Workplace stress has become an important consideration for employees and leaders. A 2026 survey of 2,153 U.S. workers found that 53% had experienced burnout because of their job during the previous year, while 39% had felt overwhelmed enough to make performing their work difficult. The findings also showed that conversations about mental health tend to be more comfortable among trusted colleagues than with organizational leaders.
These findings raise an important question about how demanding, high-stakes work is interpreted. Society often associates high-stakes roles and challenging environments with stress as an inherent part of the experience. Brian Hite, founder of Brian Hite Global, offers a different perspective. He says, "A job or situation can carry significant stakes while the experience of stress and pressure can depend entirely on how a person interprets the circumstances."
