Don’t want your top performers to quit? Tell them you want to see more mistakes. And mean it.
What to do when your key players are burning themselves out.
There's a lot of ink spilled about how to motivate your teams.
But sometimes managers find themselves on the other side of this problem: Helplessly watching as their key players burn out, feeling unable to convince them to slow down, cut a few judicious corners, and let done be better than perfect.
Effectively convincing these uber-talented, lifelong overachievers to sign off early, drop a few balls and hold it all a bit more lightly can be a herculean task. But it’s imperative that you try.
Because if you don’t find a way to get through to them they will burn out and leave, your remaining team’s performance will suffer, and you’ll have missed an opportunity to demonstrate that leadership is not about doing everything perfectly - it’s about discerning what needs to be done.
The message these particular folks often need to receive and feel from you is: I value you for all of who you are and the holistic sum of your fantastic contributions. I don’t want or need perfection. I would rather have 80% of your best efforts than 110% from nearly anyone else.
Then support them with some actionable conversations about what a shift could look like. Collaboratively tier their tasks and responsibilities in a working session. Tiers could work like this:
Tier 1: These are the tasks, projects, or key issues you want them to maintain exceptional attention and performance around. Things in this bucket need to continue to be done and error-free.
Tier 2: Things in this bucket are important but not imperative. They’re usually things that need to get done, but can be pushed back or skipped on busy days or weeks. For this bucket: Done is way better than perfect. Mistakes are fine.
Tier 3: Nice to haves. Things that can and should be immediately deprioritized whenever they feel busy, tired, or stressed. Done is fine. Not done is also fine. Perfect is a waste of time.
At the end of this session (this is key!), let them know that you will not only not be mad, but that you would absolutely delight in seeing them make a few small mistakes around Tier 2 or 3 items. And then stand by that. If they or a colleague flag a small error or delay, make a point to tell them you’re happy to see it. Give them the equivalent of a “good job - I’m proud of you!” Seriously.
How could you really fuck this up? Great question. Two ways.
Fuck up number one: Don’t clarify your expectations for Tier 1 tasks and then criticize or penalize them for mistakes in that area. That’s a cruel bait-and-switch.
Fuck up number two: Tell them you will delight in their next little mistake and then totally ream them out when they finally make one. (Or maybe even worse - be passive-aggressive about it.) We’re trying to create psychological safety here. That would be super crazy psychological warfare.
Ok. Give it a shot. Let me know how it goes.