"Boreout is different from burnout in the sense that bored-out employees rarely collapse¹ out of exhaustion². Bored-out people may be present physically³ but not in spirit, and people can keep doing this for a good while,” says Harju.

哈留称：“闷爆和过度疲劳的不同之处在于，闷爆员工很少会因为筋疲力尽而倒下。闷爆者可能人在心不在，而且这种状况可以持续很长时间。”

 

Workers who realise they're experiencing boreout may also be reluctant to flag it up as an issue to line managers or human resources. While the behaviours that feed into burnout – overwork, drive – are appreciated and rewarded by employers, boreout "reflects a lack of interest, a lack of motivation", says Harju. "These are very much taboo⁴ in organisations."

意识到自己闷爆的员工可能也不愿向直线管理人员或人力反映。哈留指出，尽管导致过度疲劳的工作过度、自我驱动行为会受到雇主的欣赏和奖励，但闷爆却“反映出缺乏兴趣和动力”，“这在组织里是很忌讳的。”

 

There are some quick fixes, like taking on work tasks that are more interesting to you. But a 2016 study Harju and her colleagues worked on showed that people who had boreout were less likely to engage in constructive⁵ activities like trying to find new, interesting challenges at work.

应对“闷爆”有一些权宜之计，比如承担自己更感兴趣的工作任务。但是哈留和她的同事在2016年开展的一项研究显示，闷爆者不太可能从事建设性活动，比如试图在工作中寻找有趣的新挑战。

 

What happens more often, she says, is that people will just show up at their desks and spend time shopping online, cyberloafing, chatting with colleagues or planning other activities. She says that these people aren't lazy, but are using these behaviours as "coping mechanisms⁶".

她指出，更常见的情况是，闷爆者会在工位上网购、摸鱼、和同事聊天或计划其他活动。她指出，这些人不是懒，而是将这些行为作为“应对机制”。

 

Fahri Özsungur, an associate professor of economics at Mersin University, Turkey, who was behind the 2021 study on the health effects of boreout, points out that combatting the phenomenon isn't just down to the individual.

土耳其梅尔辛大学的经济学副教授法赫里·奥兹孙古尔指出，抗击“闷爆”现象不能只靠个人。法赫里在2021年研究了闷爆对健康的影响。

 

"Giving meaning to the job is not just up to the employee,” he says, instead it's up to management to create an office culture that makes people feel valuable.

他表示，“赋予工作意义不能只靠员工”，管理层有责任打造一种让员工感觉有价值的办公室文化。

 

If you think boreout is seriously affecting your health (either physical or mental), it may be valuable to ask yourself how you might be able to repoint your career path toward something healthier for you. Seek the advice of mentors⁷, career counsellors or friends and family.

如果你认为闷爆已严重影响你的身心健康，你可能有必要问问自己要如何重新定位自己的职业道路，选择一份更有利于你健康的工作。你可以向导师、职业咨询师或亲友寻求建议。

 

"Boreout can mark a transition into something else: a different career entirely⁸, or a different role in the organisation," Harju says. "If people only take its cue."

哈留说：“闷爆可能标志着一个转折点：完全不同的职业道路或组织中的不同职位。但愿人们可以领会这个暗示。”

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