We spend so much time praising “perfect” employees without thinking what is the importance of the rest of the employees.

In recent years, the myth of the perfect employee has dominated the work culture so strongly. He is that special employee with the best reputation and the brightest ideas. The person whose name is always on the list of raises, promotions, rewards.

And in this age of perfection, it’s easy to see that constantly moving to the top is the only path to success. If you’re not the top performer at the office right now, conventional wisdom says, you should try to be. But as much as we like to think—and say—that we’re good at our jobs, the vast majority of workers aren’t top performers.

However, being merely competent – ​​or “average” – at a job is not entirely bad. And of course not every employee wants to be the superstar of the office. And, in fact, the average worker is just as necessary – if not more so than the superstar.

Think for example of a band playing music. What to do if the singer is top notch but the musicians don’t even make a school band?

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Therefore; So, it’s perfectly okay to just be adequate

The simplest definition of “adequate,” says psychologist Danielle Crough, is an employee who meets expectations—nothing more, nothing less.

And while some may start somewhere in the middle and eventually become top performers, many workers simply don’t want to be at the top. And now you might be wondering why. Because there are simply many of these people who do not have the misfortune to become stars. They have a family, children, or a thousand other things going on in their lives. Thus, they do not want more responsibilities in their work.

It’s not always about excellence at work. Some will go up, some will go down, and some will be nicely and nicely stuck in the middle.

Of course, being consistently average doesn’t mean your career is doomed or your skills are stagnant. In fact it may be an indication that you are in the right place. And even though professional culture praises superstars, it’s perfectly okay to be merely adequate. The role of an average employee is essential to keep a company afloat. Consistently high performers are extremely valuable to employers because these people, by doing a daily job, allow a smaller number of employees to overtake them and rise to the top. The average worker shows up, follows directions, and tries to do well. And such an employee is a gem: you can build a perfect team with such people.

What about the lack of recognition

The problem arises when even if simply fulfilling everything mentioned in the job description is what an employee wants, the employer does not reward him. In a culture of perfection, doing what is expected of you is not considered an achievement. And that’s a big problem, because a lack of recognition can quickly lead someone to feel undervalued – and even lead an employee to quit their job. It is no coincidence that companies that show appreciation and respect to their employees do not lose them.

Is it time to change the definition of success?

Recognizing the contributions of mid-level workers isn’t just good for these workers – it’s vital for employers as well since they literally keep businesses running by keeping day-to-day operations running smoothly.

So team retention is key for an organization to continue to function effectively. And to do that, companies will have to change how they recognize success and how “good work” is measured.

We should not overlook the fact that employees who meet – but do not exceed – expectations are not doing the bare minimum. They do exactly what they are supposed to do. And that deserves recognition.