🌈🔥 Do the hardest workers lose out? The truth about the "enthusiasm penalty"

✨Introduction

Is there someone like this in your class?

• Always full of motivation✨

• Often relied upon by teachers and friends

• Entrusted with all sorts of tasks

At first glance, this seems like a very good thing😊

But in reality...
👉 there is a problem where the harder you work, the more tasks get pushed onto you
as a result.

This is called the
💡**"enthusiasm penalty"**
.

🧠 What is the enthusiasm penalty?

To put it very simply👇

👉 A phenomenon where the more motivated you are, the more your workload increases

.

🎒 Let's think about it in a school setting!

For example, in a situation like this👇

🏫 The teacher says in class,
"Is there anyone who can hand out these handouts?"

Then...

🙋‍♂️ "Yes! I'll do it!"

👉 This child is motivated and wonderful✨

But...

• Next time, it's this child again

• This person again

• Before you know it, it's always this person

👉 Everything ends up concentrated on this one person😢

🤔 Why does this happen?

💭 Reason 1: The assumption that 'this person will be fine'

Teachers and leaders tend to think this way👇

• 'They're motivated, so it's okay to leave it to them'

• 'This person will get it done properly'

👉 But this is a bit dangerous⚠️

Even if they are motivated,
👉 they get tired, and there are limits.

💭 Reason 2: We end up asking the 'easy-to-ask' people

People tend to ask👇

• people who don't seem like they'll refuse

• people who are reliable

to do things.

👉 As a result...

🔥 Work always piles up on the same person!

⚠️ What kind of problems arise?

😵‍💫 1. They get exhausted (burnout)

The more motivated a person is...

• Work keeps piling up

• You can't take a break

• Stress builds up

👉 Reaching your limit without realizing it...

😢 ② Working hard doesn't lead to recognition

The tasks you're assigned are...

• Handing out printouts

• Setup and cleanup

👉 Important but invisible work

In other words👇
💔 Working hard doesn't always lead to recognition

⚖️ ③ The class balance gets thrown off

• Only one person is busy

• Others don't get the experience

👉 Inequity is created

🔍 What research has shown

Research from
👉 Cornell University
in the US found these results👇

• Many people
  👉 assigned more work to those who were motivated

What's more...

👉 Because of that, some people even lost out on opportunities😨

💡 What should you do?

🌟 Point 1: Distribute work in a balanced way

• Don't let one person handle everything

• Share the load among everyone

👉 Everyone can grow✨

🌟 Point 2: "Enthusiasm does not mean infinite capacity"

👉 Everyone gets tired!

Just having this awareness 👇
💡 is known to significantly reduce imbalances

🌟 Point 3: Make it visible

• Check who is doing how much

• Notice the imbalances

👉 Prevent unconscious unfairness

🎓 Important point

The scary part of this problem is 👇

😈 There is no malicious intent

• You assign tasks because you trust them

• You ask the person you can rely on

👉 But that ends up becoming a burden

🌈 Summary

💡 What is the enthusiasm penalty?

• The phenomenon where work concentrates on motivated people

• If left unchecked, it leads to exhaustion and unfairness

• But by "becoming aware," it can be improved

✨In conclusion

Working hard is a wonderful thing😊
But at the same time👇

👉 Protecting those who work hard is also important

An environment where everyone supports each other is the best, isn't it?🌸

📚 Source

• Cornell University
  “The enthusiasm penalty: Why motivated employees get overburdened”
  https://business.cornell.edu/hub/2026/03/24/the-enthusiasm-penalty-why-motivated-employees-get-overburdened/

Thank you so much for reading this far. I hope this was helpful to you!