Mental Load, Not Workload, Is What Wears Staff Down

One of the biggest misconceptions about staff wellbeing is that it is driven purely by workload. In reality, what wears people down most is mental load.

By mid-February, many educators are carrying a growing number of invisible demands. Decisions not yet made. Conversations not yet had. Worries that sit quietly in the background. Priorities that compete without resolution. This is what I refer to as cognitive overload, when too much is held internally, even if the external workload hasn’t increased.

Cognitive overload drains clarity long before it drains physical energy. People may still be functioning, but thinking feels harder. Patience shortens. Focus thins. Emotional regulation becomes more difficult.

From a leadership perspective, this is not an individual resilience issue. It is a cultural one.

Mental load is shaped by how clearly priorities are communicated, how decisions are named, and how safe it feels to externalise thinking. In cultures where clarity is low, people hold more internally. In cultures where expectations are fragmented, everything feels important. Reducing mental load is not about asking staff to be more organised. It is about creating environments where clarity is shared rather than carried alone.

When leaders model clarity well, it changes what feels permissible. Writing things down. Naming what matters. Letting go of what doesn’t. These are not personal coping strategies; they are cultural signals.

Clarity lightens load. And when load lightens, wellbeing improves because people no longer have to hold the system together silently.

Inside The Resilience Library, I support schools to reduce cognitive load through small, cultural shifts that strengthen clarity, confidence and staff wellbeing.