In a culture that celebrates relentless hustle and glorifies perfection, leaders often find themselves caught in the endless, anxious pursuit of achievement. While ambition and drive are valuable traits, the cost of overachievement can be deep, affecting mental health, relationships, and overall well-being. For many leaders, the pressure to perform becomes unsustainable, leading to burnout, dissatisfaction, and a sense of lost purpose. But there is an alternative: embracing grace over grind.
Few people understand this better than Scott Sauls, a pastor, author, and mentor who openly refers to himself as a "recovering overachiever." Over the course of his career, Scott has wrestled with anxious ambition, approval-seeking, and the relentless drive to succeed. Now, he advocates for grace-oriented leadership—a model that shifts focus from endless performance to balanced, purposeful, and compassionate living.
Here, Pastor Scott Sauls of Nashville shares the pitfalls of perfectionism, the transformative power of grace, and the steps leaders can take to move beyond the burdens and grind of overachievement.
For more than 25 years, Scott Sauls has been a prominent voice in church leadership, serving large congregations, planting churches, writing books, and speaking to thousands. Recently, however, Scott shifted to a more personal, behind-the-scenes form of ministry. Instead of leading from large platforms, he now focuses on mentoring a smaller, intentional group of individuals—helping high-output leaders, cultural influencers, and pastors navigate life’s challenges with faith, integrity, and purpose.
This shift reflects a personal evolution. As a self-described “recovering overachiever,” Scott Sauls draws on his own struggles with perfectionism and approval-seeking to guide others toward healthier, more sustainable ways of living and leading. His platform may have changed, but his passion for teaching, writing, and advocating for the vulnerable remains unchanged.
For many leaders, overachievement stems from a perfectionist mindset—the belief that worth and success are defined by accomplishments. Pastor Scott Sauls of Nashville explains that this mindset can manifest in several ways: burnout from pushing too hard, fear of failure that stifles creativity, and strained relationships caused by prioritizing professional success over personal connection. Leaders who chase impossible standards often find themselves perpetually dissatisfied, as the pursuit of “more” and “better” rarely feels like enough.
Scott’s insights, which he says were gained chiefly through his own experience with failure, reveal an important truth: perfectionism is not just exhausting; it is unsustainable. Without a shift in perspective, leaders risk sacrificing their health, joy, and purpose on the altar of achievement.
The antidote to perfectionism, according to Scott Sauls, is grace. Rooted in faith but universally applicable, grace allows leaders to accept themselves and others as inherently valuable—independent of performance. This shift in mindset offers freedom: freedom to release unrealistic expectations, freedom to acknowledge and accept limitations in ourselves and others, and freedom to prioritize what matters most.
“Grace gives us permission to focus on progress rather than perfection,” Scott explains. It fosters humility by encouraging collaboration over competition and strengthens resilience by transforming failures into learning opportunities. When leaders lead with grace, they build deeper, more authentic relationships—whether with their teams, their loved ones, or God and themselves.
For Scott Sauls, grace is not merely a concept but a transformative practice that restores joy, authenticity, and meaning. It enables leaders to reconnect with their purpose and move beyond the pressure to constantly prove themselves.
While embracing grace sounds simple, it requires intentional effort to overcome deeply ingrained habits and ways of being. Scott Sauls offers several strategies for leaders seeking to recover from overachievement.
The first step, he explains, is to redefine success. Instead of measuring value by external achievements, leaders can focus on internal peace and character and ask: What truly brings me joy and purpose? Am I prioritizing what matters most to God and the people around me? Are character and integrity more important to me than achieving and “winning?”
From there, cultivating self-compassion and care becomes essential. Leaders must learn to treat themselves with the same kindness they would offer a close friend. Practices like prayer, journaling, and what Scott Sauls calls “meaningful and life-giving relationships” provide a foundation for this shift, helping leaders accept failure as part of growth.
Scott also emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries. Overachievers often overextend themselves, saying yes to commitments that deplete their time and energy. According to Scott, this often comes from an unhealthy urge to people-please. By delegating responsibilities, limiting work hours, prioritizing rest, and trusting God with the outcomes, leaders can begin to protect their own well-being.
Healthy, “non-transactional” relationships, he adds, are critical in this journey. Strong, supportive connections offer encouragement and perspective, helping leaders stay grounded in their God-given values. At the same time, celebrating and expressing humble gratitude for small wins—rather than fixating on unattainable ideals—helps shift the focus from flaws to progress.
Scott’s advice is clear: recovering from overachievement is not a solitary journey. Leaders often benefit from seeking guidance, whether through mentors, coaches, or counselors who provide insight and accountability. It is also helpful, he adds, to seek regular feedback from peers at work, at home, and in community. A good question to ask others regularly, he advises, is “How do you experience me? What is it like for you to be in relationship with me? How can I show up better for you, and for ‘us’?” Finally, reconnecting with purpose—aligning actions with core values—fosters a deeper sense of meaning that transcends external success.
Scott Sauls believes grace-oriented leadership is not just an abstract idea but a practical model seen in the lives of successful, influential leaders. Achieving much and creating healthy work environments don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, for example, has built a culture of empathy and collaboration, fostering innovation without sacrificing well-being. Similarly, author and speaker Brené Brown has shown how embracing vulnerability and imperfection can lead to courage and authenticity. Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz provides another example, prioritizing servant leadership and compassion over aggressive expansion.
These examples, Scott explains, demonstrate that applying grace in all areas of life, especially relationships, is not a sign of weakness. Instead, it is a powerful force that enhances leadership, builds trust, and creates sustainable success.
The benefits of embracing grace over grind are far-reaching. Leaders who adopt this approach often experience improved mental health, as reduced stress and anxiety give way to clarity and resilience. Relationships flourish as compassion and empathy become guiding principles. Success, when rooted in love, purpose, and sustainability, becomes more resilient and lasting.
Above all, grace allows leaders to find fulfillment—not just in achievements, but in the journey itself and the people with whom he or she gets to be on that journey with.
Recovering from overachievement is not about abandoning ambition; it is about redefining it. For Scott Sauls, this has come to mean prioritizing purpose, relationships, and well-being over the relentless pursuit of perfection. As Scott Sauls church teachings remind us, our worth is not determined by what we do, but by who we are and who God is making us to be.
In a world that demands perfection, choosing grace is both radical and transformative. It frees leaders as well as those they lead to live authentically, work and serve sustainably, and discover a deeper sense of joy along the way.
