High performers are naturally fulfilled and engaged in their work. It’s why they excel and work in ways that other team members can’t.
You can’t make or train a person to become a high performer. Workers are high performers or they aren’t. So replacing a high performer is costly to every company.
High performers are internally driven by something I call their Success Wound, which is their energetic drive to do more, impact more, and even create more. The problem is that the Success Wound can drive them to burnout, which directly impacts their health, their team and the company.
I created my Success Wound™ training in 2019 after working with high performers for almost 2 decades. Some like to blame the high performer for overworking while others like to blame the work environment. My experience and the polls I’ve done show that it’s BOTH.
A work environment can definitely encourage and aid in a high performer overworking.
Having company wellness in house that high performers don’t have time to use isn’t company wellness.
But if you have a high performer in a company that implements the changes when I work with their teams to create sustainable success and work-life balance, you create workplace wellness in that team.
When you have workplace wellness, you create a work environment that is supportive and in tune with the needs of your top talent.
High Performer’s 4 TOP Work Complaints and How to FIX Them
Are any of these happening in your company?
Complaint 1 : No Time and Energy In or Out of Work
This is a problem at first for people outside the company – friends, family spouses. When I used to offer meditation at 5 star spas, the spouses would complain about the overworking and how it affected them. This will eventually affect your high performer and possibly their performance at work as they are encouraged to have a life outside the office at another company.
Work-life balance is necessary to retain your top talent.
You may think it’s great that they’re always available and working whenever you ask them to – but this is a path to turnover and burnout.
Result when I work with your team: I help your team create sustainable work-life balance to keep your people happy and reduce stress. A happy life will affect your high performers in and out of work. This is how they recharge and stay creative and productive.
Complaint 2: Toxic Work Environment
Toxic work environments are typically caused by leaders, directors and managers. Who is sending the messages and emails AFTER company hours? Who expects the team to respond to those requests and what happens if they don’t? Who is giving them more to do than is possible in their job title and position stated work hours?
Do you offer workplace wellness programs in house but your high performers can’t access it because their work load is too full? Or are they afraid to take advantage of it because they know when lay offs come, they’ll be let go for trying to have a more balanced work-life? Or is your workplace wellness a waste of their time because it’s not helpful to them?
Work fires unnecessarily increase stress and drama in the workplace.
Is there always a FIRE? All of these things add to a toxic work environment which eventually leads to your top talent taking their skills to another company to get a better title and compensation.
Result when I work with your team: I support your team with healthy boundaries and clear communication to foster successful relationships. This creates an environment where your team thrives and you become a place that people want to work at. You want this!!
Complaint 3: Overwhelmed and Exhausted
This is what happens when your team members continually run on empty with time and energy. Often this happens when you are short staffed and your high performers have to pick up even more work. Or when you’re on another tight deadline and this must be done immediately plus their other roles and resposnsibilities.
You do not want your top talent overwhelmed and exhausted. This means they have been under stress for too long.
Overworking is what high performers are TAUGHT to do.
When your high performers start getting sick and are out with injuries and surgeries – this is your big red flag to do something differently now. This is when they start to re-evaluate their work and career, I’ve seen it many times.
Result when I work with your team: I support your team by giving them tools to improve happiness, retention and engagement. They end up thriving and in roles that they love in your company.
Complaint 4: Not Feeling Satisfied or Fulfilled in Role
High performers get bored when the work is too repetitive or unfulfilling.
They lack fulfillment when they’re not feeling appreciated or they’re tired of feeling stressed out all the time.
High performers are naturally fulfilled and engaged in their work. It’s why they excel and work in ways that other team members can’t.
How is appreciation showed at your company?
If your high performers are checking out and doing less than normal or making mistakes atypical to them, this is a big red flag for you that they may not be staying with your company much longer.
Result when I work with your team: I give your team effective and time efficient practices to feel fulfilled so they are more present, focused and engaged with the team. As they thrive, the whole company feels that impact.
What are the problem areas in your company?
High performers are your most valuable team members. They get tasks done, they go above and beyond and they thrive in the right team environments. What needs to be done for your high performers to stay and thrive?