You’ve probably heard of burnout, which is when you work so hard that your body starts to suffer. But, have you heard about ‘boreout’? This is when you are not being mentally stimulated in your role. 

How can you tell if you have it? Here are six signs that you might be dealing with it.

1. You’re bored + feel emotionally checked out

‘Boreout’ isn’t just a slow day, but a recurring sense that the work is dull, uninteresting or meaningless. If you spend whole days being bored and not caring about your work, it’s a major red flag. 

2. Even with little work, you lack energy to do it

You might feel drained, listless or low on motivation, even though you’re not working long hours or under a lot of heavy stress. This is because ‘boreout’ can cause constant physical and mental tiredness.

3. You’re less enthusiastic + emotionally invested

When tasks stop feeling meaningful, you may lose interest in quality or results. Your spark for work diminishes, and you no longer feel pride or purpose in what you do, so work feels empty rather than fulfilling.

4. You are procrastinating + watching the clock

Even simple tasks may start to feel unbearable. There might be a lot of daydreaming, procrastination, frequent breaks or doing the bare minimum because you just don’t feel engaged with work anymore.

5. You feel like your skills are being wasted

If you’re over-qualified for the work at hand, doing repetitive or trivial tasks or feel like you’re not growing at all, that mismatch between your potential and your actual role can trigger a case of ‘boreout’.

6. You are more cynical + apathetic about work

You might start withdrawing socially, being less interested in team chats, meetings or casual office banter. Over time, you could feel like a bystander with little emotional attachment to the job or the company's mission.