THE BURNOUT ROOM

In this episode of The Burnout Room, Dr. Courtney Keim and Sarah Burress peel back the curtain on the Kentucky Psychological Foundation (KPF)—sharing how a tiny team helps the helpers through scholarships, community education, and workplace wellness initiatives (plus breaking news about an exciting new first-responder grant!). Then, they dive into a brand-new segment: "Burnout in the News." From an ill-advised championship ring phishing test to the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders unionizing, Courtney and Sarah unpack why respecting workers and avoiding "mean girl behavior" matters. Finally, they look to the stars to explore crisis leadership, teamwork under pressure, and what astronaut crews can teach us about managing high-stakes environments. Read Sy's blog post: https://www.talentmetrics.io/blog/2026/10/23/my-mayors-muslim-my-bagel-is-jewish-my-training-is-motivating-knicks-in-5 Enjoyed this episode? Don't forget to rate, review, and subscribe to The Burnout Room so you never miss a conversation! Dr. Courtney Keim (she/her) is a workplace wellness researcher and Professor. Sarah Burress (she/her) is an organizational leader, and nonprofit wellness advocate. Visit our Linktree for our website, merch, inbox or social media! https://linktr.ee/theburnoutroompodcast  

Courtney and Sarah talk to Em Joy (they/them), Program Director of Louisville Youth Group, who has many years of experience in nonprofit work. They have an engaging conversation about compassion fatigue, doing mission driven work, and having a trusting and engaged Board who provides support and structure to enhance employee wellbeing. They also laugh about Derby parties, moving to a new city, and high school allegiances.  Erbycitydragons.org is the breast cancer survivor dragon boat racing team Call or text “988” free-of-charge to connect with suicide prevention, mental health, and substance abuse counselors. Available to all Kentuckians 24/7/365. Call 800.656.HOPE or Text HOPE to 64673 for RAINN, the National Sexual Assault Hotline, 24/7 to connect with a real, live person who's trained to help.  Dr. Courtney Keim (she/her) is a workplace wellness researcher and Professor. Sarah Burress (she/her) is an organizational leader, and nonprofit wellness advocate. Visit our Linktree for our website, merch, inbox or social media!  https://linktr.ee/theburnoutroompodcast

No one wants to rock climb with a belayer they can't trust. So why do we expect employees to do their best work when they don't trust their leaders? In this episode of The Burnout Room, Dr. Courtney Keim and Sarah Burress unpack organizational trust, exploring how leaders build it, how they break it, and why communication, consistency, and giving employees room to do their jobs matter. Because a healthy workplace isn't one where nobody ever falls, it's one where people know that someone will catch them if they do. Dr. Courtney Keim (she/her) is a workplace wellness researcher and Professor. Sarah Burress (she/her) is an organizational leader, and nonprofit wellness advocate. Visit our Linktree for our website, merch, inbox or social media! https://linktr.ee/theburnoutroompodcast   https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0749597826000300 Bill Gentry Book- https://williamgentryleads.com/be-the-boss-everyone-wants-to-work-for/

Wearing too many hats? Spinning too many plates? In this week’s episode of The Burnout Room, Dr. Courtney Keim and Sarah Burress explore workload, one of the biggest predictors of burnout. Together, they break down why mission-driven organizations frequently straddle the line of overload, how relying on employee passion can make it easy to normalize doing too much, and why sometimes the answer isn’t adding another program or process, but figuring out what we can take away. From email shortcuts, to running better meetings, to job crafting and setting boundaries, Courtney and Sarah talk about practical ways leaders and employees can reduce workload burdens, and whether there is actually enough capacity to really balance it all. Check out our TBR merch at Burnout Room Merch. A portion of the proceeds goes to the Kentucky Psychological Foundation to help support our work! Lezcano AM, Zajac SA, Johnson SK and Holladay CL (2026) Rethinking return-to-office: the positive impact of remote work on well-being, connection, and employee retention. Front. Psychol. 17:1848857. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1848857 Dr. Courtney Keim (she/her) is a workplace wellness researcher and Professor. Sarah Burress (she/her) is an organizational leader, and nonprofit wellness advocate. Visit our Linktree for our website, merch, inbox or social media! https://linktr.ee/theburnoutroompodcast

In this crossover episode with the Healthy Work podcast, Sarah and Courtney interview Dr. Keaton Fletcher. From breaking down why structural support for nonprofit workers is so desperately needed, to opening up about our own personal "why," we explore what keeps us dedicated to building healthier, more humane workplaces.  Check out the Healthy Work Podcast: ⁠https://healthywork.substack.com/publish/post/215705391 Why So Many C.E.O.s Are Getting a Chief of Staff: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/06/business/ceos-chief-of-staff.html?smid=url-share   Dr. Courtney Keim (she/her) is a workplace wellness researcher and Professor. Sarah Burress (she/her) is an organizational leader, and nonprofit wellness advocate. Visit our Linktree for our website, merch, inbox or social media! https://linktr.ee/theburnoutroompodcast