Banishing marketing burnout: Steps to a stronger, calmer future

Is burnout in the marketing profession real? According to stories shared at Marketing Week's recent webinar, part of "The Lowdown" series, the answer is a resounding "yes". This eye-opening look at the reality of burnout in the industry highlighted some of the findings in the publication's 2025 Career & Salary Survey of more than 3,500 marketers. It found that 58.1% had felt overwhelmed over the past 12 months, with 50.8% reporting emotional exhaustion and 48.2% feeling a lack of enjoyment in work that used to engage them.

Why does everything feel difficult right now?

In short, we're seeing the impact of the pandemic, recession, Brexit, international instability and technological advances. Many marketers are discovering that as expectations rise to unrealistic levels, extra hurdles such as reduced budgets, soaring KPIs, new technology or limited resources, are springing up. It's no surprise that people are finding it tough. There's an expectation that AI and automation can do a lot of the grunt work but, in some cases, this can add stress, not take it away.

For many, marketing has turned into a box ticking exercise, with 80% of marketers saying they have experienced imposter syndrome. Being pulled in different directions, being asked to wear different hats, chasing elusive ROI, focusing on short terms goals and finding it difficult to say no to people, have all caused a sense of utter overwhelm for many.

And it’s not just Marketing Week’s findings. A 2024 survey published by the UK Chartered Institute of Marketing found that more than half of marketers surveyed (56%) admitted they feared burning out in their current role with three fifths (59%) of 25 to 34 year olds indicating they were worried about this issue.

Further articles in The Drum and The Guardian bear out these findings.

The issue is serious and many of you are saying "enough is enough." But it's not easy to say "no" when your performance is being measured on saying "yes."

Taken to the brink: Why marketers are saying "enough"

The Marketing Week webinar panel consisted of Emma Harris (CEO, Glow London), Abigail Dixon (Founder, The Whole Marketer), and David Enwright (Marketing Director, Post Office), who each openly shared their personal stories about the root causes of burnout and the impact it has had on them.

For Emma, the wake-up call quite literally came in 2022 when she woke up in ICU having suffered a cardiac arrest due to extreme pressure. A post she shared on LinkedIn warning her network about how scared she had been received nine million views. She clearly wasn't alone.

David talked about his struggles to maintain performance expectations after the loss of his mother and mother-in-law. For him, resilience is about knowing when to stop, not pushing through regardless. Abigail emphasised that burnout isn’t just about feeling tired — it results from cumulative stress, leading to emotional exhaustion and a lack of engagement.

Reacting to the Career & Salary Survey data, Emma was “sadly not surprised”, describing burnout as “rife”, in part due to many people catastrophising their thoughts and suffering from imposter syndrome.

Learning to set boundaries and say no

One of the key takeaways from the webinar was the importance of self-awareness, with Abigail pointing out that 85% of our thoughts are negative, and that our unconscious mind struggles to differentiate between real threats and imagined fears.

Learning to recognise personal stress triggers and setting boundaries — both at work and in personal life — is crucial to preventing burnout. In fact, as Emma pointed out, truly successful people say no all the time. By doing that, they can prioritise what truly matters.

There is no doubt that the long-standing culture of overwork, where pulling all-nighters on pitches is seen as a badge of honour, needs to be relegated to history. As Emma succinctly put it, “No marketing campaign or meeting is worth your health.”

There is a clear need for individuals, teams and leaders to develop strategies to help navigate these challenges effectively. And that, not duvet days, is the ultimate solution to burnout.

The 80/20 rule: Focus and flex, in one clear plan

David spoke about an ideal scenario where 80% of marketing activities are planned, allowing your teams to be proactive rather than reactive. The remaining 20% leaves room to flex. By setting clear objectives and pushing back on unnecessary tasks, your team can create space for better-quality work and greater job satisfaction.

By following an 80/20 rule, you can reinforce that you are working strategically, not just reacting to demands. When new requests come in, refer to the roadmap and explain how the new tasks may need to be prioritised against existing projects.

You can flex, certainly, but when 80% of the plan is clearly mapped out, it takes away the pressure to bend and stretch to suit everyone's ever-changing demands and expectations. It's easier to say no when you're asked to deviate from it or add more to a plan — particularly when these demands don't come with additional resources or budget to support them.

When saying “no,” you can also turn it into a constructive conversation. Instead of "No, because", offer "Yes, if..."  For example, “We can’t do X right now because of the limited resources available.  Here's an alternative option that could achieve similar results."

Three steps to a calmer, more controlled future

At Marketing Fusion - we see these issues frequently. And while we don't claim that there's a silver bullet - we do offer support to help you swap overwhelm and burnout for order and boundaries.  Some of the success strategies we're seeing include:

• Identify the pressure points - by walking through a structured discovery programme that homes in on the real pain areas.
• Have a clear vision and plan and communicate this clearly and regularly.   Leveraging a structured framework can help here as it aids communication and helps you to prioritise.
• Build your support network - The right level of support can make the difference between struggle and success. And it can come from a variety of sources – a manager, a co-worker, or an agency run by experienced professionals.

Once you have a clear plan, day-to-day life will feel less like whack-a-mole, you'll be able to focus on the tasks at hand and justify your decisions and actions. Is it in the plan? No. Does it needed to be added to the plan? Maybe, but only if the resources and budgets add up and the change aligns with the overarching business goals set out in the plan.

More holistically, you'll be able to free up space to think and to strategise, which means rather than your role just being a box-ticking one, you can demonstrate how your team contributes to overall business success.

Most importantly, you'll avoid burnout. Which is the panel all agreed, is simply not worth it.

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