BA (20/52): Signs of TPM Burnout
As actors within a large complex and often shifting system, the mental state of TPMs is nothing to be taken lightly.
As a people manager, burnout in my team was something I constantly worried about because I know exactly how it can impact person professionally and personally. As any human behavior, there are patterns and then unique experiences. I felt burnout in my last year at Apple. It prompted me to make a lot of difficult decisions and choices which in hindsight were long overdue.
Here are some signs I noticed in myself and others that I am sharing in hopes that you can keep an eye on yourself and those around you. Many of these can be confused with performance issues which is a common tragedy .
Small details that were thorn’s in your perfect plan begin to matter less.
You are more reactive than proactive.
Prefer coasting rather than deal with complex issues and problems.
Push through workstreams without figuring out details and claim “we do agile”.
You begin missing obvious dependencies.
Delay acting on risk items until they become issues.
You spend less and less time maintaining relationships with cross-functional partners and stakeholders.
Fall into the “what is the new eta” mode and less focused on details.
You are okay with drift in processes and frameworks.
You are more focused on assigning everyone else a task and run from ownership.
Your project communication is done from “I am not going to rock the boat, some else can” mode.
Maintain a façade of normalcy with manager in 1:1s.
Escalating more often than collaborating (passing the buck).
Disorganized state of… everything. (Let’s just get this done/not keep project artifacts updated until someone asks - excuse ready to go).
Lack of patience for the detailed conversation; seeking only answers.
Think of work at home and think of home at work.
Unfocused and growing todo list.
Shying away from more complex rewarding projects preferring to play it safe on minor improvement projects.
You begin to miss common steps (send meeting minutes, agenda, writing that section of the design doc).
You’re more comfortable with schedules or plans that have less details and more large grouped tasks.
Expressing frustration with little things and ignore big things.
More focused on losses even when they are outweighed by wins.
How have you experienced burnout in your current roles whether you are an engineer, PM, TPM or any role?
Stay safe, healthy, look after yourselves.
Until next time 👋.
-Aadil
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