Burnout or boredom? How to spot the difference and reignite workplace engagement

In workplaces across Australia, burnout is often the go-to explanation for employee disengagement. But one expert has warned that it could, in fact, be boredom in disguise – and failing to recognise the difference may be costing organisations more than they realise.

As conversations about mental health in the workplace gain momentum, the term “burnout” has become a catch-all for feelings of exhaustion and disengagement.

However, according to Roxanne Calder, career adviser, founder, and managing director of EST10 and author of Earning Power, many employees who claim to be burned out may be experiencing boredom, making it all the more important to recognise the distinction.

The tailgate signs

Calder explained that burnout is characterised by “depletion, a physiological and emotional crash and prolonged effort and often linked to overinvestment”, whereas boredom stems from a “deficit of meaning”.

The key to distinguishing between burnout and boredom, she said, lies in tuning into how the disengagement feels and understanding its source.

“If we listen closely to our emotions, they will guide us [to] which kind of stuck we are in. If your fatigue is tinged with resentment or dread, you may be burning out,” she said.

“But if it’s laced with numbness, clock-watching, or a nagging wish for a fire drill just to break the monotony, that’s boredom, not burnout.”

However, Calder cautioned that both states are fundamentally “crises of connection, either to purpose, people or growth”.

How to tell the difference?

Calder warned that the symptoms can appear remarkably similar, with boredom often “masquerading as burnout”, since both can leave people feeling “unmotivated and fatigued”.

To determine whether your boredom might be presenting as burnout, she advised paying close attention to subtle emotional cues and behavioural patterns.

“If you are constantly fatigued yet sleeping and eating well, irritated yet relatively unstressed, apathetic, but not anxious, that’s a boredom queue and clue,” she said.

“Boredom is often cognitive under-stimulation, whereas burnout is emotional and physical overextension.”

However, Calder noted that because modern workplace culture tends to glamorise busyness, many employees are more comfortable attributing their disengagement to burnout rather than boredom.

“When people lose sight of their contribution, they disengage. This isn’t laziness; it’s a signal that the human need for challenge and novelty isn’t being met. In a culture that glamorises busyness, people feel safer saying they’re burnt out than bored,” she said.

“Burnout signals you worked too hard, but to be bored, that’s a different sign, signal and not received with much corporate empathy.”

The hidden costs of boredom

While burnout may be louder and more visible, Calder noted that boredom is no less harmful and is arguably more insidious when left unrecognised.

“Boredom, like burnout, is detrimental for business. It doesn’t trigger emergency HR responses or mental health leave, but is a productivity killer, quietly killing morale, retention, and ambition,” she said.

“Left unaddressed, it metastasises into cynicism or passive sabotage. It is a state when people are disengaged, but they stay in their job while mentally, they check out.”

Although the effects may initially seem isolated to individual performance, Calder stressed that quiet disengagement often has broader consequences and can ripple through entire teams.

“A bored employee doesn’t sit in isolation; they seek distraction, usually with fellow colleagues. Given the higher prevalence of bored employees than burntout ones, it’s a mistake to ignore,” she said.

What leaders can do

So, what can leaders do when boredom, not burnout, is the issue?

Calder outlines five practical strategies that managers and leaders can adopt to re-engage employees who may be experiencing boredom:

• Understand the gap: “Is it an individual or a company contagion? What has shifted and changed?” she said.

• Ask better questions: “Ask what parts of the job feel under-stimulating or misaligned with their skills. Boredom isn’t always about laziness; it’s often a signal that a person’s talents are underleveraged.”

• Curate challenge: “Invite employees to projects outside their normal role and responsibility. Provide opportunities for responsibility, accountability and problem solving, not just task execution.”

• Reinforce relevance: “Help them see the impact of their work on customers, team outcomes, or larger company goals. Your employees don’t just want to produce; they want to matter.”

• Stronger leadership modelling: “It always comes back to who manages and leads. Managers and leaders to share values, stories, what they’re learning, or even struggling with. Purpose-driven leaders and relatable managers engage, connect, and inspire teams.”