That we feel demotivated in our jobs on some days and can barely get out of bed, because the mere thought of the work waiting at the office makes us want to crawl back under the covers, is not abnormal in itself. Just as not every day is a good one and it's perfectly normal to have bad days now and then over the course of a lifetime, it also happens that we go through certain phases of demotivation in relation to our job. The question, however, is at what point you should become more attentive when it comes to being "demotivated at your job," so that you don't end up in a situation where, in the worst case, burnout can occur. The problem here is that when it comes to being "demotivated at your job," you can hardly make blanket statements or give blanket advice. Because as already mentioned, certain phases of demotivation are completely normal in working life, no matter how happy you are in your job.

Finding the causes

But if it doesn't get better over a very long period and the feeling of being "demotivated at your job" perhaps even keeps getting worse, you should of course think a bit more about what the reason for the demotivation might be. The problem with demotivation is that it can often be a first sign of overload, which is usually psychological in nature. You can also draw an example from sports here, where almost every sport knows a phenomenon called "overtraining." That means if you exert yourself too hard over too long a period, at a certain point it can lead to chronic overtraining, which in turn results in a creeping but steady decline in performance. The same can be true in a job, so that perhaps you have so many worries and problems in your private life that you're no longer really able to withstand the stress of working life. It's important to look at the causes. Even in an age where time is famously money, you should try to be attentive and keep a close eye on your body and your inner life.

When should you try to change jobs?

If, when it comes to being "demotivated at your job," you still don't really feel better after a longer time, you may want to get professional help. As we've already stated several times in this article, very strong demotivation up to and including lethargy can also be a sign of overload, so if you don't feel better as time goes on, you should seek help. The first stop would of course be your family doctor, although in most cases you're better off with a therapist or psychologist. A therapist or psychologist can help you get to the bottom of the causes of constant demotivation at work. Therapy can also help work out how to develop individual techniques for yourself to get out of the spiral of demotivation. In some cases, though, it may also turn out that you should simply change jobs. That, too, can come to light during therapy, so that it becomes more and more clear that the reason for the constant demotivation lies in the job itself. Maybe you no longer get along with your coworkers, or certain circumstances surrounding the job have changed so much that you can no longer cope with them.