Ever feel like you’re faking it? Ever seem surprised that you have gotten as far as you have? Ever wonder why you are the one who got promoted to being a leader when you obviously have flaws?
These feelings are normal and once we understand what is behind them, we can begin to quiet that negative mind chatter. One of the key sources of this negative mind chatter is also one of the most amazing things about you – your Superpower.
If you are leader, you have an amazing Superpower; in fact, you probably have more than one. This Superpower is what got you noticed as having leadership potential. It is what got you promoted. It is what your organization loves about you. Some common Superpowers include being highly results oriented, amazingly analytical, wonderfully visionary, a keen ability to find the gaps and potential problems, and being an incredible listener.
>>Register for the upcoming webinar: Avoiding the Hulk Effect: Knowing When Your Superpower Has Become Destructive to Your Team and Career
The problem is that when you are stressed, your Superpower gets amped up by your fight-or-flight response. At this point, it becomes Hulk-worthy destructive. You don’t mean any harm; but there it is, becoming too much for the situation. Your intensity rises and with that Superpower comes judgment. You get frustrated, you get impatient. You don’t understand why others can’t do what comes so easy for you. People pick up on your frustrations and feel that you are judging them as less – less dedicated, less concerned, less capable, less intelligent.
It’s not intentional. It’s not how you want to be perceived. You want to be that caring, understanding leader that is patient. You want to be seen as a coach, not as a dominating control freak. You want to be seen as reasonable, not harsh.
This gap between how you want to be perceived and the realities of what you just created, is in glaring contradiction to your core values. This then leads to guilt and shame. And, this guilt and shame undermines your self-esteem and confidence, which leads to imposter syndrome, second guessing, replaying past mistakes, trying harder to be perfect, and other forms of self-doubt.
This can become a vicious cycle – unless you can uncover the behaviors, beliefs, and fears at the core of this cycle. However, this is not easy because your sub-conscious doesn’t want you to know what those are. It thinks these behaviors, beliefs and fears are there to keep you safe. It thinks these are things that will make you successful.
Your Superpowers are connected to those behaviors, beliefs and fears and they have kept you safe. They have made your successful. But they have also derailed your self-esteem and confidence when they have become too strong.
Stopping this negative cycle can start with uncovering your Superpower. This requires:
- Finding your Superpower and understanding the wonderful advantages it brings to your team and company.
- Understanding the type of destruction your Superpower creates, and…
- Uncovering the fears that trigger your Superpower.
These three steps are what we are going to cover in my webinar, Avoiding the Hulk Effect: Knowing When Your Superpower Has Become Destructive to Your Team and Career. Join me to uncover your Superpower and a key to those self-sabotaging beliefs that undermine your leadership.
Written by Carlann Fergusson
