Seven Pillars of Sustainable Performance

In every industry there are companies that systematically bring out the best in their people while others struggle. In every company there are managers and teams that achieve outstanding results, while others lag behind—overly dependent on shifting circumstances. What is the magic ingredient, the hidden key to success that differentiates the winners from the rest? Their capability for Sustainable Performance.

Sustainable Performance is the delivery of exceptional results over time, that are resistant to varying circumstances, and the ability to balance long term goals with short term needs. Every HR director, manager, and leader understands that these are the capabilities that drive business results, that the people who possess them are an organization’s greatest asset. Now are these qualities simply a matter of natural talent, or can they be identified, nurtured, and developed?

An in-depth analysis of both the successful teams and most up-to-date research results reveals the hidden pattern underneath: sustainable performance can be broken down into seven skills— The Seven Pillars of Sustainable Performance.

These skills can be measured (resulting in the Sustainable Performance Index, or SPI), and they can be trained and nurtured in managers, leaders and teams, creating a foundation for long-term success and continuous high-impact results.

Sustainable Performance Skills Support Efficiency at Work

Sustainable Performance is about working in a way that actually works—for businesses and for the people driving their success. It is not about doing less; it is about doing things smarter. About making conscious choices and matching effort with recovery, intensity with endurance, output with renewal.

Intuitively, everyone recognizes that human energy is not an infinite resource. But Sustainable Performance is not just about preserving energy, it is about learning how to use that energy well and how to replenish it while working (as opposed to only after the workday). It is about working in a way that feels natural and internally aligned, where effort flows and does not feel forced. It is about removing unnecessary internal stressors, forming a healthy relationship with work through personal strengths and values, and about approaching challenges with a sense of ease—even when deadlines and pressures are present.

The core philosophy behind the Seven Pillars of Sustainable Performance is that people who sustain high performance over time are not just lucky or naturally immune to stress; they have seven specific psychological skills that help them manage focus, regulate effort, and stay engaged without overloading.

Traditionally, these skills have been seen as innate traits—some people simply have them, while others do not. This mindset has shaped recruitment practices, with hiring managers searching for candidates who already possess these qualities at a high level. But these characteristics are not fixed. They are trainable skills that can be measured, developed, and improved.

These skills determine how people handle stress, adapt to challenges and maintain motivation in the long run. Companies that truly want sustainable success must actively support the development of these skills—not just in words, but in practice.

Sustainable Performance Index measures Seven Skills

So, what are the key skills that drive Sustainable Performance? At their core, they are cognitive and behavioral abilities that help people navigate challenges, sustain motivation, and stay engaged—while adapting to change and learning from mistakes. These psychological resources shape a healthy, lasting relationship with work and constitute the Seven Pillars of Sustainable Performance.

1️⃣ Flexible Reaction Patterns

2️⃣ Motivation and Engagement Skills

3️⃣ Value Alignment

4️⃣ Recognition and Feedback Skills

5️⃣ Adequate Self-Talk

6️⃣ Change Resilience

7️⃣ Growth Mindset

Seven Pillars of Sustainable Performance

The significance of each of those pillars is supported by both scientific research, and the demands and practices of modern business.

1️⃣ Flexible Reaction Patterns

Consistent high performers navigate workplace pressure not by working longer hours, but by adapting their approach to fit the demands of the moment. Their ability to adjust their reactions under pressure ensures consistent, effective performance, even in unpredictable situations.

In contrast, employees who lack this skill, fall into rigid patterns that slow down results. A manager who avoids confrontation lets underperformance persist. A perfectionist spends hours refining non-essential details, wasting energy unnecessarily. An over-worker takes on too much, losing focus before the real priorities are addressed. These tendencies are not just personal habits – they are business liabilities that drain energy and reduce efficiency.

Training this skill focuses on recognizing one’s reaction default, applying conscious adjustments and broadening the reaction arsenal with options that may better suit different situations. Employees and leaders who master this skill focus on results with laser-like precision (regardless of their own reaction preferences), massively increasing the impact of their performance.

2️⃣ Motivation and Engagement Skills

The highest performing employees take ownership of their work and address engagement issues as they arise. Their performance is stable, making them a reliable asset in high-demand environments—managers can trust them to be consistently engaged. They not only find challenge, meaning, or enjoyment in their tasks but also recognize when external factors undermine motivation. They recognize that maintaining motivation is their own responsibility, so instead of disengaging, they actively address these obstacles—whether it's unclear priorities, inefficient processes, or misalignment in expectations—by communicating effectively and working with others to improve the conditions that support engagement.

Many people struggle to sustain engagement because they have not developed the skill of actively managing their motivation. They approach tasks passively, waiting for work to feel engaging rather than shaping it in a way that sparks their interest. Without this skill, their focus drifts unpredictably, leaving colleagues and managers guessing why their engagement fluctuates.

Learning to take control of one’s own engagement is a trainable skill. It is not just about mindset but about developing practical strategies to recognize and address what drains motivation while also tapping into new sources of engagement. Employees who master this skill do more than sustain their own motivation—they contribute to a work environment where engagement is more stable, less effortful, and easier for everyone to maintain.

3️⃣ Value Alignment

High performers consistently infuse their work with their values, acting with integrity not only when choosing what to do but also by actively shaping how they do things. They use their values to find purpose in their work, and to reduce stress. They also monitor their environments for value-rifts and actively address them in a calm and constructive way. They are a source of stability and support for others, driving business results without needing to be micromanaged.

In contrast, employees without this skill do not navigate work from their internal compass, relying on external cues to define their sense of purpose. Lacking integrity or agency, they react passively to value misalignments—whether in leadership decisions, team culture, or company direction—disengaging when things feel unclear or becoming sources of friction when expectations shift. Instead of addressing misalignment constructively, they either withdraw, adopt a complaining demeanor or push back in ways that slow progress. This creates a management burden, fueling unnecessary conflict, and forcing leaders to spend valuable time restoring team cohesion instead of driving results.

Training employees to act from their values includes recognizing, understanding, and addressing value discrepancies before they turn into disengagement or conflict. In some cases, this clarity leads employees to reshape their role for better alignment; in others, it helps them make informed decisions about whether they are in the right environment. While this can sometimes mean an employee chooses to leave, it ultimately prevents prolonged disengagement and misalignment, allowing both the individual and the organization to direct their energy where it drives the greatest impact.

4️⃣ Recognition and Feedback Skills

Classic feedback training focuses on the manager’s ability to give feedback in a constructive way, but this is just a part of the feedback landscape—employees should also actively seek and use feedback to refine their work. Sustainable performance means knowing how to ask for feedback, interpret it, and apply it to improve performance and decrease stress. This skill allows them to self-correct, stay aligned with business goals, and work more calmly and efficiently without the unnecessary burden of uncertainty and defensiveness. For managers it means being able to conversely address lacking performance in a way that motivates growth instead of being threatening to the recipient.

Employees who lack this skill inadvertently increase their stress and uncertainty, second-guessing their work and hesitating over decisions. Instead of using feedback as a tool for growth, they avoid it—resisting input, becoming defensive, or disengaging when expectations are unclear. When in managerial roles, they may hold back on giving direct feedback, fearing it will damage relationships. This cycle weakens accountability, slows execution, and forces leaders to spend valuable time realigning people who could be adjusting on their own.

Training the skills of asking for, receiving, and giving feedback is a clear win for organizations—it accelerates learning while reducing stress by minimizing performance uncertainty. Key trainable elements are self-awareness and communication skills. The first one focuses on helping employees recognize their defensiveness and tendency to avoid criticism, the second—on constructive, honest, and direct communication about mistakes, expectations and needs.

5️⃣ Adequate Self-Talk

Where Recognition and Feedback skills help navigate external expectations and opinions, the Adequate Self-Talk skill focuses on the internal dialogue regarding one's performance.

Keeping high standards without falling into self-sabotage and using setbacks as data rather than as proof of personal failur lie at the core of the Adequate Self-Talk skill. A meeting falling flat or a project being delayed can be acknowledged without making it into a catastrophe. This internal balance allows high performers to recover quickly, stay engaged, and keep their energy directed toward solutions. Their mindset is not about avoiding self-criticism but about making it productive—sustaining motivation while staying grounded in reality.

In contrast, employees who lack this skill burn energy fighting their own thoughts. A single mistake can spiral into hesitation, stress, or overcorrection. They may become overly self-critical, second-guess decisions, or avoid challenges altogether to escape the risk of failure. Others swing in the opposite direction, dismissing feedback or external challenges to protect themselves from discomfort. In both cases, the result is the same: reduced growth, slower execution, wasted potential and unstable engagement. For managers, this means more time spent rebuilding confidence, realigning motivation, and addressing performance issues that stem not from skill gaps, but from unproductive self-perception.

Training employees in adequate self-talk is a direct investment in resilience and performance. Employees learn to manage their internal dialogue in a way that keeps them engaged, adaptive, and solution-focused, reducing unnecessary stress while maintaining ambition. Self-talk is not innate, it is a learned pattern that was shaped over time. And just as it was learned once, it can be consciously reshaped to support performance, confidence, and long-term growth.

6️⃣ Change Resilience

High performers remain effective in unpredictable environments because they adapt without losing focus or motivation. They process change effectively, integrate new ways of working without resistance, and maintain momentum—even when external conditions shift. Their ability to stay composed amidst change reduces operational friction and keeps execution smooth, preventing disruptions that slow business progress.

Employees who lack this skill experience change as a drain on performance. Instead of adjusting, they resist, hesitate, or disengage—delaying adaptation and requiring extra time, reassurance, and even managerial intervention to get back on track. If change is implemented too abruptly, it risks destabilizing teams; if it happens too slowly, it loses impact. The real challenge is not just introducing change, it’s ensuring employees integrate it without unnecessary resistance or productivity loss.

Training in change resilience focuses on awareness of the fear of the unknown and includes building confidence about one’s adaptability. As every person already possesses the ability to adapt to change, the training focuses on unlocking and enhancing employees' natural ability to adapt, removing anxiety and introducing new, practical and more effective ways of coping.

7️⃣ Growth Mindset

High performers approach challenges with the belief that skills, knowledge, and performance can continuously improve. They see difficulties as part of progress, not as failures, which allows them to learn faster, adapt more easily, and stay engaged through difficulties. This mindset fuels innovation, speeds up problem-solving, and makes teams more willing to take the calculated risks needed for business growth.

Employees without this skill operate from a fixed mindset, seeing challenges as threats rather than opportunities. Fear of mistakes slows execution, discourages innovation, and makes employees avoid tasks where success is not guaranteed. Over time, this leads to hesitation, knowledge stagnation, and a workplace culture where employees prioritize avoiding failure (and blame) over progress and results.

Training growth mindset focuses on developing awareness of one's own tendencies toward risk avoidance, mistake aversion, and fixed thinking about abilities. Instead, participants learn to view mistakes, challenges, and skills as part of a continuous process of growth and improvement. They also learn adaptive problem-solving, testing different strategies, and persisting through setbacks with a focus on learning rather than self-judgment.

How the Seven Skills transform into Sustainable Performance

Until now, these skills were rarely taught together because there was no unifying framework that demonstrated their collective impact. Sustainable Performance provides that missing structure, showing that these skills are not only trainable but, because they strengthen each other, are also uniquely powerful when combined. Combined, they enhance performance while reducing stress, making employees both more effective and more resilient.

Introducing the right type of training requires visionary leadership. Many companies underestimate the role of psychological skills, dismissing them as "soft" when, in reality, they are the foundation for applying hard skills effectively. When these skills are underdeveloped, employees struggle to apply their technical expertise—not because they lack knowledge, but because they are too busy managing stress, uncertainty, and disengagement.

Previous attempts to teach resilience in business settings have often fallen short; research shows that traditional resilience training, when not designed with sustainability in mind, can actually harm employee well-being by pushing endurance without addressing long-term psychological effectiveness. A sustainability-focused approach ensures the right balance—maintaining productivity while preserving employee health and well-being.

Picture an employee caught in a cycle of rigid thinking, losing motivation without understanding why, relying heavily on managerial direction, fearing mistakes, feeling uncertain about their performance, and struggling with change. Traditional resilience training would focus on powering through, on finding reserves to continue even if it’s draining and would enhance ineffective behavioral patterns.

Sustainable Performance training, on the other hand, offers a more empowering solution, teaching employees to increase their ability to adapt with flexibility, sustain motivation through values, embrace mistakes as learning opportunities, and navigate change without disruption.

Now, imagine an entire workforce trained to operate this way. Leaders bold enough to prioritize these skills create a workforce that moves faster, adapts better, and unlocks new levels of growth—without the burnout, disengagement, and inefficiencies that hold businesses back.

Additional Benefits of Training Sustainable Performance Skills

When these seven skills are well developed across an organization, people don’t just work harder—they work smarter, longer, and more effectively. They pay attention to how they feel and how they think, they pay attention to their energy levels, analyse what is giving them energy and what is causing strain. These are the intended benefits, but there are also additional teambuilding effects that seem to alleviate workplace loneliness.

Right now, some 20% of employees worldwide report feelings of loneliness at work and companies struggle to find a solution. Coming back to working in the office does not seem to help here, because employees essentially lack the skills that help connect over shared workplace challenges. They do not know how to communicate their difficulties and bond over them without feeling overly weak or vulnerable. Incidentally, the same skills that are responsible for Sustainable Performance are responsible for forming meaningful connections with colleagues.

As one of the participants in our trial Sustainable Performance program reported:

“The training helped us talk about things that I was unaware that we even needed to talk about in the first place. I feel closer to everyone on the team as a result and more aware of the things that stress me in the workplace.”

We did not plan for this to be the main effect, but it seems that training the skills necessary for Sustainable Performance unlocks the deeper potential of team members to connect with each other. There are also indications that Sustainable Performance training reduces burnout, as people with high work-related fatigue and stress score lower on the Seven Pillars scales.

Sustainable Performance Isn’t for Every Organization

And now for the uncomfortable truth: not every organization is ready for the development of the Sustainable Performance Skills and not every organisation will be willing or able to create circumstances that make Sustainable Performance possible.

Some organisations will still rely on outdated workplace dynamics and work-till-you-die mentality —sometimes because of the leaders’ attachment to power, sometimes because of lack of imagination and skill. Sustainable Performance is not for them.

If workflows are poorly designed, if admin and IT systems make work harder instead of easier, if departments are simply understaffed, no amount of mindset shifts will fix stress levels. If leadership isn’t willing to let go of strict hierarchical control, employees won’t feel ownership over their work. If an organization tolerates toxic behaviors, its best people will leave, and its most loyal will burn out. If people are not paid adequately and do not feel basic safety, they will not be open to building Sustainable Performance skills.

Also, not all employees are immediately ready for this type of training. Effective Sustainable Performance programs require participants to be open to self-reflection and curious about their own psychological patterns. Successful participation also depends on employees’ willingness to take ownership of their work, responsibility for their stress levels, and accountability for their energy management—key factors in sustaining high performance over time.

To be truly effective, Sustainable Performance skills need to be taught not only to professionals. Managers and HR business partners also need to be equipped to understand Sustainable Performance. But when Sustainable Performance is developed systematically across all levels, organizations gain more than just a resilient workforce—they gain a competitive edge. They move faster, learn faster, make smarter decisions, and sustain high-impact execution without burning through their talent. Because when performance is built to last, success does not just happen—it becomes the default.