. So, that’s also a cue to build your skillset for a robust 21st-century cover letter.

4. Seek help from qualified therapists and consider other career paths

If workplace adjustments are not sufficient, then it’s time to see an experienced therapist. They might be able to suggest other practical and personalized exercises which would help break out of the boreout cycle. For instance, you could be asked to go hybrid if you initially worked fully remote.

In extreme cases, consider switching careers if the current one no longer gives you the drive you want. You could either upskill to handle more challenging tasks or simply reskill to engage in newer things that make your adrenaline pop.

Wrapping up

Boreout is a global mental health deflator that’s sadly overlooked most of the time. Lack of purpose and drive leads to depression, unfulfillment, and unproductivity, negatively impacting businesses’ revenue.

To combat this, employers should create opportunities for career development, offer meaningful feedback, and foster a culture of psychological safety where employees feel comfortable expressing their needs and concerns. Providing avenues for skill development, training, and even sabbaticals can also help employees re-engage with their work and find new challenges within their current roles.

Employees caught up in this loop of chronic boredom should open up to their supervising manager and request a shift from task monotony. Lastly, seek help from a mental health therapist and possibly upskill or reskill for a career shift.