Why the best leaders design their own recovery
Recovery needs cover and workable boundaries, not a judgement about which leaders are best or most resilient.
The performance question
A leader can schedule time away yet remain the only person authorised to resolve routine issues. The gap is organisational: recovery is conditional on no problem occurring. Design the role so ordinary decisions continue when the leader is unavailable, and remove the suggestion that endurance proves competence.
What the evidence supports
HSE says employers must manage fatigue risk irrespective of a person’s willingness to work extra hours. NICE recommends supporting managers’ own mental health needs. Neither ranks leaders by their recovery habits or establishes a single recovery prescription.[1][2]
A practical approach
Identify the decisions that interrupt evenings, leave or travel recovery. Delegate routine authority and create named cover for the remainder. Protect breaks during demanding days and set genuine emergency contact rules. Persistent exhaustion or health concerns require appropriate professional support, not simply a new diary routine.
How to review progress
Check whether cover actually handled decisions during the next absence and whether work was merely accumulated for return. Review workload with the board or line manager if boundaries repeatedly fail. Measure functioning arrangements, not private health behaviour or commitment to the business.
Sources and references
- Human factors: Fatigue Opens in a new tab
Health and Safety Executive
Why fatigue matters and key principles for managing working hours
- Mental wellbeing at work Opens in a new tab
NICE
NG212 sections 1.1 to 1.6: strategy, environment, managers and individual support