The Secret Career Assassin
Fred is brilliant. As a project manager, his technical expertise is top notch. He has all the right technical credentials and professional certifications. He delivers results, knows the numbers, understands the systems, and rarely misses a deadline. On paper, he looks like the perfect employee any organization would want to keep.
Yet, Fred’s career has been quietly sabotaged—not by incompetence, but by something far more subtle: his lack of leadership skills.
At his last job, he was “advised” to resign. The reason? Constant complaints from his subordinates and stakeholders about his high-handedness, lack of empathy, harshness, and inability to build relationships. Fred shrugged it off and assumed people simply didn’t appreciate his drive for excellence and results. He moved to a new organization, convinced that a fresh start would silence the critics.
But the same pattern is already unfolding. Team members murmur about his attitude. Stakeholders complain of his rigidity. Once again, the technical brilliance that should elevate him is being overshadowed by the “secret assassin” of careers everywhere—poor leadership skills.
The Silent Killer of Careers
Most professionals think careers are built on technical competence alone. And for entry-level roles, that’s true. But the higher you rise, the less your technical skill matters and the more your leadership ability becomes the differentiator.
Here’s the truth: career ceilings are rarely caused by lack of technical skills. They are caused by lack of leadership ability.
Fred’s story is not unusual. Many technically brilliant professionals unknowingly sabotage their careers by neglecting the one skill that multiplies every other skill: leadership.
The Ten Pillars of Leadership Growth
What Fred never realized—and what many professionals miss—is that leadership is built on a set of core practices. When these are absent, careers stall. But when they’re developed, careers accelerate.
Here are ten areas every manager and team leader must master:
- Influence – Leadership, according to John Maxwell, is influence, nothing more and nothing less. Without it, authority feels like dictatorship. With it, people willingly follow.
- Priorities – Great leaders know what truly matters. They focus their, and their teams’, energy on what drives results rather than drowning in busyness.
- Character – People follow leaders they trust. Without integrity, no amount of brilliance will sustain respect.
- Problem Solving – Leaders are measured by the size and complexity of the problems they can handle without breaking under pressure.
- Attitude – A leader’s mindset sets the tone for the team. Negative attitudes poison culture; positive ones fuel resilience.
- Serving People – Leadership is not about titles—it’s about service. Leaders exist to add value to others, not the other way around. People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care
- Vision – Without vision, people drift. Leaders provide direction, clarity, and a compelling picture of the future.
- Self-Discipline – If you can’t lead yourself, you can’t lead others. Discipline is the bridge between intentions and results.
- Personal Growth – The moment a leader stops learning, they stop leading. Growth must be intentional and ongoing.
- Creating Positive Change: The ability to turn a team around by being a positive change agent is the real test of a great leader.
These are the very skills Fred never cultivated. And unless he changes, the “secret assassin” will keep trailing him from one workplace to the next.
How to Stop the Assassin
The good news? Leadership can be learned. No one is born with all ten pillars fully formed—but every manager and team leader can develop them with intentional effort.
Here’s where to start:
- Seek feedback. Don’t dismiss complaints; they reveal blind spots.
- Invest in growth. Books, courses, mentors, and coaching aren’t luxuries—they’re necessities.
- Practice self-awareness. Notice your impact on others and adjust before patterns harden.
- Focus on people, not just performance. Results matter, but relationships sustain them.
Final Thought (and Your Next Step)
Fred’s career doesn’t have to be your story. Technical brilliance is a gift, but without leadership it becomes a ceiling. If you want to rise, thrive, and stay relevant, you must sharpen more than your technical edge—you must master the art of leadership.
That’s why I, a member of the Maxwell Leadership Certified Team, developed this course titled “Leadership Development for Managers and Team Leaders.” In this program, we dive deep into the ten pillars—Influence, Priorities, Character, Problem Solving, Attitude, Serving People, Vision, Self-Discipline, Creating Positive Change, and Personal Growth—to help leaders at every level unlock their full potential and avoid the hidden traps that derail promising careers.
🚀 The course starts on 17 September 2025. Spaces are limited, and once registration closes, it won’t reopen until the next cohort.
👉 Don’t wait until complaints or missed opportunities put your career at risk. Take the proactive step today. [Click here to secure your spot.]
Because the greatest threat to your career isn’t incompetence. It’s neglecting the one skill that sustains every other – leadership.
