The pandemic prompted millions of working people to question their careers and professional expectations. Many feel increasingly uneasy about working for a company that doesn’t share their values, which could lead to “misalignment burnout”.
This was theorised by Mark Travers, an American psychologist who co-founded the telemedicine platform Awake Therapy. It refers to the physical, emotional and mental exhaustion that results from prolonged investment in a job that’s at odds with your personal convictions.
For example, an employee with a strong ecological conscience may feel a strong conflict if they worked for a company with little commitment to the fight against global warming. This psychological unease can plunge employees into a downward spiral from which it is difficult to extricate themselves.
The signs of misalignment burnout are similar to those of other forms of burnout, whether physical, emotional or cognitive. The worker finds it difficult to be fully committed to their professional tasks, and becomes progressively disengaged from their work. They may become resentful – even hostile – towards those they work with.
In most extreme cases, this can lead people to quit their jobs.
An ever-increasing quest for meaning
Misalignment burnout touches on the very idea of meaning at work. Studies and opinion polls all agree that employees, especially younger ones, attach importance to working for a company that shares their values.
The latter are not prepared to compromise their ecological and environmental ideals to enter the job market. Thus, 57% of French 18- to 30-year-olds questioned in a recent survey said they would be prepared to resign if they felt that their organisation was not doing enough to combat climate change.
This growing quest for meaning is partly explained by our relationship with time: the contemporary individual lives in the present moment and has difficulty projecting themselves into the future. They are more motivated by a job that interests them, and suits them personally and ethically, than by the prospect of a long-term career.
This need for fulfillment could lead to job hopping: two-thirds of Gen Z-ers polled in a UK survey plan to leave their current employer within the next two years.
Against this backdrop, companies would do well to give more thought to the social, societal and environmental impacts of their activities if they wish to boost employee motivation and prevent misalignment burnout. They need to clarify their missions to leave no room for vagueness and, above all, avoid their staff feeling trapped in a job that’s at odds with their fundamental values.