Do you know someone who never seems to sit still? Someone who’s always busy, eager to start new tasks, and reach new heights? Maybe you even fit this description yourself? In any case, we call such individuals high achievers. These people are willing to go the extra mile to achieve their goals. They apply high standards to everything, from studying to completing work assignments.
Unfortunately, they are also prone to suffer because of their work-first mentality, and they often develop mental health issues. Fortunately, our team has developed a small guide for high achievers to help them navigate their lives. We’ll cover everything about people with this character trait and give you advice on identifying these characteristics in yourself.
This article will also detail the pros and cons of being a high achiever. Additionally, we’ll explain how to deal with problems like burnout, anxiety, perfectionism, and impostor syndrome.
🌟 Who Are High Achievers?
High achievers are willing to do more than the bare minimum. They want each piece of work to be as close to perfection as possible. This criterion applies to every facet of their lives, from their relationships and hobbies to work and studies. They take great pride in every milestone and often want others to feel the same.
High achievers often develop complex plans to excel personally and professionally. They aren’t satisfied with going with the flow and taking things easy. For them, each goal and milestone has to be earned in the most meticulous fashion. While this attitude can be harmful if taken to the extreme, high achievers often inspire those around them to accomplish greater things.
Several traits define high achievers:
- Failure rarely deters them. People with this character trait usually don’t let setbacks impair their progress. They recognize that success is impossible without making mistakes. Instead of trembling at the sight of problems, high achievers learn from their failures and improve.
- Success is their responsibility. These individuals never back down when hit with unforeseen circumstances. They persevere and achieve their goals despite what happens to them or around them.
- They work with grit and willpower. Being a high achiever is impossible if you don’t focus on your daily goals. Reaching any objective requires mental fortitude and concentration to see your plans through.
- Enjoy their achievements. Each milestone or goal brings a deep sense of gratification to high achievers. They learn to appreciate the results of their work instead of focusing on the process.
- Actively learn and practice. These people rarely feel satisfied with their current knowledge. As such, they seek to expand their expertise by learning new concepts, facts, and methods. Such individuals actively search for opportunities to put what they’ve learned to the test.
🤔 Am I a High Achiever?
Even after learning what high achievers are like, you still might be unsure if this label suits you. If that’s the case, we have something that will settle this debate once and for all. Below you can find and carefully examine the eight characteristics of high achievers.
If you can relate to more than half of the points listed above, then you are probably a high achiever! These character traits are indispensable in academic life and professional careers. But they also have their drawbacks.
Continue reading our article to learn everything about the pros and cons of being a high achiever!
🎭 The Pros and Cons of Being a High Achiever
Now that you know that you’re a high achiever, you would most certainly like to know more about this character trait. People with this attitude have virtues many would love to have. However, they often suffer from issues unique to their mindset. This part of the article will cover all positive and negative aspects of high achievers in great detail.
How High Achievers Get Things Done
Perhaps it doesn’t come as a surprise that being a high achiever has many advantages. Ultimately, these are the people reaching their goals and leading successful personal and professional lives. So how do they do it? What’s their secret?
The Difficulties High Achievers Face
As mentioned before, being a high achiever has many benefits. Unfortunately, this character trait can also lead to several problems. Most of the time, these problems concern the expectations such people have for themselves and the quality of their work.
🧠 High Achievers and Mental Health Problems
High achievers want to achieve success in all areas of life. They always strive to reach new heights, constantly setting new goals for themselves. However, in their quest for the best results, high achievers may ignore their physical or mental health.
In the eyes of others, these people can be perceived as the lucky few who get everything without much effort. But in reality, their issues tend to accumulate and begin to express themselves in symptoms such as burnout, anxiety, perfectionism, or impostor syndrome. These can be debilitating, disrupting the balance of their lives and leading to more problems down the road. High achievers have difficulty realizing that, sometimes, it is essential to take a break from their workload and wind down.
Here, we want to introduce you to the potential problems you may face as a high achiever and suggest ways to deal with them.
🔥 Burnout
Burnout is a state of emotional and mental exhaustion that results from prolonged exposure to stressful situations. This form of fatigue is typically connected with being overwhelmed by your studies or work. Sometimes, when working on a big project or task, we lose track of balance and forget to take care of ourselves. Under such conditions, routine problems that used to seem trivial can turn into incredible challenges. Eventually, they begin to accumulate, and a person stops being as efficient and productive. They start feeling stressed, demotivated, and moody.
Today, this condition has no official medical diagnosis. However, suffering from burnout can drastically change the quality of your life for the worse. It is essential to tackle this problem before it starts getting out of hand.
How to Deal with Burnout
😖 Anxiety
Anxiety is often the result of unjustified expectations, which can be especially painful for high achievers. Such people want their lives to be perfect and fulfilling in every aspect. However, they are typically confronted with the harsh reality that they cannot always please themselves or others. While trying to succeed at everything, high achievers regularly become “yes-people,” which leads them to excessive overload, stress, and burnout.
Another cause of concern is the fear of losing control, so high achievers find it difficult to accept the need for support. That has a counterproductive impact because it’s essential for a leader to have assistants and delegate tasks.
How to Deal with Anxiety
🏆 Perfectionism
Perfectionism is a human character trait that can turn life into a daily report of your conformity to an ideal. On the one hand, ideals can motivate you, but on the other hand, they often limit you. In this state, people often succeed but fail to stand up to self-criticism. Due to the high pressure of academic studies and competition at work, more and more young people are exposed to this condition. As a result, students and employees suffer from excessively nagging themselves and others, which is quite toxic. Severe cases of extreme perfectionism tend to be accompanied by anxiety, eating disorders, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
How to Deal with Perfectionism
👽 Impostor Syndrome
Impostor syndrome is the internal feeling of being out of place, as if you’re a fake trying to appear that you belong. Even if you’re successful at what you do and can acknowledge your progress and gains, you may experience inner struggles about your worth. You may feel annoyed, nervous, and insecure, even when working with a business you know. This part of your inner experience is rarely considered since it’s more commonly a companion to depression or anxiety. People who demand a lot of themselves can harm their mental health, switch from one state to another, or experience it all at once.
How to Deal with Impostor Syndrome
⚖ How to Find Balance if You’re a High Achiever
To conclude this article, we would like to give you a few guidelines. If you follow our advice, we’re sure that you’ll be able to find the optimal balance in life and begin to feel much better.
- Personal boundaries are essential.
We advise you to distinguish between work time and personal time. It’ll help you distract yourself, relax, and think about other equally important things. For example, you can set aside time without your phone and not answer calls about work or studies after hours. - Self-confidence is part of a successful personality.
It’s not about confidence in knowledge, diplomas, completed courses, or social standing. It’s about your personality. Many successful people have achieved results because of their inner strength and determination to reach a goal. That feeling unlocks your potential so that you don’t limit yourself with doubts or weigh yourself down with the fear of failure. - A positive outlook is your guardian.
Positive thinking will help you maintain a sense of calm and serenity. Even setbacks won’t distract you from reaching your ultimate goal. Your thoughts are the foundation on which you build your perspective. To achieve your dreams, you need to live and enjoy what you do, not suffer through it. - Live by the P.O.W.E.R. principles.
The principles of P.O.W.E.R. means Perspective, Ownership, Wisdom, Engagement, and Reward. Perspective helps you find life’s enrichment and depletion factors. It guides you to form healthy relationships with others and set personal boundaries, which is the perception of ownership. Ownership shows the importance of time and resource distribution. That’s how Wisdom is formed, thus helping you to make well-thought-out decisions. The fruits of your choices inspire a sense of Engagement, empowerment, and motivation toward new achievements. In the end, you’re Rewarded for being yourself as you pursue your goals.
- Healthy living is not just about sports.
A healthy lifestyle is about a healthy atmosphere around you. Pay attention to not only of your physical health but also your surroundings, your social circle, and the harmony between family, friends, education, and work. - Make reasonable deadlines for your desired objectives.
Take a realistic approach to planning, and value your time and psychological well-being. Look for balance in everything, and don’t expect impossible tasks from yourself and those around you. - Life has a place for fun.
If you have a day off, figure out how to spend it joyfully and interestingly. If you’re on vacation, try to get as much experience and enjoyment as possible. Maybe it’s time for a trip, so make this time unforgettable. Don’t deny yourself. - Reflection and scheduling shouldn’t be superfluous.
You may not have time for certain things during the week, or maybe you don’t have enough time to rest or enough flexibility in your schedule. Try to think and allocate time differently. Experiment and develop your strategy to optimize your schedule and get everything done. - Your best gift is your generosity.
Remember to invest not only in yourself but also in others. This applies not only to your family and friends but also to others who lack care and companionship. Get involved in charity or volunteer work. Give your time and attention to others. - Spirituality is the key to truth.
Improve yourself spiritually, engage in personal growth, and take care of your emotional health. Improve your mental well-being, create harmony, and enjoy balance in your life.
We hope this article will make it easier for you to navigate your life as a high achiever. Do you know anyone else who could benefit from this article? Send them a link!
