Fried Executives

In our breakneck-speed business world, things happen around us that we are either unaware of or choose not to acknowledge. One of these silent but critical issues in business today is the increasing number of CEOs and other executives who are suffering from exhaustion, depression, and high blood pressure. It’s both interesting and disturbing to note that Monday morning sees a spike in the incidence of heart attacks.

What are the ingredients for this growing tragedy in our executive ranks? Consider the following recipe:

Take one corner office occupant and mix with:

• 1 ton economic recession mixed with inflation
• 2 bushels global competition, constant adaptation, and change
• 3 gallons complex business processes
• 4 quarts pressure to improve performance, quality, and service
• 5 pints ever-increasing responsibilities in post-merger organizations
• 6 cups portable, 24-7 workplace
• 7 tablespoons fear of becoming obsolete
• 8 teaspoons loss of control over schedule, income, respect, and trust
• 9 pounds motivating difficult employees and management team
• 10 ounces being accountable to directors, investors, employees, customers, the public, spouse, kids, community, and religious groups.

Blend these ingredients in an organizational pressure cooker for several months. The result is an executive fried to a crisp. Put a fork in this person—he or she is done.

I suspect there are many of you who can relate to this recipe for disaster. Is it any wonder that so many executives are dropping out of the rat race or retiring early?

No one ever said that an executive’s job was easy, and especially in these current difficult economic conditions, it’s downright grueling. The time is ripe for high levels of CEO burnout, turnover, and exhaustion. Putting my Dr. Phil hat on once again, let’s review some burnout prevention measures. We should all remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.