From Stress to Burnout: Keeping Your Balance

Well-being & BalanceConfidence & Self-AwarenessAll employees≈ 20 min

Key skill: Stress management

Summary

Recognise the three phases of stress — alarm, resistance, exhaustion — to spot your own warning signs and react before you hit exhaustion or burnout, rather than adapting until you break.

Target audience

Anyone looking to improve their quality of life and relationships

Learning objectives

Decode the 3 phases of stress: alarm, resistance, exhaustion
Identify the alarm signals: physiological and psychological signs of stress (muscle tension, anxiety...)
Avoid over-adapting without regard for your limits during the resistance phase
Quickly return to an acceptable energy level to avoid reaching exhaustion

Module outline

ArticlesThe signs of burnout at work: procrastination, avoiding tasks, overwork, a negative attitude and intense emotions · Mistakes to avoid when someone close to you is nearing burnout
Expert videoA description of the 3 phases of stress (alarm, resistance, exhaustion) and the analogy with the frog story
AnchoringQuiz and True/False to dig deeper into the topic and anchor what you've learned
Memo cardDownloadable coaching memo card: the key points from the expert video
CommitmentConcrete examples to help you define your own commitment
BonusA selection of videos to go further (TED, YouTube)

Models & methods

The 3-phase stress model: alarm, resistance, exhaustion; three questions to ask when facing stress.

Research-based

Phases described by Hans Selye (1940s); Olivier Clerc's frog fable; Ipsos survey: 23% of French people stressed every day.