High Achiever Personality Traits and Characteristics
Below are common intellectual and personality traits of the High Achievers who work well with Dr. Groff.
High Achievers may not identify with all traits, and not all successful people have a High Achiever personality.
Personal Traits of High Achievers
PERSONALITY TRAITS
“My expectations seem realistic to me.”
- High sense of responsibility
- Honest, sometimes to a fault
- Action-oriented
- Hates incompetence
- High expectations of self
- Tendency to view personal weakness as failure
- Internally competitive
- Open-minded and curious
- Many are introverted/need time alone to regroup.
How It Feels
- “Tricia, I don’t know if I’m being realistic?”
- “I should have known better.”
- “Sometimes I have too much ego, but I also doubt myself.”
INTELLECTUAL TRAITS
“Why am I the only one who sees this problem?”
- Assesses multiple variables and contingencies in decision-making
- Processes information quickly
- Think several layers deeper than the surface of a conversation
- Intellectually curious and willing to challenge one’s own conclusions
- Independent thinkers
- Sometimes told that they are “over-thinking” (They simply try to account for all variables).
How It Feels
- Can be isolating if High Achievers need to dumb themselves down
- Learning is fun; problem-solving is addictive
- The right answers feel like “common sense,” but others don’t see them.
Responsible - A Double Edged Sword
One of the best characteristics of High Achievers is their high integrity. They take responsibility for their actions and outcomes. This trait helps them develop strong relationships and a good reputation. At the same time, it can create emotional difficulty because High Achievers tend to take responsibility for things that are not their fault. The tendency to take all blame on themselves creates an emotional drain and can also inhibit problem-solving. A solution to help sort through the variables that contribute to less than desirable outcomes is to draw a pie and assign the responsibility across multiple variables. This visual representation provides a more accurate view of what they need to change versus relationships that may need to change or situational variables that were outside their control.
Interpersonal Traits of High Achievers
INTERPERSONAL STRENGTHS
“Everyone relies on me!”
- Cares deeply about people, even if people exhaust them
- Loyal
- Takes commitment seriously
- Values substance over social pretense
- Prefers straightforward communication
- Eager to help and problem-solve
- Perceived as very competent
- Natural leader
INTERPERSONAL CHALLENGES
“Everyone relies on me…”
- Tendency to overestimate others’ understanding
- Balancing directness with others’ emotional needs
- Finds small talk exhausting
- Hates disappointing others
- Dislikes asking for help
- Thinks they should be able to change people (doesn’t work)
- May rely on logic to resolve emotional arguments
Organizational Leadership Traits of High Achievers
ORGANIZATIONAL STRENGTHS
“I can see exactly what needs to happen!”
- Excellent at seeing gaps in vision
- Able to identify system inefficiencies
- Seeks progress; hates stagnation
- Values organizational success over ego
- Stressed by political maneuvering
- Focuses on innovation and growth
- Fueled by strategic thinking
ORGANIZATIONAL CHALLENGES
“I can see exactly what needs to happen…”
- Difficulty delegating when others don’t meet standards
- Overestimating team members’ capabilities or understanding
- Balancing desire for excellence with pragmatic timelines
- Finding advisors and board members who add value
- Experiencing isolation at the top of the organization
- Frustrated with employee incompetence
- Struggles with determining reasonable expectations
Additional Content (For High Achievers with FOMO)
About IQ and Giftedness
Some of the clients who work with Dr. Tricia have been identified as having high IQ. Others were in honors or gifted programs and not formally tested. And the third group were B students who were slightly bored in school and overlooked by academia.
IQ tests themselves can be faulty and biased, depending on cultural variables and learning styles. The valuable information isn’t about an IQ score itself, but rather the unique strengths that High Achievers have. When they are unaware of these edges, they may underestimate themselves or be confused about why others can’t think or work the same way.
Here are a few characteristics of High Achievers who also have High IQs:
1. Rapid processing speed. They think fast, which can be frustrating when one waits for others to “catch up.” Sometimes this rapid thought is reflected in rapid speech, while some High Achievers speak more slowly as they struggle to put the complexity of thought into cohesive speech.
2. The ability to synthesize multiple variables and facets of a situation beyond what is instantly obvious.
3. The ability to see downstream and long-term impact in a way that feels “common sense.”
4. Many have a strong memory, which, integrated with abstract reasoning and the ability to synthesize variables, helps with pattern recognition.
5. Multi-potentiality. Multi-faceted talent. For example, they may be analytical and artistic at the same time. They have diverse interests and are curious about many things.
6. Some may be easily over-stimulated or sensitive to noise.
7. Some have high emotional intelligence. Others struggle with emotional intelligence and connecting with others.
**High-IQ individuals who had undiagnosed ADHD, dyslexia, or other learning difficulties were often overlooked in school and may not define themselves as particularly smart.
Reframing "Weakness"
Many High Achievers are hard on themselves when they encounter an area of “weakness.” Carl Jung was a psychoanalyst who use the term “shadow side” to describe the parts of people’s personalities that they try to repress compared to those aspects of which a person is consciously aware. While Jung used the term to focus on subconscious areas of personality, I’ve borrowed and repurposed it to represent the flip side of our strengths.
1. The shadow side exists because of strength.
Most strengths have a cost attached, a shadow side if you will. For example, a generous High Achiever may struggle with setting boundaries about how much to give others. Alternately, a High Achiever who wants to see the best in people may have difficulty knowing when to fire an employee. High Achievers who are very responsible may take responsibility for things that are outside of their control. Finally, the High Achievers with high standards of execution may have difficulty recognizing what “good enough” looks like, for both themselves and for others.
2. High Achievers can reframe their perception of weaknesses by assessing their strengths.
High Achievers can learn to give themselves grace if they are able to identify the strengths that are associated with areas of struggle. This identification often reduces feelings of failure and shame because the shadow side is linked to strength. It’s a ‘side effect’ of strength rather than a separate area of deficit.
3. High Achievers can begin reframing perceived weaknesses by making a list.
High Achievers can gain insight by making a list of their “weaknesses.” After they’ve made the list, they can think about whether those “weaknesses” are a byproduct or linked to areas of strength. The linkage to strength allows High Achievers to focus on and celebrate the upside while continuing to grow in their skills at managing the shadow side.
Unique Challenges
Sometimes being a High Achiever creates distinctive, and often, paradoxical, challenges.
The Optimization Paradox:
For High Achievers, self-discipline usually means figuring out when to do less. The drive to do more can increase vulnerability to unfulfillment and burnout. The answer isn’t precisely about doing less, but rather incorporating guardrails into the achievement paradigm.
The Responsibility Trap:
High Achievers’ natural tendency to take ownership makes them incredibly reliable and trustworthy. However, they also tend to take responsibility for outcomes outside of their control, which increases stress and fatigue.
The Authenticity Challenge:
Most High Achievers have learned “hold back,” either because they’ve been misunderstood or in order to work effectively with others. While that response shows adaptability, it can also make it difficult for High Achievers to feel like they can be themselves.
The Support Scarcity:
High Achievers generally don’t ask for much help. Sometimes it’s because they hate asking. At other times, it’s because they are uncertain that competent help is available. Often, they don’t think about asking for help because they are used to problem-solving independently. Together, it can be difficult to obtain the type of support that truly lightens the load.
Most High Achievers Seek...
To feel understood
Specific tools and strategies
To not feel alone
To be respected
Results
Progress
To feel confident about decisions
Meaning and fulfillment
To be authentic
Confidence
Peace and reconciliation within oneself
(And if at this point you’re thinking, doesn’t everyone want those this? Yes, but to a lesser degree. It’s like this–many people like to learn, but High Achievers crave intellectual stimulation. It’s similar to other characteristics mapped on a bell curve. It’ the amount or extent that creates the difference rather than a categorical delineation).
A Growth Mindset
The Pursuit of Excellence Decreases Our Ability to Accurately Predict Outcomes
Profiles of High Achiever Clients
(Names Have Been Changed to Protect the Innocent)
Angie, The Fun and Contrarian Founder
Angie is a founder and owner of several companies. She is a visionary who builds and creates. As a human, she is warm, honest, and unwilling to settle for the status quo in any facet of life. She leads with both intellect and passion, always seeking to empower others’ success.
Kyle, The Young Einstein
Kyle is a founder and executive of a VC backed company that is rapidly expanding its territory. He quickly implements new strategies, and he embodies the commitment to whole-person excellence. Kyle sometimes spices up a serious conversation with sarcasm that leaves one laughing for hours.
Al, the Emotive Math Genius
Al is a C-suite executive who synthesizes information at the speed of light and is an early adopter of all good ideas. He is an amazing human, who seeks peak performance in himself and his team. He works hard to balance high expectations with compassion and flexibility.
John, The Dry-Humor Entertainer
John is the owner of a rapidly growing business that is in the teenage phase. He is funny, easy-going, and whip-smart. John is strong-minded and open-minded, so he’ll consider new paths if the argument is solid. He continuously strives for business and personal excellence.
Brent, Crunchy on the Outside; Gooey on the Inside
Brent is a specialist and leader in the health industry. He is brilliantly logical and prefers any explanation of human behavior to be translated into a flowchart with supporting rationale and applicable examples. Brent is funny, willing to tolerate extreme discomfort, and remains uncompromising in his dedication to excellence.
Lisa, The Pattern Connector
Lisa is a senior executive in a company that innovates at warp speed. She sees connections and patterns that others don’t see; so she constantly works to contain chaos without slowing the growth. Her dedication to excellence in unrelenting, which usually means that she’s hard on herself.
Where High Achievement Meets Personal Excellence
Personal Excellence Integration addresses the “so what” part of being a High Achiever. It focuses on customizing various areas of focus that fit their values and goals.
Explore Personal Excellence Integration →
Discover how performance optimization, leadership identity development, and life architecture integration create sustainable excellence for high achievers.
Learn More about the Integrated Genius Approach →
The Integrated Approach addresses both the Personal Excellence of High Achievers and the Organizational challenges they face as owners or leaders. This page provides additional information about the overall framework.