How to Avoid Burnout During the Year’s Busiest Season

 

Every field of work has its own dreaded time of year – for accountants, it’s April 15th; for wedding planners, it’s every spring; and for anyone in retail, it’s Black Friday. But for the pest control industry, our busiest season is now, and employees will be the first to tell you that – often as they’re walking out the door, two weeks notice handed in. 

 

The pressure of keeping up with the summertime demand for pest control and satisfying customer needs can often seem like a manager’s sole priority, but it shouldn’t be. With an ever-increasing workload comes a need to maintain morale, otherwise employee retention will drop and the strain on other employees will become noticeably more pronounced. Combat these feelings of burnout by putting even more force behind your company culture initiatives, and making a point to continue training. 

 

Some best practices for the busy season include:

 

• Continue to press play: it’s always tempting to postpone all “non-necessary” workplace activities, opting instead to create an atmosphere of total focus, but this is rarely effective. If you’re able to keep your employees engaged in the company culture and remind them why they are passionate about their workplace, then the long summer hours won’t seem as frustrating. 

 

• Now is not the time for BHAGS: don’t push any more work on your employees than necessary. Although your busy season isn’t a time to withdraw workplace initiatives, it also isn’t the time to introduce brand new, time-consuming goals.  An extra project on top of a heavy workload might be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. 

 

• Extra incentives: with extra work should come extra reward. Make the time to recognize record-breaking performances, positive customer feedback and overall departmental reach. You can take time to do daily shout-outs for exceptional work or outstanding employees, cater a monthly company breakfast, or begin a weekly sales drawing with prizes. 

 

• Get out of the office: now is the time to show your employees that you’re willing to go the extra mile. Get out of the office and get your hands dirty a couple times a month. Not only will this benefit your employees and demonstrate the kind of leadership they expect, but it will help keep you sane, too. 

 

• Remain consistent: a ramp up in customer demand does not mean training and hiring practices should take a back seat. Continue to seek out employees who are going to contribute to and be an advocate for your company culture, so that once the rush is over you won’t be left with a handful of apathetic new-hires. Although easier said than done, don’t rush the training process – continue to invest time and resources into all of your employees and recognize that they need continued support. 

 

During a time when customer satisfaction seems like the main priority, it’s easy to forget what your employees need. A company barbeque seems like a non-issue during an industry’s busiest season, but that’s exactly when employees most need a small reward, and a chance to connect with their company on a non-professional level. Remind your workers why they chose your company in the first place, and ultimately whom all their hard work benefits – themselves. If you try to ignore burnout and focus singularly on customers, your employees will lose interest, work quality will suffer, and you may end up losing some of your best associates. If you aim to satisfy your employees by remaining consistent in training and hiring practices, and create a fun company culture, your busy season might just turn into your employees’ favorite season.