“The people you sit near may be shaping your performance more than your skills do.”

Most leaders believe performance comes from skills, talent, or motivation.
But new research reveals a far more powerful — and often invisible — factor:
the energy of the people sitting around you.
And the impact is bigger than anyone predicted.

A groundbreaking study from Kellogg School of Management shows that simply sitting within 25 feet of a high performer can boost your own performance by 15% — generating nearly $1 million in additional value for the company annually.

But there’s a darker side:

“Toxic energy spreads twice as fast — and across the entire floor.”
— Prof. Dylan Minor, Kellogg School

According to Minor’s research, when employees sit near someone who was later fired for toxic behavior, their own risk of acting out and being disciplined skyrockets — instantly.

In other words:

Your performance is not just your behavior.

Your performance is your environment.

THE SCIENCE OF ENERGY SPILLOVER — Why You Rise or Fall Together

Over 2,000 workers in a major tech company were tracked for two years. The findings were astonishing:

Positive Spillover (High Performers → You)

• Increases speed or quality by up to 15%
• Works fastest when the strengths are complementary
• Does not reduce performance of the high performer
• Takes about 1 month to noticeably elevate team output

Negative Spillover (Toxic Workers → You)

• Impacts the entire floor, not just nearby desks
• Effect begins immediately
• Doubles the negative impact compared to positive spillover
• Disappears instantly once the toxic person is removed

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The conclusion is crystal clear:

“Energy spreads faster than instructions.”
THE MAX ENERGY Leadership Insight

Companies spend millions on training and technology…
but one wrong seating arrangement can quietly destroy months of progress. A toxic worker is not just a problem — it is a multiplier of problems.

The Most Powerful Insight from Harvard: Avoiding One Toxic Worker Is More Valuable Than Hiring a Superstar

Research from Harvard Business School Strategy Unit (Housman & Minor, Working Paper No. 16-057) analyzed more than 50,000 employees across 11 firms — and uncovered a shocking truth:

Removing or preventing ONE toxic worker improves organizational performance far more than adding a superstar.

Why?

Because toxic behavior doesn’t stay contained.
It spreads. Fast.

The study shows:

• Toxic employees trigger misconduct in others

• Their negative ripple effect outweighs the positive impact of top performers

• The cost of a single toxic worker can exceed $12,800 annually — even before legal or compliance risks

• Meanwhile, a superstar’s positive effect is far smaller than previously assumed

Conclusion:

“Avoiding toxic workers creates greater value than replacing average workers with superstars.”
(Harvard Business School Working Paper 16-057)

This is not just HR insight —
It is a leadership imperative.

If you want high performance, creativity, and psychological safety…
Start by eliminating toxic energy from the system.

High-performing cultures are not built by the strongest individuals.
They are built by protecting the energy field of the team.

THE SPILLOVER EFFECT — The Cost of Toxic Energy Is Bigger Than You Think

The Kellogg findings align with earlier large-scale research by Dylan Minor and Michael Housman (HiQ Labs), who analyzed 58,000 employees across 11 major firms using Cornerstone OnDemand data.

Their conclusion was striking:

A single toxic worker costs a company an estimated $12,800 — more than the financial gain produced by a star performer.

Even more alarming:

“Once a toxic person shows up next to you, your risk of becoming toxic yourself has gone up.”
— Minor & Housman, Organizational Behavior Study

This means the negative spillover is not just emotional — it is financial, behavioral, and contagious.

The data showed:

✔ Toxic spillover spreads instantly, affecting anyone in proximity
✔ It can influence behavior across an entire floor, not just 25 feet
✔ Even high performers show increased risk of misconduct when seated near toxicity
✔ Once the toxic worker is removed or moved, the risk vanishes immediately

This gives leaders one undeniable truth:

Removing toxic energy is not optional — it is a business strategy.

Companies spend millions on recruitment, leadership programs, and culture initiatives…
but the fastest performance improvement may be as simple as rearranging the room.

THE ENERGY CONNECTION: Survivor vs. Life Energy™

THE MAX ENERGY Leadership’s model aligns perfectly with the spillover findings:

Survivor Energy™ (Low-performance state)

Triggered by: stress, threat, pressure
You experience:
• reactivity
• defensiveness
• overthinking
• emotional shutdown
• reduced creativity

Brain regions active: amygdala, threat circuits

This is the energy toxic workers spread.

Life Energy™ (High-performance state)

Triggered by: psychological safety, inspiration, clarity
You experience:
• focus
• creativity
• confidence
• collaboration
• resilience

Brain regions active: prefrontal cortex, executive networks

This is the energy high performers lift around them.

For Leaders: The #1 Performance Strategy You’re Not Using

The Kellogg study makes one leadership truth undeniable:

Leaders must manage energy proximity, not just performance metrics.

This means:

✔ Seat complementary strengths together
✔ Move high performers into central zones
✔ Remove toxic workers early — before the entire floor destabilizes
✔ Build psychological safety (Amy Edmondson, Harvard University)
✔ Boost emotional agility (Susan David, Harvard Medical School)

Because…

The fastest way to elevate a team is to elevate the energy around them.

Why This Matters Now

In a world of hybrid work, global pressure, and rapid automation, human performance is becoming the ultimate competitive edge.

And performance is no longer about:

✖ skill
✖ experience
✖ intelligence

It’s about Energy Architecture™ — the strategic design of how people influence each other.

THE MAX ENERGY LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAY

“Energy is not personal — it’s environmental and contagious.”

“Leaders must manage energy flows to manage performance.”

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A leadership experience focused on energy, connection, and momentum.
Apply / RSVP Here

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Great companies are not built by individuals.
They are built by energy ecosystems.

High-performing leaders don’t just ask:
“Who should I hire?”
They ask:
“Who should sit together—and why?”

Change the environment.
Change the energy.
Change the performance.

Reference

Toxic Workers

Harvard Business School Strategy Unit Working Paper No. 16-057

Michael Housman-Dylan Minor-Anderson School of Management (UCLA); Columbia University – School of International & Public Affairs (SIPA)

Activate Your Organization’s Life Energy™

“Your people don’t just need coaching — they need the right neighbor.”

“Performance is not just an individual capacity — it’s an energy ecosystem.”

THE MAX ENERGY is launching exclusive Executive Leadership Sessions on:
✔ Energy Architecture™
✔ High-Performance Team Design
✔ Cultural Detox Models
✔ Neuroscience of Human Performance

For partnership inquiries: www.theMaxEnergy.com

“Change the energy around you. Change the performance of your team.”

“Your culture rises or falls based on the worst behavior you tolerate.”

Lead the Future of Human Energy and Make a Global Impact