Leading During Burnout
Effective leaders cultivate environments where psychological safety, workload balance, and open communication are prioritized.
Problem
Burnout is a growing concern in today’s fast-paced work environments, and managers are not always equipped to respond effectively. When a team member like Matt begins to show signs of burnout, managers may struggle to initiate meaningful conversations, or create a psychologically safe space for recovery. The result? Trust erodes, performance declines, and retention risks increase.
Without the right tools and mindset, even well-intentioned leaders can miss the opportunity to support their teams in a way that fosters resilience and trust.
Image by Freepik
Image by Freepik
Solution
This course was designed to empower managers—specifically, the learner in the role of Matt’s manager—with the skills and awareness needed to navigate burnout conversations with empathy and effectiveness. Through scenario-based learning, the course guides the learner in:
Initiating trust-building conversations that prioritize psychological safety
Responding with empathy and support rather than judgment or avoidance
Creating a sustainable action plan that supports Matt’s well-being and re-engagement
By placing the learner in a realistic leadership scenario, the course bridges the gap between theory and practice. It encourages reflection, emotional intelligence, and the development of interpersonal skills that are essential for modern leadership.
Tools Used
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I choose Storyline as the development tool for my e-learning module because it offers a robust set of features that elevate learner engagement through interactive design.
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Before jumping into development with Storyline, I used Microsoft Word. This step was essential for planning and organizing the learning experience.
Respecting Confidentiality
As part of my commitment to honoring client trust and proprietary content, I’m unable to share the full course I developed for Development Dimensions International (DDI). The materials are protected under confidentiality agreements and internal use policies.
What I Can Show You
While the full course remains private, here’s a glimpse into the instructional design elements I crafted:
Interactivity
I incorporated interactive elements like What Would You Say? to support self-directed learning and active participation.
Image interaction allowed learners to explore content visually and intuitively, fostering curiosity and deeper cognitive processing. These strategies reflect Knowles’ Andragogy, which emphasizes autonomy, relevance, and experiential learning. By giving learners control over how they engage, I helped them build confidence and ownership of their learning journey.
Feedback
I used feedback to:
Encourage reflection and deeper thinking
Have learners build knowledge through experience and correction Whether it was through automated quiz responses, scenario-based feedback, or guided reflection prompts, each moment of feedback was designed to be supportive, specific, and actionable—helping learners feel seen, challenged, and capable.
See It in Action
Select View Course to open a preview to Leading During Burnout.
Let’s Connect
If you're interested in seeing more examples of how I apply learning theory to design, feel free to reach out. I’d love to share additional projects and insights from my work as a Learning Experience Designer.
www.linkedin.com/in/marilu-oliva/
marilu.fabiola5215@gmail.com