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If you\u2019re always the first to volunteer and the last to leave, you might be heading for a \u201ccompetence hangover.\u201d That\u2019s at least according to Peter Duris, CEO and co-founder of career platform Kickresume, who is sounding the alarm on the burnout that hits when you\u2019re so good at your job that everyone relies on you for everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cWanting to make sure everything gets done to a high standard is great, but it can also take a toll over time, leading to unnecessary stress,\u201d Duris warns. \u201cIf you frequently go above and beyond at work, it could result in a competence hangover\u2014the type of burnout you can get when you feel inherently responsible for keeping things afloat.\u201d<\/p>\n
In other words, the better you are at your job, the harder it becomes to stop doing it.<\/p>\n
Duris would know: his platform has helped more than 8 million people get hired at companies including Google, Apple, and Microsoft, giving him a front-row seat to the habits and hang-ups of high performers worldwide. And the data he\u2019s seeing paints a troubling picture.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kickresume\u2019s own research found that 48% of Americans are experiencing imposter syndrome and overworking as a result. A third feels guilty taking time off. Nearly one in five feel pressured to keep working even when sick.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The pressure isn\u2019t just coming from inside your own head, either. In a tougher job market where promotions are stalling and AI is quietly threatening whole categories of white-collar work, many high performers feel they have no choice but to over-deliver just to stay safe.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf this sounds like you, it\u2019s worth stepping back and reducing your mental load,\u201d Duris adds.<\/p>\n
Why going above and beyond is backfiring<\/p>\n
The trap is deceptively easy to fall into. You volunteer to cover a colleague\u2019s project, stay late to fix a problem nobody else could solve, or say yes to one more task because you know you\u2019re the only one who\u2019ll do it properly. You take on a little extra, then a little more, and before long you\u2019ve quietly taken on far more than your fair share.<\/p>\n
Kickresume calls this \u201cover-functioning\u201d\u2014and says it\u2019s initially driven by a fear that your work isn\u2019t good enough.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But eventually, that fear hardens into a habit. High performers who consistently go above and beyond start to feel as though all the responsibility rests on their shoulders alone. At that point, stepping back doesn\u2019t just feel uncomfortable; it starts to feel genuinely impossible.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing the person everyone relies on can be very draining and lead to burnout,\u201d Duris cautions. \u201cRemember that it\u2019s okay to say no when your workload gets too heavy.\u201d<\/p>\n
The irony is that what looks like dedication on the surface can quietly erode performance\u2014and the fallout is hitting both employees and employers hard. Separate research has shown that half of workers are at breaking point right now. And widespread burnout and disengagement are draining an estimated $438 billion in lost productivity each year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How to break the cycle and avoid burnout<\/p>\n
The first step, Duris says, is tackling the perfectionism that likely got you here in the first place.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s important to understand that you don\u2019t have to be perfect at work or in life,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd that going above and beyond is a bonus, not a requirement 100% of the time.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Giving yourself permission to do enough, rather than everything, is harder than it sounds for chronic overachievers. But if you can\u2019t do that, nothing else will stick.<\/p>\n
Next comes the harder habit to break: saying yes by default. \u201cHelping others out is great, but it can also increase your workload if you take on too much,\u201d Duris says. \u201cInstead of taking on tasks without question, you could try saying that you may be able to help out after finishing a priority task. This then won\u2019t commit you to taking on more work.\u201d It\u2019s a small linguistic shift\u2014but it buys you the breathing room to actually assess what you can handle before you\u2019ve already agreed to it.<\/p>\n
And if exhaustion, creeping resentment, and a sense that you simply cannot switch off has already set in, Duris is blunt about what needs to happen next. \u201cIf you\u2019re feeling the symptoms of burnout and a competence hangover, it could be time for a step back,\u201d he warns.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can try reducing any overtime you may be doing to help improve your work-life balance and focus on your main priorities instead.\u201d Cutting back on extra hours isn\u2019t a sign of slacking\u2014it\u2019s the only realistic path back to a workload that\u2019s actually sustainable.<\/p>\n
Being the best person in the office and being the most burned out one don\u2019t have to go hand in hand. Sometimes the smartest move is simply knowing when to stop.<\/p>\n
#Overachievers #burning #badly #namethe #competence #hangover #CEO #warns<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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