Are Your Best Employees Quietly Slipping Away?

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Hey Spark Family,

Let’s talk about the invisible crisis happening inside so many organizations right now:

The people holding everything together... are starting to fall apart.

They’re your go-to problem solvers. The ones who take initiative, lead without a title, and always come through in the clutch. But under the surface? Many of these high performers are exhausted, disengaged, and eyeing the door.

The Research Is Clear

The latest Microsoft Work Index report reveals:

• Only 36% of employees are seen as consistently delivering “great work” (Leadership IQ, 2025).
• Those top performers often report lower engagement than their average peers.
• 78% of high performers say they feel taken for granted or overlooked by leadership.
• And when they leave? Organizational performance drops even more - because they were carrying far more than their job description.

This isn’t just a retention problem.
It’s a recognition problem.
It’s a fairness problem.
It’s a leadership problem.

What I'm Seeing In The Field

The best leaders I work with aren’t trying to keep people happy by saying “thank you” more.
They’re redesigning the system so excellence actually gets rewarded.

Here’s what I mean:

• High performers are often expected to carry the team - without boundaries, recognition, or relief.
• Underperformers stay under the radar... while top talent gets more piled on.
• And over time, the people who care the most start caring less - because it feels like no one else does.

And here’s the part that stings:
When top talent walks away, it’s rarely loud.
It’s quiet. It’s gradual. It’s preventable.

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What We Teach Leaders Inside Spark Brilliance

Here’s how we help organizations retain their best people, and elevate the rest:

Spot and Celebrate Behavioral Brilliance​
Don’t just reward outcomes - recognize the effort, mindset, and collaboration that drive success.

Create Consequences (Yes, Really)​
Make it clear that excellence and mediocrity do not get the same results. If your top people see under-performers rewarded the same way, they’re gone.

Audit the Load​
Look at who’s carrying the unspoken weight - and redistribute before it breaks them.

Offer Career Clarity​
Show your high performers how their excellence leads to advancement. If they can’t see a future, they’ll find one elsewhere.

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🌟 Your Challenge This Week

Take five minutes and ask yourself:

➡ Who are the people holding this place together - and do they know it?
​➡ Is there invisible burnout happening in plain sight?
​➡ What small moment of real recognition can I offer today?

The truth is - your best people aren’t asking for handouts.
They’re asking for alignment. Integrity. And a workplace that values them as much as they value the mission.

Let’s give them that.

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With gratitude,
​Jackie

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P.S. – Forward this to another leader who’s running the risk of losing someone great. Or just take a moment to tell your top performer what they mean to you. That 60 seconds could change everything. ✨

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