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Burnout Prevention
Managing Emotional Energy and Mental Health at Work
Read Time: ~7 minutes
What drains your energy during the day? At Chimp Management, we often talk about how to prevent burnout and protect emotional energy—especially in work environments where the pace is high and expectations are higher. The key question isn’t just “how can I cope?” but “how can I stay balanced in the first place?”
We’re often called in to support stress management, emotional resilience, and mental health at work. What links all of these? The need to understand emotional energy—and how to manage it before burnout sets in.
Understanding Emotional Energy
Just as your body needs physical energy to function, your mind needs emotional energy. Many experts suggest that up to 70% of our daily energy is emotional, not physical — and when this emotional energy is low, it can have a significant impact on your performance, focus, and overall wellbeing.
This includes energy from emotions like:
- Positive: enthusiasm, joy, excitement
- Negative: anxiety, overwhelm, sadness
When emotional energy is low, we often feel tired, unmotivated, or disconnected—and it’s rarely because we haven’t eaten or slept enough. Managing emotional energy is a key part of stress management and burnout prevention.
Balancing the Chimp and Human: Managing Emotional Stress
In The Chimp® Model, developed by Professor Steve Peters, we understand the brain as having two independent thinking systems:
- The Chimp, which reacts quickly and bases its facts on emotions
- The Human, which responds thoughtfully and bases its emotions on facts
Both systems use emotions and logic, but in very different ways. You need them working in balance to interpret life’s challenges clearly. When your Chimp flags a concern, it’s your Human’s job to gather the facts and guide the response.
What Drains Emotional Energy?
Emotional energy drains when we suppress or ignore emotions:
- Avoiding confrontation
- Holding onto resentment
- Ruminating on past issues
- Failing to set boundaries
- Constant exposure to negativity
Your Chimp is signalling something that needs to be addressed. If the Human system doesn’t step in to interpret and act, that emotional tension builds—and drains you further.
Stress vs. Burnout
Stress is your body’s natural way of preparing to act. It helps you stay alert, motivated, and focused. But it’s meant to be temporary.
Burnout happens when that stress becomes chronic:
- Stress feels like too much to do
- Burnout feels like you can’t cope
For more, explore Mental Health UK’s guide to burnout for helpful explanations and signs to watch out for. Recognising the shift from healthy stress to emotional exhaustion is essential for burnout prevention.
Work-Life Balance, or Just Life Balance?
We talk a lot about work-life balance. But you bring your brain and your emotions to every part of your day, regardless of where you are — whether you work in a traditional job, work from home, care for others, or are retired.
Separating “work” from “life” can be unhelpful when your emotional energy flows across both. It’s more practical to ask: Is my life in balance?
This means moving between stimulation and rest, challenge and recovery, people time and alone time — intentionally.
Mental Health at Work: The Hidden Pressures
From saying “yes” too often to checking emails on holiday, modern work culture blurs boundaries. Sometimes people even use work to avoid difficult situations at home. All of this drains emotional energy and affects mental health at work.
For workplace wellbeing insights, visit our page on team and individual support.
Recognising these behaviours early is key to protecting your wellbeing.
Strategies for Burnout Prevention
Burnout is easier to prevent than recover from. Here are some strategies that work:
- Protect physical energy: rest, movement, nutrition
- Protect emotional energy: set boundaries, resolve issues directly, avoid toxic environments
- Listen to your Chimp, but let the Human lead
- Find your ideal environment. Do you prefer structure or spontaneity? Fast pace or calm? People or solitude?
- Take time in nature
- Balance effort with recovery
Common Misconceptions About Burnout
Myth: “I’m just not strong enough to handle pressure.”
Truth: Burnout isn’t about weakness—it’s about imbalance. Anyone can burn out if emotional energy is depleted faster than it’s restored.
Myth: “If I’m passionate, I won’t burn out.”
Truth: Even passion needs rest. Emotional recovery is not indulgence—it’s maintenance.
Conclusion & Takeaways
You already have the capacity for balance. The skill lies in noticing when your energy is low, understanding why, and choosing how to respond.
Start by noticing:
- When does your Chimp speak up?
- What helps your Human stay in charge?
- How do you recharge emotionally?
Burnout prevention is an act of care—for yourself and the people you support.
Explore Professor Steve Peters’ Short Online Course on Burnout for additional tools and strategies.
Want to go further? Contact us to explore how we can help.
Author: Alison Muir, Psychological Skills Mentor
About the Author:
Alison Muir is a Psychological Skills Mentor at Chimp Management, bringing over 30 years of mentoring and coaching experience. She holds an ICF Accredited Diploma in Transformational Coaching and specializes in one-on-one mentoring, helping individuals navigate significant life and career transitions. Recognised for her calm, insightful, and motivating approach, Alison focuses on fostering self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and resilience.
