The straight-A student, the tireless professional, the ever-driven entrepreneur. They may look confident, organised, and in control, yet research shows that many high achievers are quietly struggling to keep themselves together.

Dr Allison Buskirk-Cohen, a psychology professor at Delaware Valley University in Pennsylvania in the United States, explores this paradox in her recent work on high-achieving students. Her research focuses on well-being among university students, particularly those in honours programmes. “Honours students often face a perfect storm,” she writes: “where the stress of emerging adulthood collides with high expectations, leading to anxiety, depression, and burnout.”

Buskirk-Cohen notes that the drive for perfection can easily become self-destructive. “When self-worth is tied to achievement, failure feels catastrophic,” she explains. In such environments, exhaustion is worn as a badge of honour, and even success brings little relief because the next benchmark looms immediately.

The symptoms are often invisible: sleepless nights, emotional fatigue, and an inability to rest without guilt. Yet the cure, she argues, is not lower ambition but stronger connection. Supportive mentors, peers, and families act as buffers, helping high achievers reframe setbacks as part of growth rather than proof of inadequacy.

Professionals in competitive careers face the same trap of constant comparison and diminishing joy. Real success, Buskirk-Cohen suggests, requires balance: “valuing yourself for who you are, not just what you do.”

For South Africa’s ambitious students and young professionals, it is important to know thatexcellence and well-being are not enemies. The healthiest achievers are those who know when to rest, when to reach out, and when to stop measuring their worth by the next award or promotion.