How to Change Your Work Environment When You’re Feeling Burned Out – 2024 Guide

It’s normal to feel burned out, especially after spending lots of time and effort in a single position. Taking breaks and vacations can help you “reset,” but it’s also important to make changes to your work environment to make it feel fresher and more inviting.

These are some of the best ways to do it.

Invest in Better Furniture

If you work from home, your home office is going to eventually feel stale and uninspired – especially if you spend long hours in your home office with no breaks. One of the best things you can do to jazz up your environment is to invest in high-quality office furniture.

The people from btod.com tell us that better office furniture can immediately transform the aesthetics of your office; if you transform your foldout picnic table into a legitimate, hardwood office desk, you’ll feel more pride in your workplace. When you see a full-backed leather chair when walking into your office, you might even feel excited to work.

Good office furniture is also more comfortable and capable of supporting healthier habits. For example, a well-designed, supportive chair is going to force you to maintain better posture throughout the day – and reduce the back strain you might feel otherwise. A desk at the proper height, with adequate space for everything you need, is going to make your workday seamless and more productive.

Rearrange the Layout

New furniture may not be enough to revitalize the energy of your home office, so consider rearranging the layout. If you work in a traditional office, get permission to move to a new location or move the furniture you do have. Sometimes, facing a new direction and having different things in your peripheral vision is all it takes to feel like you’re working somewhere new.

Go Somewhere New

Instead of creating the illusion that you’re working somewhere new, consider simply going somewhere else and working there. Whether you work remotely or in a traditional office, you can take a day each week (or more) to work at one of the following:

• A coworking space. Coworking spaces are inexpensive, convenient, and more accessible than ever before. Depending on the location and amenities provided, you can likely pay a small day fee or invest in a full subscription so you can return throughout the month.
• A café. Cafés are great for people who love a bit of ambient noise in their environment – and for coffee lovers.
• A library. If you want somewhere a bit quieter, consider your local library, where you can work undisturbed for as long as you like.
• A local park. If you love the great outdoors, head to your local park. There may not be Wi-Fi or electrical outlets, but with a charged laptop, you can make do for a little while at least.

Change the Ambiance

If you like your office space normally, you can make it feel new and more invigorating with some basic changes to the overall ambiance:

• Lighting. Install better lighting to make your environment brighter and/or more dynamic. Natural sunlight is an effective mood-booster, but colorful accent lights can make the space more interesting.
• Music. A set of high-quality speakers can give you much more control over the sounds and mood of your setting. Experiment with different kinds of music to expand your horizons and see what makes you feel best (and work more productively).
• Scents. We don’t typically pay attention to the smell of our environment unless there’s something unexpected. But you can often make a space more inviting and interesting with a subtle change; try burning incense or candles.

Next Steps

If you’ve changed your workspace dramatically and you’re still feeling burned out, it may be time to take more drastic measures. For example, you can:

• Change up your responsibilities. Delegate some of your tasks to an employee or coworker, or consider taking on new responsibilities. The change can be incredibly refreshing.
• Take a hiatus or leave of absence. Consider taking a prolonged leave of absence; a hiatus away from your career may be exactly what you need to see things through new eyes.
• Look for a new career. Sometimes, burnout can’t be cured. If you’re sick of this job or this career path overall, it may be in your best interest to start looking for a new career altogether.

About 23 percent of full-time employees feel burned out “more often than not,” making burnout a much more common and pervasive problem than most people are willing to admit. But you don’t have to accept or become complacent with your burnout. With even a few changes to your work environment and your approach to work, you can feel better about your job – and set the course for a better future.