Job interviews after burnout: How to keep calm and share your story

Burnout is a real test of self-esteem. You might still feel fragile, fatigued, and on edge when it’s time to prepare for an interview. You might be afraid of having to deal with questions like, ‘What exactly happened?’, ‘Why did you leave your last role?’, and ‘How do you picture your future career?’

If you feel uncomfortable talking about what happened to you, it might be because you feel the burnout paints you in a bad light—but there’s no shame in it. You’re not at fault. The WHO describes burnout as “a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” It doesn’t mean that you weren’t good enough—sometimes it’s quite the opposite.

Between an intensive workload, digital fatigue, and company cultures demanding the impossible, people are put under continuous pressure—and it’s no surprise that many of them crack, especially when they’re super-committed! When work throws you struggle after struggle, and stress becomes chronic, the company employing you is also at fault for not having the necessary protective measures in place. To help you talk about what happened without blaming yourself or bashing your former employer, here are some possible approaches for discussing burnout in an interview.

1. The silent approach

Is telling the whole truth essential when it comes to making a good impression? Talking about being overworked in the past isn’t easy in an interview. You might be concerned about giving the impression you’re vulnerable or being pigeonholed as someone fragile or a workaholic. You might even be concerned about giving them a reason to cut you from the recruitment process.

Talking about burnout with a future employer can feel completely impossible, so choosing not to can seem like the easy option. You’re under no obligation to share your whole life story in an interview. Questions about health are generally unlawful, along with questions about race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age, or ancestry.

Advantages

If you don’t mention burnout, you won’t have to field annoying questions about it. You’ll simply need to find some evasive replies to questions like, ‘Why did you leave your last job?’ and ‘What have you been doing since your last job ended?’ They’ll be none the wiser and you can skirt around the subject. All it takes is a little preparation, so why not? If the subject of burnout doesn’t come up, you won’t need to talk about it!

Disadvantages

Unless you’re a great actor, hiding everything that’s related to your burnout will be stressful, and appearing stressed may lose you valuable points. Also, if you’re too evasive, or the recruiter gets wind that you’re avoiding something, any trust you’ve created will be destroyed, and trust is an important part of the recruitment process.

It might be that the recruiter doesn’t pick up on anything and you get the job. But then you’ll have to continue to hide what you’ve been through when you’re working, and that’s a pretty weighty secret to keep. It’s not ideal if you’re planning to stay with the company long-term, particularly when it comes to establishing authentic, transparent relationships with your colleagues.

This approach can be tempting in ultra-demanding environments looking for top-performer profiles. However, by choosing silence, you’re almost accepting that what happened to you is ok, and that’s harmful. Be careful you’re not hiding something you’re struggling to get over, need to make peace with, or forgive yourself for. Remember there are always multiple factors causing burnout, and it’s usually, companies are largely responsible.

2. The wing-it approach: Telling half the story

Another option to consider is carefully controlling the communication around your burnout. Without giving away too many details, you could mention you took a break and touch on the fact that you felt like you were exhausted. Talk about the reasons you left your last job, what bothered you, and what didn’t work, but also talk about what you’re looking for now, following that experience. The important thing is to show the interviewer that the experience helped you to grow and now you know exactly what you’re looking for in a job.

This is the strategy Emily, a digital marketing consultant, opted for when she was looking for a new job after burnout. “I took some time out to feel ready to look for a new role. I didn’t share the fact that occupational health made me stop working because things were so bad. What I did share was why I left my previous company: there were huge management issues, we were understaffed, projects kept pouring in, and we were all working crazy hours.”

Advantages

This approach means you don’t have to deflect when questions are asked. You might omit a few details, but everything you’re sharing is true and conveys the reasons for your decisions and your motivation. The things that weren’t right in your previous role can help to refine what you’re looking for now and serve as a sign that you’ve taken a step back and drawn some insightful conclusions from your experience.

The other advantage of this approach is that you can adjust it to fit. If you feel the interviewer might receive your story well, you can choose to share a little more and add certain things in, such as, ‘Actually, I was put on leave,’ and it will never contradict what you’ve already shared.

Disadvantages

To make sure the stress of the interview doesn’t throw you off your game you need to prepare answers to potentially stressful questions in advance.

“You have to believe that the recruiter is capable of reading between the lines,” explains Emily. An HR manager will likely know what life is like working for a startup or large corporation, legal firm, etc. They aren’t naive! Hiding the truth serves no purpose. Will, who works in the innovation sector shares his experience: “When I explained in an interview that I was the only employee at a growth startup with financial issues, my interviewers immediately understood what must have happened—I didn’t even need to say the word burnout. In my industry, people know the deal.” And they can easily understand that you’ve extracted yourself from an exhausting environment with your head held high!

3. The authentic approach: The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth

“I can’t lie, it’s immediately obvious if I’m trying to hide something …” Some of us need to lay all our cards on the table without pretending otherwise. And we’re here for it! Burnout can lead to total transformation. Calmly explaining what you’ve been through can be seen as a strength; it can show your maturity, your ability to handle difficulties, etc. So it could actually be a reason for recruiters to hire you.

Advantages

This authentic approach builds trust and demonstrates self-awareness and an ability to take a step back from your own story. It’s an approach that those who prize openness and honesty will appreciate. It can also be a convincing argument for employment, especially if the company you’re targeting is genuinely interested in well-being and mental health. It gives you the opportunity to talk about the company’s values and the human aspect of the job you’re applying for.

You’ve survived burnout, you’re now more aware of the pitfalls and you could become a real asset for companies and their staff when it comes to prevention and health issues. “If you’re targeting a company that does HR consulting, coaching, or deals with mental health in the workplace, then they should certainly understand,” says Emily.

Showing that you know what burnout is and what causes it may even be valued in certain roles and professions. That was the case for Will when he took a management role after his burnout. “During my interviews for the manager role, I felt that the recruiters were reassured by my awareness of overworking. They must have thought that I’d be careful with my teams, that I’d be more vigilant both for myself and my coworkers, and that would help me to progress, especially in terms of long-term performance. Clearly, my employer thought that was something interesting.”

Disadvantages

Being completely authentic helps you create strong links with your recruiter, especially if they’re receptive to what you’re sharing. You need to be good at expressing yourself when taking this approach, so you can tell the truth without becoming too negative as that may harm your chances. Don’t complain or get angry in an interview, no matter how unfair the situation was. If it’s over, then you’ve won! And if being honest doesn’t fly, then you might just want to consider what that says about their company culture …

A company that excludes you because of a previous period of overwork is unlikely to look out for your health if you work there. Talking about what happened to you in an interview, even if you only share part of your story, can be a way of finding that out, just like Will. “I tried to get a feeling for the people in my interview. I didn’t want to end up in the same type of company culture as my previous job. It was important for me to see if they were receptive or had a tacit understanding of how everything came to a head. If I felt they were receptive, I shared a little more. If not, I shut down the conversation, but in my head, I knew that I didn’t want to work for them as I’d end up back in the same situation.” Not getting to the end of the recruitment process isn’t always a bad thing. You want to find work, but it shouldn’t be at all costs!

Key takeaways: Bringing up burnout in job interviews

So there you have it, the best way to approach your burnout in an interview is the way that seems right to you. And just a reminder, preparation is key:

• Take some time to digest what happened to you, the consequences of that, and the conclusions you’ve drawn from it for your working life.
• Plan what you want to say and choose your words carefully, adjust things as you go. Try using some of these terms: overwork, excess pressure, crazy working hours, exhaustion, a better work-life balance, health risks, projects that align with my values and goals. There are lots of ways to address what you’ve been through.
• During the interview, focus on the future, on what your plans are in this company, where you want to go, and what you can bring to the table. Show them that the past is in the past.
• Be careful not to criticize your former employer or manager too directly, it could count against you.
• Don’t dwell on it—an interview is short. It’s your opportunity to introduce yourself to a recruiter so they can get an idea of who you are. Your burnout isn’t the only interesting thing about your career path, so get to what’s important.
• Be yourself, and show your personality, whether that’s discreet or passionate, diplomatic or direct—authenticity helps to build trust!
• If you find talking about it too difficult, painful, or anxiety-inducing, get some help from a psychologist. We often see burnout as a personal failure and it’s difficult to talk about it in a positive light. Don’t feel like you have to go it alone.

So many people have been through burnout, so the prejudice you might find around it should be progressively diminishing. Despite an episode of professional exhaustion, you can show that you have bounced back and made peace with your story even if you don’t want to share all the details. Whatever the level of detail you feel comfortable sharing about your experience, in the end, it’s your ability to take on the necessary responsibilities, read the situation, and understand the complexities involved that will reassure your future employer.

*Names have been changed

Translated by Debbie Garrick

Photo: Welcome to the Jungle

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