Welcome back to the Look and Sound of Leadership, an ongoing series of executive

coaching tips designed to help you be perceived in the workplace the way you want

to be perceived. I'm Tom Henschel, your executive coach, and today we're talking

about managing your strengths. A PhD scientist was given the leadership of a global research team. He'd built his career

on his superior intellect and he rightly saw this assignment as a reward for his many

scientific contributions over the years, well within 12 months he was removed

as the head of the team because he had damaged so many relationships with his people.

Here's a different story.

A highly ethical young man worked for a humble leader.

The leader's humility appealed so much to the young man that he consciously developed that humility in himself.

Many years later, having achieved the position of division president, the CEO told him he didn't

inspire confidence or appear presidential.

Here's a third and final story.

A rising star in a corporate communications department prided herself on her verbal acuity and her ability to think on her feet.

Her gifts allowed her to make presentations without preparation or rehearsal.

In her performance review, she was stunned to hear that people experienced her as glib and intellectually

lightweight.

All three of those stories are true.

In each case, successful people came close to derailing their careers because they

overdeveloped their strengths to the point where those strengths became liabilities.

Dr. Lois Frankel wrote a wonderfully practical abilities. She wrote, quote, The common thread for people who derail is that they exhibit superior skill in a particular area to the exclusion of developing complementary ones."

She goes on to say that even when their jobs demand that they display new skills, they

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