Overfunctioning Is Compensation, Not Leadership
Feb 24, 2026Most capable people are not exhausted because they are incapable.
They are exhausted because they are compensating.
Overfunctioning is one of the most socially rewarded behaviours in leadership. It looks like commitment. It looks like reliability. It looks like stepping up.
It also looks like burnout waiting to happen.
Overfunctioning shows up quietly.
It shows up when you step in just this once, and then become the person who always steps in.
It shows up when you fix the presentation instead of coaching the team member who prepared it.
It shows up when you take over a project because it is not moving fast enough.
It shows up when you rewrite communication, smooth over tension, solve problems before anyone feels discomfort.
From the outside, this looks responsible.
From the inside, it feels heavy.
What makes overfunctioning so powerful is the story we tell ourselves.
It is faster if I just do it.
They are not ready.
I do not want to make this bigger than it needs to be.
I am protecting the team.
It is easier this way.
These sound rational.
They are rational lies.
They protect you from discomfort.
Discomfort about raising a standard.
Discomfort about having a difficult conversation.
Discomfort about letting someone experience the consequence of their own role.
So instead of addressing what needs to be addressed, we compensate.
We carry more.
We absorb more.
We smooth more.
And leadership becomes heavier.
Not because there is more work.
But because there is less clarity.
When standards are unclear, capable people compensate. When expectations are vague, strong leaders overfunction. When discomfort is avoided, effort increases.
Clean leadership does not require more effort. It requires cleaner decisions.
It requires allowing small discomforts now so they do not become chronic compensation later.
Just because you can carry something does not mean you should.
Just because you have always stepped in does not mean you still need to.
When you stop compensating, leadership gets lighter.
When clarity replaces rational lies, energy returns.
This reflection is part of my February series on Clean Leadership.
Because clarity protects energy. Compensation drains it.
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