It’s a common misconception that social media jobs are glamorous. It’s not as simple as making entertaining videos or snapping photos for Instagram. They have demanding roles that require critical thinking, organization and collaboration. Building an impactful social presence takes time, research and creativity. Then add in unexpected crises, emotionally charged consumer messages and ever-changing trends into the equation—these demands can lead social professionals to reach a breaking point.
Even the people behind the most admired brand accounts can feel inundated. In April 2024, Zaria Parvez, Global Social Media Manager at Duolingo (and the face behind the green owl we all love) announced her leave of absence on TikTok.
In Sprout’s first episode of Enter the Chat, we spoke with Parvez to learn more about her leave of absence and the challenges of balancing social media and mental health.
“A lot of people see Zaria from Duolingo as someone who’s talking on stages around the world and someone who’s doing big things. But I deal with the same burnout anyone else would deal with. I should not be feeling exhausted this early in my career,” she says.
In this article, we’ll explore some of her tips for managing social media burnout. We’ll also share steps for effectively talking to your boss about burnout, with specific prompts to get you started.
What is burnout?
Burnout is a state of emotional, physical and/or psychological exhaustion caused by excessive stress over time. It can occur when you feel constantly overwhelmed, emotionally drained and unable to meet increasing demands. Burnout can happen from work-related stress, but it can also stem from your social life, family and societal issues.
It’s common among people in high-stress, high-performing roles. In a Frontiers in Public Health study, contributing factors to workplace burnout include heavy workload, lack of support and resources, role pressure, employee autonomy, high-intensity interpersonal interactions and demographic variables. Since burnout can manifest itself in different ways, this condition can impact personal well-being and professional performance and satisfaction.
Let’s take a closer look at social media burnout for marketers.
What is social media burnout?
Social media burnout is defined by chronic mental, physical and/or emotional exhaustion formed from unmanaged, work-related stress. There are a mound of factors that contribute to social media burnout. For one, social media practitioners are brands’ gatekeepers, which requires them to wear many hats while juggling various responsibilities. They’re the first to see negative feedback or complaints.
Since social is a catalyst in the 24/7 news cycle, marketers face making tough calls amid global crises and social issues. Interacting with an influx of information daily can lead to compassion fatigue, increased emotional labor and anxiety. Lack of support in the workplace can worsen these symptoms as well, so it’s imperative for leaders to show teams they care.
Symptoms of burnout
Do you feel unable to log off at the end of the day or on weekends? Are you hesitant to take paid time off? Are you constantly checking your phone, afraid to miss a beat on social? Do you feel overwhelmed by your workload? If so, you might be battling burnout, but you’re not alone.
Social media burnout shows up differently depending on the person, but symptoms can be emotional, behavioral, cognitive and physical. Here’s an overview of some common symptoms:
- Anxiety or irritability
- Feeling overwhelmed or empty
- Physical manifestations such as fatigue, insomnia, headaches or high blood pressure
- Cynicism and/or resentment
- Sense of inefficacy or inability to complete tasks
- Lack of motivation or inspiration
- Procrastination
- Isolation and detachment
- Creative block
How to discuss burnout with your boss
While it can be intimidating talking to your boss about burnout, good can come from being honest with your supervisor about the challenges you face. If you’re feeling overwhelmed at work, a conversation with your manager will help you challenge assumptions, evaluate responsibilities and bring any invisible expectations to light. The conversation won’t be easy, but you can follow these steps to start getting back on track.
1. Relinquish fear and consider the root of your symptoms
Parvez says it was difficult to start the conversation because she had never dealt with mental health issues. She wanted to take ownership of her work as her career skyrocketed, but wasn’t sure how to navigate legacy, tenure and other systems of the corporate world.
“My biggest fear was coming forward because I thought people were going to think I was weak. They’re going to think I’m a young kid who has no idea what they’re doing. But that wasn’t the reaction I received and my peers thanked me for saying something. When you’re creating content, there needs to be a wake up call so you can pivot and change,” she says.
Parez explains there’s power in taking a moment to step back and let go of control because it leads to a better, happier you. Consider the root of your burnout and what behaviors or expectations are worth sharing.
For instance, are you overscheduling yourself? Why do you feel the need to work to the point of burnout? Does your boss know that you’re working late every night? Do they expect you to be able to respond to messages immediately or is that an expectation you put on yourself? Uncover those answers.
Having a vulnerable conversation is an opportunity to set new norms with your manager, like being transparent about your state of mind, feeling comfortable expressing blockers or even saying no when you don’t have the bandwidth. Most managers have been through a period of burnout themselves. In that case, they’ll have empathy for your situation as well as advice.
2. Get the ball rolling: Document your experience
When you address burnout with your manager, you’ll need to get specific and provide context to help them understand what spurred it. Here are a few questions that can help you get to the root of the problem:
- What are your top priorities right now?
- What is holding you back from focusing on big picture projects?
- What is the most mentally draining aspect of your job?
- What tools or resources do you need to work more effectively?
- How do existing processes or management styles contribute to burnout?
- Is personal stress carrying over to work?
With an understanding of what challenge(s) you’re trying to solve, you can start the conversation with your boss more effectively. And prioritization will help you in the long run because you’re able to more easily juggle your tasks.
When you’re ready to talk, it’s best to do it in person or via video call whenever possible, but getting it on your boss’s radar can start in writing with an email. Here are a few ways you can kick it off:
- I’ve been overwhelmed by the volume of messages I’ve been managing lately. Do you have time to chat about it this week?
- A lot of our recent projects have been really urgent. In our next one-on-one meeting, could we talk through top priorities?
- I’ve been putting out a lot of fires on social lately and it’s becoming unsustainable. I would like to share a few examples of my experience recently. Do you have time this week to chat about how we can get ahead of crises?
3. Propose solutions and demonstrate your value
Approach your conversation with some solutions in mind. Think about what “better” will look like for you. Maybe that’s more time to focus on high-impact projects, minimizing working after hours or new resources to manage your workload. Parvez encourages practitioners and especially social team managers to be solution-oriented.
“I think taking ownership as a leader in this [social] space was crucial to showing that it happens to all of us and to normalize the behavior we should nip in the bud. We should be thinking of solutions to make ourselves happier because that’s where true creativity comes from,” she says.
You’re not going to fix burnout in a single conversation, so start with a specific goal for your meeting. It will vary for each individual but here are a few suggestions:
- Align on priorities and expectations
- Implement a new or different process
- Determine where you need more support and identify teammates or external resources, like a temp or contractor, that could help
- Develop or reorganize timelines
- Communicate roadblocks
Remember, the focus of your conversation should be on the impact your burnout has on not only you, but your team and business. This is more likely to happen when you can show how burnout directly impacts your productivity, focus at work, the rest of your team and overall marketing goals.
For example, you might say:
- I’ve been unable to contribute to the business from a strategy perspective because I’ve been focused on execution and responding to inbound messages. If I had more time to hone in on our social data, I could bring really beneficial insights to the rest of the organization.
- I’ve noticed that the amount of content creation requests has tripled this quarter. Although we’re tracking towards our goals, it’s not sustainable for myself or the team. We’ve been working after hours every day and we’ve been struggling to ideate effectively in our weekly brainstorms. If we limit requests per month, we can create stronger content for our most relevant campaigns.
Illustrating your problem and presenting a solution with impact on top-line goals will pique your boss’s interest and make them invested in your recovery. While you should have an idea of what might fix the problems at hand, the onus isn’t solely on you. Your supervisor should help solidify the proposed solutions. At the end of your conversation, reiterate your plan of action to your manager and clarify any remaining confusion or concerns.
4. Follow through and follow up
Once you learn how to discuss burnout with your boss and enact your agreed-upon plan, understand that immediate relief isn’t guaranteed. Parvez encourages people to maintain a perspective of taking ownership, giving value and having patience on your journey.
“I’m still learning and I don’t have a cheat code. I don’t think any amount of leave would [shape me into a new woman completely]. It’s a perspective of knowing I can accomplish goals and this is what I want to do next,” she says.
When you feel like you’ve had enough time to assess how things are going, set aside time to reflect. What’s changed since you spoke with your boss? What is working and what’s not?
If you’re still struggling after time has passed and the solutions you came up with aren’t providing relief, don’t get down on yourself and accept defeat. You’ve already taken that first step—make it a point to follow up with your manager, continue the conversation and build off what was discussed initially. Together, you can decide how to tweak your original plan of action if it hasn’t been effective. And follow up even if things are working! Your boss will want to know that you’re feeling more productive, supported and revitalized.
Tips to avoid social media burnout
As humans, everyone wants to feel supported, especially in the workplace. Here are 8 tips to help your social media team feel seen and heard—along with a few to keep in your pocket for yourself.
Tip 1: Leave room for creative experimentation
Parvez shares that Duolingo rose to success on TikTok when there was no pressure to build on the platform. She says having space to have creative freedom and experiment not only protects mental health, but it also drives success.
“I get you need to have KPIs and accountability, but I think one of the hardest things for brands to do and for people to understand is that if you take away pressure for a bit—even for a quarter—you will find success in the long run,” she says.
Tip 2: Leave ego behind and create a culture of accountability
Parvez shared a common disconnect: The youngest talent tend to drive most of the highest impact on marketing teams because they understand social. People who understand culture and shape the zeitgeist are typically younger. But this can create opportunities for exploitation.
“Am I empowering you to create more work or am I empowering you also to get rewarded for your work?,” she says.
She says social media managers get excited when their ideas are approved, and since they don’t always get that cosign, it can feel empowering at first. But, she says to be mindful of entering a realm of exploitation where teams are just constantly creating, but not getting rewarded for the impact. Since the lines between empowerment and exploitation can blur fast, she encourages managers to share when they don’t understand what their direct reports are doing because it can create a culture of open conversations.
“Acknowledge the dynamic, taking ownership and letting go of ego speaks volumes,” she says.
Here’s a prompt she shared in the episode to inspire managers:
- I don’t know about or understand everything that you’re doing and can’t replicate your work. But I can give you feedback and help you make a plan for what’s possible. Tell me what’s needed to make sure you feel safe, healthy and doing things that keep you creatively inspired.
Tip 3: Understand your power and nurture community
Parvez’s biggest tip for professionals? Remember your skills, talent and contributions.
“I think the biggest thing for social media managers to remember is that we drive the most amount of impact on teams. Learning how to own that power and navigate it for your own growth and for others on your team can only help build everybody,” she says.
For example, she says sharing standout examples of successful social content can be used to show leaders who don’t agree or understand that a movement is happening.
“It’s pretty remarkable to see legacy brands now jump into social first marketing as well. We’re each other’s cheerleaders and support. Our teams are small. Finding community within each other is important to push social forward and to show that it can be a big business driver and run the show,” she says.
We’re programmed to crave and seek out connections. That’s the whole point of social, right? If you’re combating burnout, your team and other social media professionals can empathize and support one another. If your company has a smaller social team, or you’re a team of one, look for additional support from industry peers. Or, if you can offer support, consider opening yourself up to others. Continue learning by following your peers on social and expanding your network.
Tip 4: Communicate your social media priorities
Saying “no” is a form of self-care too. Social teams can be small and mighty, but they can’t do everything all the time. This is why communicating your social media marketing priorities is key. Encourage your team to talk about burnout with you and make it clear you’re open to their concerns. You might even need to audit your social strategy and ruthlessly prioritize tasks and goals. Prioritization can keep your team focused on the networks and content types that matter the most to your brand and audience.
Tip 5: Build a response protocol and assess tone before publishing
Customer care is a major part of a successful social strategy and requires time, attention and thoughtful engagement. In The 2023 Sprout Social Index™, we found that 70% of consumers expect a company to provide personalized responses to customer service needs.
When the world can see anything your brand posts, the pressure is on to craft the perfect message and not make a misstep. You might feel anxious when dealing with emotionally charged interactions on social and the scrutiny that comes with it. Avoid some of the stress by creating a response protocol. Document common reasons customers reach out to you on social media, the sentiment behind them and examples of how to respond—plus situations where your brand won’t respond at all. Redirect conversations to direct messages when possible, to minimize additional scrutiny. Legitimate customer concerns should never go unaddressed, but be wary of trolls. If your brand is continually targeted by a specific person using hateful or inappropriate language, consider muting or blocking them if that’s an option for your brand.
Having an approved foundation for sending a response reduces the need to develop a new one each time and prepares your business during a brand, local or global crisis. To avoid additional stress, take a look at any upcoming content, double-check the tone and reassess publishing, if necessary. What started as a well-intentioned post could be misconstrued as opportunistic or insensitive and spark a brand crisis.
Tip 6: Maximize productivity and minimize social media burnout
When you’re passionate about your job, you give it your all. That drive is inspiring, but it’s also important to prioritize healthy routines and recharge.
Here are some productivity tips to help avoid or manage social media burnout:
- Schedule your strengths. If you know your focus or creativity peaks in the morning, block off time to focus on your priorities.
- Take a digital detox. Give yourself time and space to disconnect. Your mind (and your eyes) will thank you. L.L. Bean encourages their team to take a social media pause to avoid burnout.
- Cultivate an immersive hobby that focuses your attention inward. The rise of workism—the belief that work is the centerpiece of one’s identity and purpose—has made it even more important to focus your passions outside of work.
- Avoid comparison. It’s important to know what your competitors are working on, but envy and over-comparing are self-esteem killers. Focus on doing what’s best for you and your brand.
- Leverage the tools at your disposal to pick up time-consuming, manual social management tasks.
Tip 7: Clean up, limit time and moderate your personal feeds
It’s a common assumption that long-term, habitual use of social media can take a negative toll, particularly on young people. However, according to a study by Harvard University, findings suggest that as long as people are mindful users of social media, strong social networks are associated with positive mental health and well-being.
In other words, be mindful of how you’re using social media both at work and at home. Set intention for your social media usage by cleaning up your feed, limiting screen time and moderating how you use various networks. Refresh your feed by unfollowing some people, including friends and family. If their content is making you feel sad, anxious, drained or another negative emotion, it’s time to hit the unfollow button. Curate a timeline that aligns with your values and lifestyle—follow accounts that inspire, make you smile or laugh.
At the end of the day, focus on feel-good content—just make sure you aren’t scrolling for hours on end. Instead, try other relaxation methods like pursuing personal creative projects, taking a walk, dancing to a favorite song or meditating. Social media mindfulness is one of the best ways to battle social media burnout, so think about what works best for you.
Tip 8: Advocate for more team resources
Providing resources is a great way to show support because it makes managing workloads easier. Use tools to automate manual tasks or develop processes to streamline your content production. But even the best tools can’t compensate for a team’s narrow bandwidth. Consider advocating for team expansion or developing a network of freelancers you can rely on as needed.
If you’re having these conversations and things aren’t getting better, your boss isn’t as receptive as you’d hoped; you don’t feel psychologically safe at work or you’re in need of more mental health support; here are a few resources that may help:
Get the support you deserve
Even when you feel otherwise, you’re not alone. Burnout is very real and pervasive. As Parvez advises, remember your power, take ownership, seek solutions and continue to seek support from the social media marketing community. Communicating your struggles to your boss is brave, bold and the best way to get back on track.
If managing multiple social media accounts is contributing to your burnout, we think Sprout can help. Sprout can help alleviate some stress by streamlining your processes and improving efficiency so you can empower your social teams. For example, in this guide, we share 31 social media templates to help you lessen your lift and win time back.
The post Overwhelmed at work? Here’s how to talk to your boss about burnout appeared first on Sprout Social.
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