Latest / The Burnout Podcast with Fexingo: Workplace Exhaustion, Recovery, and Sustainable Careers / The Burnout of Constant Workplace Change
Transcript
- Lucas: So there's this number that's been living in my head since I read the 2025 Microsoft Work Trend Index. Sixty-eight percent of employees say they're overwhelmed by the pace of change at their organization. Not the amount of work — the pace of change. Luna: That's a big number. And it's not about being busy in the traditional sense. It's about feeling like you can never get your footing because everything keeps shifting. Lucas: Exactly. And that's a distinct flavor of burnout. We've talked on this show about overwork, about emotional labor, about perfectionism. But change fatigue is its own animal. It's the exhaustion that comes from constant adaptation — new software, new reporting lines, new strategy every quarter, new acronyms to learn. Luna: I think a lot of us can relate to that sinking feeling when another 'exciting initiative' lands in your inbox. Like, oh great, another thing I have to learn before I can even do my job. Lucas: Right. And there's research on why this is so draining. Cognitive psychologists talk about 'switching costs' — every time you shift your attention to a new system or process, your brain burns glucose and time. When those switches happen constantly, your cognitive reserve gets depleted. It's not that any one change is that hard. It's the cumulative load. Luna: So it's like having a thousand tiny browser tabs open in your brain, each one consuming a little bit of RAM. Eventually, the whole thing slows down. Lucas: That's exactly the metaphor. And the Microsoft data backs this up. They found that employees who reported high change fatigue were 2.6 times more likely to say they're burned out, and they were also significantly more likely to be looking for a new job. The turnover risk is real. Luna: It makes sense. If you feel like the ground is always shifting under you, why would you invest in staying? You start to think, 'Maybe a different ground that's not shifting would be better.' Lucas: But here's the twist that got me. The survey also found that employees who said their organization communicated the 'why' behind changes effectively were 3.4 times more likely to report high well-being. That's a huge multiplier. It suggests it's not change itself that burns people out — it's the feeling of change happening to you, without context or agency. Luna: That reminds me of something I read from the management thinker Ronald Heifetz. He distinguishes between technical change and adaptive change. Technical change is like learning a new software — hard but straightforward. Adaptive change requires you to shift your mindset, your identity, your habits. Most organizations treat all change as technical, but a lot of it is actually adaptive and needs more support. Lucas: That's a useful lens. And I think the problem is that leaders often underestimate the adaptive load. They roll out a new CRM and think, 'It's just a tool, people will adjust in a week.' But for the team, it's not just the tool — it's the loss of muscle memory, the feeling of being a beginner again, the fear that you'll look incompetent. Luna: And that fear compounds. If you've been through three restructurings in two years, you start to become cynical. You disengage. You stop trying to master anything because you assume it'll all change again soon. Lucas: That's the learned helplessness of change fatigue. And it's a real productivity killer. The Microsoft survey found that employees with high change fatigue reported 22 percent lower productivity and 18 percent lower innovation. They're not just unhappy — they're less effective. Luna: So what do we do about it? As individuals, I mean. Because most of us can't control whether our company decides to reorganize again. Lucas: One tactic I've seen recommended is something called 'the two-week rule.' Before you react to a new change — whether it's frustration, anxiety, or you start optimizing — just let it sit for two weeks. Don't try to master it immediately. Give yourself permission to be a beginner. Luna: I love that. It's like giving yourself a grace period. Because the pressure we often feel to be instantly proficient is self-imposed, but it's real. Lucas: And the research on learning suggests that spaced practice is more effective anyway. You don't need to learn the whole new system in one afternoon. You need to learn just enough to do your next task, then the next. The two-week rule gives you permission to learn incrementally. Luna: Another thing I'd add is to ask: 'What is actually changing for me?' Sometimes the announcement of a big reorganization doesn't actually affect your day-to-day work for months. But the anxiety hits immediately. So you're burning energy on something that hasn't even happened yet. Lucas: That's a really practical reframe. Separate the emotional impact from the operational impact. And if you're a manager, you have even more responsibility here. The data shows that managers who proactively explain the 'why' and provide psychological safety reduce change fatigue in their teams significantly. Luna: I think we should also talk about the difference between necessary change and performative change. Some changes are actually needed — market shifts, competitive threats, new technology. But some changes happen just because someone wants to put their stamp on something. Those are the ones that really fuel cynicism. Lucas: Let's be honest — we've all been in meetings where a new initiative is announced and everyone in the room knows it's just the new boss moving furniture. That kind of change is toxic because it signals that effort doesn't matter. Why build anything if it'll be torn down next quarter? Luna: Yeah, and that's where individual agency can push back. If you're in a position to ask, 'What problem is this change actually solving?', sometimes you can at least force a moment of clarity. And if the answer is vague, that tells you something. Lucas: I want to pause on something you just said — 'individual agency.' Because that's the antidote to the helplessness of change fatigue. Even if you can't stop the change, you can choose how you relate to it. You can decide to learn at your own pace. You can decide to focus on the parts of your job that are stable. You can build your own anchors. Luna: Speaking of anchors — and I know this is a bit of a sidebar — but this show is one of those anchors for me. It's a space where we get to think out loud about work without any commercial pressure. And I think that's valuable for listeners too. We don't run ads here, and that's intentional. If you find that useful, you can support the show at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Just a small way to keep this corner of the internet ad-free. Lucas: It's true. We've built this show around the idea that career conversations shouldn't be interrupted by sponsors telling you to buy something. So if that matters to you, the link is buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. No pressure, but it helps us keep doing what we're doing. Luna: Alright, back to change fatigue. One more thing I want to bring up — the role of routines as a buffer. When everything around you is shifting, having a few non-negotiable routines can be grounding. Even something as simple as a consistent morning start to your day, or a weekly one-on-one that doesn't get canceled. Lucas: That's a great point. Routines are like stable ground in a shifting landscape. And the research on resilience shows that people who maintain consistent small habits during periods of change report lower stress and higher well-being. So even if your company is restructuring, you can still have your 10-minute walk after lunch. Luna: Exactly. And those routines don't have to be elaborate. It's about reclaiming a sense of control over something. Lucas: So to sum up what I'm taking away from this: Change fatigue is real and it's different from regular burnout. It comes from the pace of change, not the volume of work. The antidote involves giving yourself grace, asking good questions, building stable routines, and — if you're a leader — communicating the why behind changes. Luna: And recognizing that not all change is necessary. Sometimes the most sustainable career move is to protect your energy from the changes that don't matter. Lucas: That's a good note to end on. We'll be back next episode with another angle on burnout and sustainable careers. Until then, take care of that cognitive reserve.