I’ve always been a “big ideas” person.
I see potential and possibility everywhere. When inspiration strikes, I need to dive in immediately, while the energy is high and momentum is on my side. My happy place is building the framework for something new, then passing it along for someone else to execute.
It’s what makes me a visionary.
It’s also what makes me vulnerable to “shiny object syndrome.”
I know that if I’m not careful, my enthusiasm can snowball into too many simultaneous projects, stretching the team beyond capacity. And let’s be honest — there’s no ROI in an initiative that’s only half-done, no matter how brilliant the idea seemed at the start.
The Double-Edged Sword of Strengths
If you’ve ever taken a personality or work-style assessment — DISC, Myers-Briggs, StrengthsFinder, Working Genius — you know the thrill of reading a results page that lists your greatest strengths. It’s an ego boost: “Yes, that’s me! I am strategic!” or “Wow, they nailed it — I am great at problem solving!”
But the best of these tools also give you the “shadow side” of those strengths: what happens when you lean too hard on them. That’s when a gift becomes a crutch, or worse, a liability.
Sometimes, we double down on our strong suit hoping everyone will see our brilliance and stop asking us to do anything outside that lane (especially if it would require stretching outside that comfort zone).
Other times, it’s a blind spot: we don’t recognize that what works beautifully in one context may flop completely in another.
That’s when technical mastery turns into the “expert’s curse”: You’re validated as a subject-matter authority… but demonstrating those same skills may be the opposite of what’s needed from you as a leader.
Common “Expert’s Curse” Scenarios
In executive coaching, I see this all the time.
- The Data-Heavy Financial, IT, or Compliance Expert
These leaders believe their work should speak for itself (and often wish that it could).
They present tons of raw data — every chart, every spreadsheet — and assume their audience will be as excited about it as they are, and connect the dots for themselves.
But leadership requires more than accuracy; it requires insight. The board doesn’t just need the numbers; they need to know the story behind them. What are the top two or three “so what?” points? What action should the company take as a result?
Without that translation, the message falls flat.
- The Promotion or Job Interviewer Who Drowns in (the Wrong) Details
When going for a new role, some leaders spend their precious interview time describing projects and experiences in painstaking detail: specs, budgets, step-by-step timelines.
The problem is that they forget to explain who they led and how, including:
- their decision-making process
- the challenges they overcame
- how they navigated conflicting priorities and got diverse stakeholders on board.
Those are the moments that demonstrate leadership, not just task management. It’s a major focus area in my Quantum Leap executive transition coaching program.
- The Leader Who Can’t “Translate” Across Styles
Every organization has people who seem to speak an entirely different language — not literally, but in terms of communication style, frame of reference, or priorities, e.g.:
- Those who say “It’s not personal, it’s just business” vs. those who are highly sensitive and/or empathetic
- Those who believe in unilateral executive decisions vs. gaining consensus
- Conversational “bowlers” who wait patiently for the right moment to speak vs. conversational “basketball players” who see discussions as a free-for-all and expect people to assertively jump in if they want to participate
- Those who rely on cycles of iteration vs. “measure twice, cut once.”
Leaders often default to their own preferred style, assuming it’s the “right” way. But if your goal is buy-in, you have to speak in a way that the other person will receive and act upon as intended.
That frequently means adjusting your approach, and, yes, stepping out of your comfort zone.
Why Self-Awareness is the Game-Changer
The bridge between being a brilliant expert and being an effective leader is self-awareness. It’s the ability to step back and ask:
- Is my go-to strength truly the best tool for this situation?
- Am I delivering my message in a way that’s meaningful to my audience?
- Am I clinging to what’s comfortable for me instead of what’s effective for them?
Self-awareness doesn’t mean abandoning your strengths. It means knowing when to use them, when to adapt them, and when to try a completely different approach.
As a leader, the danger isn’t in having a strong suit — it’s in using it exclusively, like a hammer that sees every problem as a nail.
The most successful leaders are versatile. When necessary, they can shift from visionary to executor, from data analyst to storyteller, from subject-matter expert to facilitator of others’ expertise.
Your Call to Action
Take a moment this week for some honest introspection.
Ask yourself: Am I using my greatest strength as a tool… or as a crutch?
If you’re not sure, look for patterns. When a project stalls, a meeting falls flat, or a key relationship isn’t clicking, ask: “Did I default to my comfort zone here? Did I lean too hard on what I do best, instead of what the moment needed most?”
If the answer is yes — or if you suspect it might be but can’t pinpoint how to change — that’s exactly where coaching can make the difference.
Helping leaders recognize and reframe these moments, and ensuring they don’t replay on loop, is some of my favorite work. It’s what takes someone from being an exceptional expert to being an exceptional leader.
If you’re ready to make that shift, let’s talk. Reach out to explore executive coaching or my Quantum Leap executive transition program, and let’s turn your strengths into your superpowers — instead of letting them become your Achilles’ heel.
