You're Working Too Hard for Worse Results
Performance paradox: The harder you work, the worse your results might become.
You're probably sabotaging your best performance by believing that maximum effort always produces maximum results. The relationship between input and output isn't linear, and your "more is better" approach is backfiring. I've studied performance patterns across domains, and here's what high achievers understand: Many critical activities follow an Inverted-U pattern where performance peaks at moderate effort levels.
The effort trap that's destroying your peak performance:
You believe intensity equals results. So you work longer hours, push harder in meetings, analyze decisions more thoroughly, demand higher intensity from your team. Sometimes it works. Often it creates stress, overthinking, and diminished performance.
What's actually happening:
Your brain has optimal performance zones. Beyond those zones, additional effort creates cognitive overload, decision paralysis, and stress-induced mistakes. You're working past your point of maximum effectiveness. Stanford University proved this: 72% of knowledge work activities demonstrate Inverted-U patterns, with performance declining after moderate effort levels.
Your optimal performance strategy:
Map Your Effort-Result Relationships
- Identify which activities benefit from high intensity versus moderate effort
- Notice when increased effort starts producing worse outcomes
- Find your sweet spot for different types of cognitive work
Implement Strategic Downshifting
- Recognize when you've exceeded productive intensity levels
- Practice backing off from maximum effort when it's counterproductive
- Use minimum effective dose thinking for complex decisions
Create Team Awareness of Performance Curves
- Help your team understand when more effort hurts performance
- Prevent collective overexertion that destroys team effectiveness
- Design work systems around optimal intensity, not maximum intensity
The performance breakthrough:
Your peak results often require optimal intensity calibrated to the specific activity, not maximum intensity applied universally. Stop believing more effort always equals better results. Start calibrating your intensity to your performance zones. Ready to optimize your effort for peak performance? Let's find your optimal intensity levels.
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As an expert in operations and leadership, I strongly resonate with this. In high-stakes industries like energy and logistics, I’ve seen firsthand how pushing teams beyond their optimal performance zone often backfires—errors increase, safety risks rise, and decision-making quality drops. Sustainable excellence isn’t about maximum effort; it’s about calibrated effort—knowing when to push and when to pause. Leaders who master this balance not only safeguard productivity but also protect the well-being of their people. Peak performance is rarely about doing more—it’s about doing the right things at the right intensity.
Really insightful piece, Joshua. It highlights how “working harder” inside rigid 9–5 and SLA-driven systems often backfires — driving burnout and lower results. The real shift isn’t more hours, but moving toward outcome-driven ways of working, with agility and human rhythms built in. Curious: in your experience, what’s the biggest blocker for leaders making this mindset shift — culture, contracts, or compliance pressures?
Been following your content for a while Joshua Miller. Always practical advice.
Quality over quantity applies to work hours too.
Do you address this in your coaching sessions Joshua Miller?