Latest / Career Skills with Fexingo: Hard Skills, Soft Skills, and Future-Proofing Your Career / How Skill Shadowing Reveals Your Blind Spots
Transcript
- Lucas: There's this idea in cognitive psychology called the 'expert blind spot' — the more you master something, the harder it is to see what you're missing. Luna: So your strength actually creates a weakness? That sounds almost unfair. Lucas: It is unfair — but it's also very real. I've been thinking about it as 'skill shadowing.' Every skill you've polished casts a shadow — a set of adjacent competencies that stay in the dark because your attention is so focused on the thing you're good at. Luna: And I bet this is something we see all the time in the workplace, we just don't have a name for it. Lucas: Absolutely. So let's name it. And if you find this useful, we'd love your support. We keep this show ad-free by design — no sponsors, no commercial breaks. If that matters to you, you can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Just a way to keep the conversation going without selling anything. Luna: Yeah, it's a small way to help us keep doing this. Now, back to skill shadowing — give me a concrete example. Lucas: Let's say you're a senior data analyst. You're incredible at building complex models in Python, you can wrangle messy datasets in your sleep, you're the go-to person for any technical question. That's your strength. But the shadow? Data storytelling. Explaining your results to non-technical stakeholders in a way that actually drives decisions. Luna: Oh, I've seen that exact person. Brilliant with numbers, but they present a 50-slide deck of charts and everyone in the room is lost. Lucas: Right. And it's not because they're bad at communication — it's because their technical skill is so strong it overshadows the need to develop the other skill. They don't even see it as a gap because the technical work feels like the whole job. Luna: So the shadow isn't a lack of ability, it's a lack of attention. Lucas: Exactly. There's research from the University of Minnesota on this. In one study, expert chess players were asked to recall board positions. They were great at remembering positions from actual games — but they were actually worse than intermediate players at remembering random board setups. Their expertise came with a blind spot for patterns that didn't match their mental model. Luna: So the stronger your mental model, the more you filter out what doesn't fit. That's the shadow. Lucas: And in the workplace, that filtering happens automatically. You spend 80 percent of your time on the skill that got you promoted, and the adjacent skill — the one that would actually get you to the next level — gets maybe 5 percent of your attention. Luna: So how do you find your own skill shadows? Because by definition, you can't see them. Lucas: You need an external mirror. One method I like is what I call the 'three-question audit.' You ask: What do I spend most of my time on? What do I avoid? And what do others ask me for help with? Luna: The avoidance question is powerful. If you're always putting off something, it might be a shadow skill you know you need but haven't developed. Lucas: Exactly. Let me give you a real example. I talked to a marketing manager who was brilliant at campaign strategy — she could map out a quarter-long plan in an afternoon. But she was terrible at delegation. She'd end up executing all the tactics herself because she didn't trust anyone else to do it right. Lucas: She actually told me she thought delegation was a 'soft skill' she didn't need. But when she finally started tracking her time, she realized that 70 percent of her hours were going to tasks someone else could do. Her shadow was costing her the chance to work on higher-level strategy. Luna: So she had to deliberately shift her attention to delegation, even though it felt uncomfortable. Lucas: Right. And that's the uncomfortable part about skill shadowing — the thing you need to work on feels like it's not 'you.' It's outside your identity as a professional. But that's exactly why it's a growth opportunity. Luna: Let me ask this: can a skill shadow ever be positive? Like, is there a version where your strength forces you to develop a complementary weakness? Lucas: Interesting question. I think it can be a catalyst if you recognize it. Take a software engineer who's amazing at writing clean, efficient code. Their shadow might be user empathy — they build for the machine, not the person. But if they realize that, they might start doing user research and end up becoming a better product engineer. Luna: So the shadow becomes a signal for what to learn next. Lucas: Exactly. And the key is to catch it early. Because if you ignore the shadow long enough, it can become a career ceiling. I've seen senior individual contributors who never got a management role because their technical shadow — the inability to mentor or communicate — was too deep. Luna: So how do you systematically surface these shadows? Besides the three questions. Lucas: One thing I recommend is a 'skill diary' for a week. Every time you feel a moment of resistance — 'I don't want to do this task, I'll do it later' — write it down. That resistance is often pointing at a shadow skill. Luna: Because avoidance is a clue. Lucas: Exactly. Another method is to ask a trusted colleague: 'What's one thing you think I'm not seeing about my work?' It takes courage, but the answer is usually a shadow skill. Luna: And you have to be ready to hear it without getting defensive. Lucas: That's the hardest part. Because your identity is wrapped up in your strengths. When someone says 'you need to work on X,' it can feel like they're saying your strength isn't enough. But the truth is, the shadow doesn't diminish the strength — it just means there's more to build. Luna: I want to bring this back to the data analyst example. Suppose they do the audit and realize their shadow is storytelling. What's the first step? Lucas: They need to lower the bar. They don't have to become a professional presenter overnight. Start by writing a one-paragraph summary of your analysis before you build the deck. That forces you to think about the narrative first. Then, practice explaining your model to someone outside your team — a friend, a family member, anyone who doesn't know the jargon. Luna: So you're basically de-emphasizing the primary skill for a bit to let the shadow skill catch up. Lucas: That's the whole idea. You have to deliberately reduce the time you spend on your strength to make room for the shadow. It feels counterintuitive — you got where you are because of that strength — but the next level requires a different mix. Luna: I'm thinking about when I first started in journalism. I was so focused on getting the facts right — the research, the sourcing — that I completely neglected narrative structure. My stories were accurate but boring. The shadow was storytelling. Lucas: And what broke you out of it? Luna: An editor told me: 'I can fact-check anything, but I can't teach you how to make me care.' That was uncomfortable, but it was the mirror I needed. I started reading narrative nonfiction, analyzing how writers built tension, and eventually my writing improved. Lucas: That's a perfect example of using external feedback to surface a shadow. And you didn't lose your research skills — you added another layer. Luna: So the goal isn't to become average at everything. It's to make sure your strongest skill isn't hiding something that could hold you back. Lucas: Exactly. And the beautiful thing about skill shadowing is that once you see the shadow, it's no longer a blind spot. It becomes a choice. You can decide if it's worth developing — or if you want to partner with someone who has that skill instead. Luna: That's a good point. Not every shadow needs to become a strength. Sometimes the smart move is to collaborate with someone who covers that area. Lucas: Right. But you can't make that choice if you don't know the shadow exists. So the first step is always awareness. And that starts with a little honest self-reflection — or a brave question to a colleague. Luna: Alright, I'm going to do the three-question audit this week. I already have a feeling about what my shadow might be. Lucas: I'd love to hear what you find. And for our listeners, if you try it, let us know. We'll be back next time with another career tool. Luna: Until then, keep an eye on your shadows.