Influence is the currency of modern leadership. It determines how effectively ideas are heard, how quickly teams move, and whether strategy becomes execution. Yet most leaders are not limited by capability. They are limited by blind spots that quietly restrict their impact.

Research confirms this gap. McKinsey found that only one in four leaders are perceived as effective in managing up, across, and down, even though these abilities are now core leadership requirements. Gartner reports that leaders who demonstrate strong relational influence and cross functional communication are up to 2.5 times more successful in advancing organizational priorities than those who rely on expertise alone. Gallup’s workplace studies reveal that managers account for 70 percent of the variance in engagement, meaning how leaders communicate and influence is directly tied to culture, retention, and performance.

Over the past five years working with managers, senior leaders, and executive teams across global industries, three patterns appear again and again. These blind spots are subtle, often unintentional, and almost always invisible to the leader experiencing them.

They tend to show up when leaders are:

• Communicating upward with senior leadership

• Leading across with peers and cross functional partners

• Managing and developing direct reports

Here are the three blind spots that quietly block influence and what exceptional leaders do instead.

Blind Spot 1: Believing results speak for themselves

Many leaders assume strong performance should naturally create visibility, support, and advancement. They believe their work should be noticed without needing to communicate it. But research from McKinsey and Gartner shows that leaders who intentionally communicate upward are 30 to 50 percent more likely to be trusted, supported, and considered for advancement.

Results matter. But so does ensuring your work is understood.

Leaders with this blind spot often say:

• "I should not have to explain my value."

• "If leadership does not see it, maybe it was not meant to be."

• "I do not want to sound political or self promotional."

The cost of this mindset is high. Without managing up intentionally, leaders become misaligned with priorities, experience unnecessary rework, and unintentionally damage trust.

Leaders who overcome this blind spot learn to:

• Communicate progress without self promotion

• Share risks, needs, and insights early

• Frame their work in the language of organizational priorities

Managing up is not pleasing leadership. It is aligning for shared success. For leaders who want a deeper framework to build this capability, I wrote The Art of Managing Up, a step by step guide used globally to help leaders communicate upward with clarity, confidence, and strategic influence.

Blind Spot 2: Thinking What Got You Here Will Get You There

What gets a leader promoted is rarely what sustains them in leadership. Harvard Business Review research shows that 60 percent of new managers struggle because they continue operating like high performing individual contributors rather than shifting to communication, coaching, and alignment.

Effective leadership requires unlearning old habits and adopting new ones.

Leaders who grow through this transition:

• Create clarity of expectations

• Build psychological safety and trust

• Normalize meaningful feedback

• Focus on development, not just task execution

Google’s Project Aristotle found that psychological safety was the number one predictor of high performing teams, above skill, tenure, or technical expertise.

Influence downward requires empathy paired with well defined accountability.

Blind Spot 3: Reacting from emotion rather than regulating it

Emotions are data. They signal meaning, urgency, expectations, and boundaries. But when leaders react impulsively from frustration, urgency, or stress, they unintentionally erode trust and credibility.

Studies from Six Seconds show that leaders with higher emotional intelligence are three times more likely to motivate effectively, resolve conflict productively, and collaborate across functions. Yet many leaders mistakenly believe emotional intelligence requires being agreeable or passive.

Emotional intelligence is not avoiding conflict. It is approaching conflict with clarity, curiosity, and control.

Leaders with this blind spot may:

• Stay silent to keep the peace

• Respond quickly and regret their tone later

• Take feedback personally rather than as insight

When leaders build emotional regulation, influence grows. Communication becomes intentional rather than reactive. And collaboration becomes easier, even in disagreement.

What These Blind Spots Cost Organizations

When left unaddressed, these blind spots create predictable outcomes:

• Slower decision making

• Reduced cross functional collaboration

• Talent disengagement or turnover

• Leaders who feel exhausted and undervalued

The cost is not just efficiency. The cost is momentum.

The Shift: Awareness to Action

Awareness is the first step. But change happens when leaders build capability in three directions:

• Up to align with senior leadership

• Across to collaborate with peers and cross functional partners

• Down to lead, coach, and develop teams

When all three strengthen, leaders expand not just influence but impact.

Ready to Go Deeper?

Recognizing these blind spots is the beginning of stronger leadership and expanded influence. The leaders who grow are the ones willing to examine how they communicate, how they respond, and how they lead in every direction.

If these patterns sounded familiar and you are curious where your strengths or gaps might be, I am hosting a free 45 minute live session on December 19 titled Three Leadership Blind Spots That Block Your Influence.

We will go deeper, apply the research, and give you practical strategies to shift from awareness to action.

Save Your Seat: Three Leadership Blind Spots That Block Your Influence

Want support beyond the session?

At N-BAC, we help organizations build leaders who can manage up, across, and down with clarity, emotional intelligence, and strategic alignment. If your organization is ready to strengthen leadership capability in a meaningful and scalable way, let us talk.

Book a Strategy Call with N-BAC