What if everything keeping you stuck isn't about you at all, but about a system that's been working exactly as designed?

In this debut episode of Get Outta the Damn Jar, I'm introducing the concept that this entire show is built on: the competence trap. I'm talking about what happens when you're so exceptional at execution that the system literally reorganizes itself to keep you there, and why that's not a confidence problem, a visibility problem, or an imposter syndrome problem. It's a structural one.

I share the story of the year I worked myself to the bone for a promotion I never got and what I was told when I finally asked why. I also walk through the story of Claire, a woman I worked with who spent 17 years building an entire function from scratch and still couldn't break through to the C-Suite despite doing everything she was told to do. If any of this sounds familiar, this episode is for you.

What you'll learn:

• What the competence trap actually is and why the standard definitions don't go far enough
• Why this pattern hits high-performing women harder than anyone else
• The difference between being indispensable and being powerful (they are not the same thing)
• Why "executive presence" feedback is often the most convenient thing an organization can say
• How the competence trap shows up in entrepreneurship (leaving corporate doesn't automatically free you from it)
• The difference between situational and structural ownership of your ideas
• Why IP development is the structural exit to a structural trap

Your Next Steps:

• Subscribe to the podcast!
• Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/sarahkhanoutloud

Get Outta the Damn Jar is sponsored by NYSH Strategic. Original music by Omar Iqbal.

If you have topics you'd like the show to discuss, send an email to [email protected].