Burnout among employees has become widespread with the pandemic.

Common burnout symptoms from workplace stress include low energy and negative feelings. A survey by workforce analytics company Vizier reports that 89% of employees said they experienced burnout over the past year.

For many employees, the strains from work are compounded by the difficulties of coping with at-home childcare and living with social isolation. Surveys routinely showed burnout on the rise well before the pandemic.

The result is hardly surprising considering how many employers have long ignored family demands and how many bosses think nothing of expecting an answer to an e-mail sent late at night.

While recommendations that employees try yoga, meditation and mindfulness to combat burnout are well-intentioned, the pandemic has made clear what was apparent all along: Addressing employee burnout requires employers to adopt healthy workplace practices. The workplace needs to change, not employees.

That said, the increase in burnout is a clear signal that people do need to take steps at home to hold burnout at bay. Among them: Take time into consideration when managing household money. The scarce resource is time. Personal finances should be managed to keep time commitments minimal.

Burnout reflects the modern condition to some extent. We're intensely busy at work. But we also expect much of ourselves in everyday life, from the desire to exercise and eat smart to stay healthy, engage with family and friends to nourish relationships, volunteer in the community and stay on top of the latest technologies.

Keeping personal finances simple is time friendly. Better yet, simple and transparent products and services are almost always superior to more complex possibilities. Think term life insurance, broad-based low-fee index funds and fixed-rate mortgages.

The embrace of simplicity means avoiding insurance policies loaded up with all kinds of bells and whistles and investment strategies that only a financier can grasp. The simplicity mantra avoids the high fees attached to complex financial products.

Automate as much of your personal finances as possible to save time. Have your financial institution automatically deposit some money from your checking account into savings every month. Participate in your company's retirement savings plan and you're automatically saving for retirement.

Stick to what is simple and transparent. You'll be better off financially and, in an era when the risk of burnout is high, you'll have more time for the more important things in life.

Chris Farrell is senior economics contributor for "Marketplace" and economics commentator for Minnesota Public Radio.