Here We G.O.A.T. Again!

As I am writing this, people on social and mainstream media have made a link between Olympians Mikaela Shiffrin (2022 Winter, Beijing — Skier), and Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka (2020–21 Summer, Tokyo — Gymnast and Tennis respectively) as far as pressure vs performance. They were all dubbed G.O.A.T.s — Greatest of All Times performers in their respective sports. They all surprised the world by the severity of the figurative walls they hit in their performances on the world stage at the modern Olympic games and their declarations of the mental health toll they suffered from the expectations placed on them to maintain their “G.O.A.T.” status.

The latest story with Shiffrin caused me to think, “Here we G.O.A.T. again!” We put so much pressure on these young people to perform perfectly. Success is one thing. Excelling in what you do takes performance up higher notches. Pressure to be “the greatest”? Most of us can only imagine that pressure on ourselves and what it would do to us physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

Are there financial rewards for reaching such heights? Of course, there are. Sponsorships. Speaking fees. Endorsements. More. Are they worth a lifetime of pressure? Only each of us can answer that question.

So, what’s the lesson we can take away from these “greatest” athletes hitting their walls as we lead through times that have affected all of us in one way or another? Should we, as leaders in organizations and of volunteers in community groups, push for ever greater sacrifices, performances, and results from our people as time progresses through continual changes in the workplace and life?

I share with you three lessons I take from these Olympic experiences that I can apply to my own leadership practices.

1. Putting undue and enormous pressure on the people we lead seldom results in exceptional productivity and strong results over a long period of time. Yes, we can push for excellence. However, at some point, such weight becomes unbearable and those under the weight can break down. Can you say, “Great resignation”?
2. Allow for “space”. My business partner Josh writes frequently about making space on our calendars to mitigate burnout and set boundaries to the go-go-go pressures of our work, professions, businesses, and lives. I will add to allow your people — and yourself — to have more emotional, mental, and spiritual space in order to absorb and respond to inevitable pressures to perform well. Let’s face it. Employees work for companies that hire them to contribute to the companies’ profitability. Volunteers support organizations that advance causes. We expect solid performances from our people. Yet we, as their leaders, can create environments where they can find or make space for mental, emotional, and spiritual health.
3. Invoke a version of theologian Reinhold Niebuhr’s Serenity Prayer to, “Accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.” For example, first, ask yourself what you cannot change. I believe two of the answers are other people and the global economy. Next, what can you change when you have the courage to do so? Yourself — mindset, thinking, perspective, reactions, and actions. Your desire and commitment to understand or at least learn and empathize with others’ circumstances. Your ability and determination to do what you can to ease the pressure and work-related challenges encountered by those you lead. The wisdom to know the difference is your level of emotional intelligence…and the fact that you’re reading our Leadership Letters all the way through!

When we, as leaders, are cognizant of the pressure we place on those we lead — however valid we feel the need is to do so for a specific end game — and when we are also aware of the effects of the pressure on our people, we can adjust how and how much we push them to perform. I’m not saying that we support a lack of performance and results. I’m saying that we employ emotional intelligence competencies to realistically manage expectations and pressures so that our people don’t experience their own “G.O.A.T. wall-hitting moments”.

How do you balance the pressure to perform for results against creating space for mental, emotional, and spiritual pressure-value release?