Hey ChatGPT, roast me.
That’s what I typed. I hit enter.
I sat back, arms crossed, ready for the worst. I mean, how bad could it be?
Then the words started appearing.
Oof.
I asked for a roast, but I wasn’t prepared for the mirror it would hold up. It wasn’t the joke-y, lighthearted roasting I’d expected. Instead, it pointed out tendencies I hadn’t noticed about myself—patterns that, in hindsight, had been affecting how I led, made decisions, and even the direction of my company.
And that’s when it hit me.
This is exactly what leaders avoid.
We think we want feedback. We say we’re open to growth. But when we’re faced with the truth—especially the truth we didn’t see coming—it’s uncomfortable. Maybe even a little painful.
But it’s also where the real breakthroughs happen.
The Leadership Blind Spot Dilemma
Here’s the paradox: The very things that limit us as leaders are often the things we don’t see.
Blind spots, by definition, are invisible to us. They show up in how we communicate, make decisions, delegate (or don’t), and build (or stifle) trust in our teams. They impact whether people feel safe to innovate—or whether they quietly disengage.
And yet, most leaders avoid looking for them.
Not because we don’t want to improve. But because deep down, we fear what we might find.
The truth? On the other side of that fear is everything you’re looking for.
Better leadership. Stronger relationships. A business that scales with clarity instead of chaos.
The best leaders I know—the ones who are truly exceptional—aren’t the ones who have no blind spots.
They’re the ones who actively seek them out.
What Happens When Leaders Face Their Blind Spots
Some leaders uncover their blind spots through 360 leadership evaluations, gathering feedback from their teams, peers, and mentors. Others find them through coaching conversations where they finally say out loud what’s been lingering beneath the surface.
And when they do?
It’s rarely as scary as they thought. More often than not, it’s freeing.
Because once you see the blind spot, you can do something about it.
You can shift the habit that’s holding you back. Adjust the way you communicate. Recognize the pattern that’s been slowing down your team. Step into the kind of leadership you’ve always been capable of.
The Best Leaders Are Always Learning
John C. Maxwell once said, “A leader who stops learning stops leading.”
If you’re the kind of leader who’s willing to look at the things others avoid, you’re already ahead of the game.
And if you’re ready to uncover what’s next for you—what’s truly possible beyond your current patterns—there are ways to do that. Ways that aren’t scary. Ways that, quite frankly, are kind of exhilarating.
I know this firsthand.
Because the moment I asked for a roast, I found an insight that changed the way I lead this company.
And that’s the thing about blind spots. The moment you finally see them?
You’ll never go back to leading the way you did before.
