Invisible Block #5 The Projection Blindspot

One Of The Fastest Ways Leaders Misread Their Team

The Projection Blindspot is when you unconsciously assume that other people think, judge, reason, respond and operate the way you do.

Not because you’re arrogant.

Because your way of operating feels so normal to you that you don’t even realise it’s a perspective and not a universal truth.!

And the danger?.... Without realising it, it could create relationship friction within your team without you seeing it.

For example:

Let’s say that you are naturally optimistic, a person tends to be “glass is half full”.

So when a problem arises, your immediate instinct is “ok, I can figure this out, who can I consult with to brainstorm solutions”

To you, asking for help feels like an obvious next step, something that everyone would naturally do.

But this is exactly what I call the Projection Blindspot at play. You are assuming that how you think and do things is how everyone else does too.

The cost of this assumption?

You don’t realise that for that member on your team, asking for help is not obvious or easy. Because it may feel exposing to do so.

That whilst your instinct is “we’ll work it out,” theirs may immediately go to fear, overwhelm or self-doubt.

And this changes team dynamics.

You may interpret your team’s silence as disengagement or incompetence.

Meanwhile, the other person may just not have even realised that asking for help is an option .

Or perhaps you naturally think three steps ahead.

You spot problems early because you just naturally play out the consequences of what might be coming up next and prepare for that outcome.

And you think well that’s an obvious thing to do. Newsflash as a leader you have to be aware of having this Projection Blindspot.

And unless you make the Implicit Explicit, people can easily fall short of your expectation just simply because they don’t have the same thinking patterns as you do.

This is one of the biggest shifts in leadership.

Your success is no longer just about your own judgement.

It’s about understanding how other people think, process and operate.

Because when you stop assuming people are wired like you, you start leading them more effectively.

You start understanding what this particular person needs in order to perform, grow and thrive.

That’s when leadership becomes far more effective.

So start asking yourself:

• “What assumptions am I making here about what should feel obvious?”

• “What if this person processes pressure, communication or uncertainty completely differently to me?”

• “Have I actually communicated the expectation… or have I assumed it was understood?”

Take the Projection Blindspot and turn it into your Leadership Advantage.

Claudia

The Leadership Intangibles — because performance isn’t just strategy. It’s how you think, decide, and show up when it matters.