Toyna Chin is the Head of Marketing at Novotech, a global CRO. She writes about leadership, marketing, and lessons of day-to-day business.
Across industries and geographies, a familiar pattern tends to emerge around the two- to three-year mark in a leadership role. What starts as a period of energy and ideas gradually levels out. The pace slows, the challenges feel more predictable, and the sense of forward motion that once fueled you begins to fade.
It’s often called the “two- to three-year itch” a point when high-performing leaders begin to sense that they’ve mastered their environment and are no longer being stretched.
And it’s not just a corporate myth. This rhythm shows up across sectors from tech startups to healthcare organizations to global service firms and even across cultures.
A Familiar Curve Across Industries
In technology and fast-growth startups, the cycle can be compressed. The first two years are about building from chaos hiring, scaling and solving problems in real time. But once the systems and teams are in place, the energy shifts from invention to maintenance and many leaders feel the air go out of the room.
In healthcare and life sciences, senior professionals experience a different version of the same curve. Studies of healthcare workers show that after several years, satisfaction dips when opportunities for new skills or fresh challenges dry up. The mission may remain noble, but the day-to-day becomes predictable.
In consulting and corporate roles, the three-year mark is often when the big strategic goals have been delivered. The organization settles into a steady state, and leaders who thrive on momentum begin to crave something new.
Across cultures, the tempo varies but the pattern holds. In Western companies, mobility and reinvention are celebrated, so leaders often change roles every few years. In Eastern markets such as Japan, India or China, longer tenure is more common, but younger professionals are beginning to mirror Western cycles, driven by similar hunger for fresh challenges and visible progress.
Why It Happens
The two- to three-year itch isn’t about impatience, it’s about human design.
• The brain thrives on novelty. Once a leader has solved a set of problems, repeating those same motions brings diminishing returns.
• High performers notice when they stop growing. When learning slows, motivation follows.
• Organizations shift focus. Early on, success depends on building. Later, it depends on sustaining. Not everyone finds equal satisfaction in both stages.
The result is a quiet restlessness, a signal that the conditions that once pushed a leader forward are no longer doing so.
What Companies Can Do
Smart organizations don’t fight the itch. They plan for it.
Offer new terrain, not just new titles. Give proven leaders opportunities to tackle unfamiliar challenges expanding into new regions, exploring emerging markets, or leading special initiatives that test different skills.
Encourage rotation and stretch assignments. Internal mobility keeps curiosity alive. A new problem inside the same company can be as energizing as a new job somewhere else.
Turn experience into influence. Leaders often rediscover purpose when they mentor others or shape companywide priorities. Sharing wisdom can be as fulfilling as chasing the next big goal.
Recognize natural transitions. Sometimes, a plateau is just a sign that a leader has done what they came to do. Companies that part ways thoughtfully often find those leaders become their strongest ambassadors later.
Turning Restlessness Into Renewal
The two- to three-year itch isn’t a flaw—it’s a milestone. It signals that someone has reached a level of mastery and is ready to tackle something new.
Handled well, it becomes a moment of renewal for both the individual and the organization. Ignored, it turns into quiet disengagement or eventual departure.
Leaders who listen to that inner nudge early and companies that make space for reinvention—turn what could be a plateau into the start of a new chapter.
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