Thad was brought in as a new CTO to bring rigor, speed, and structure to a large public company. His efficiency had been a defining strength throughout his career. But under pressure, that same drive became a motive blindspot. Colleagues felt steamrolled, relationships deteriorated, and resistance mounted. Through Blindspotting Coaching, Thad uncovered the hidden motive driving his behavior—not a personality flaw, but an unexamined need for efficiency. With awareness and simple systems, he transformed his impact without changing who he was.
Thad was hired to fix things.
A seasoned technology executive with a sterling résumé, he was known for moving fast, cutting through noise, and delivering results. The organization needed exactly that. Systems were bloated. Decisions were slow. Accountability was uneven. Thad’s mandate was clear: bring order and momentum.
From his perspective, the early months went exactly as expected.
Meetings were packed. Agendas were full. Priorities were clear. He told people what needed to happen and expected them to follow through.
But others experienced him very differently.
Colleagues described him as impatient, dismissive, and difficult to work with. Meetings felt rushed and transactional. People left conversations feeling unheard. Resistance grew quietly, even as Thad continued to push harder.
The chief people officer eventually described the situation bluntly: the organization was experiencing “organ rejection.”
Thad was confused. He wasn’t trying to be unkind. In fact, when confronted, he readily acknowledged that people seemed frustrated with him. He just didn’t see another option.
“There’s no time to slow down,” he explained. “We have too much to do.”
To Thad, urgency was responsibility. Efficiency was leadership.
Thad’s blindspot wasn’t a lack of empathy, intelligence, or interpersonal skill.
It was motive.
In the Motive chapter of Blindspotting, Martin Dubin explains that motive lives at the deepest level of the self-awareness model—the hidden “why” driving behavior. Motives are often invisible to us precisely because they feel so natural.
Thad was driven by a powerful drive for efficiency.
This motive had served him exceptionally well throughout his career. It fueled his success, his discipline, and his reputation as someone who could get things done.
But under stress, when that motive was repeatedly blocked—by people needing more explanation, more time, or more discussion—it took over.
His impatience wasn’t a trait. It was a signal that a core motive was being blocked.
As Dubin notes in the chapter, when strong emotion appears disproportionate to the situation, it’s often because a motive is being blocked. For Thad, inefficiency triggered anxiety. Anxiety narrowed his focus. And his behavior became increasingly rigid and forceful.
What he experienced as necessary speed, others experienced as disregard.
The intention didn’t match the impact.
Read more about the Motive blindspot here.
Blindspotting Performance Coaching didn’t ask Thad to abandon efficiency. It helped him see it.
A pivotal moment came when his coach asked a deceptively simple question:
“Do you notice this urgency anywhere else in your life?”
Thad laughed. He talked about racing neighbors to avoid small talk. About carrying all the groceries in one trip. About circling parking lots to get the closest spot. About watching the clock constantly, even in conversations.
Efficiency wasn’t just how he worked. It was how he lived.
Once the motive was visible, the work shifted. The goal wasn’t to change who Thad was, but to prevent his motive from hijacking his behavior.
Together, they introduced systems designed to satisfy his need for efficiency without sacrificing relationships:
The motive didn’t disappear. It didn’t need to.
What changed was Thad’s awareness and his control.
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The shift was dramatic.
With space built into his days, Thad became calmer in meetings. His tone softened. He listened longer. People felt less pushed and more respected.
Colleagues began engaging with him rather than avoiding him. Trust grew. Buy-in followed.
Thad didn’t lose his edge. He gained influence.
His efficiency remained a strength—but no longer at the expense of connection.
As the book makes clear, motives don’t usually change. But behavior can, once the motive is no longer a blindspot.
Thad’s story illustrates a core Blindspotting lesson:
Your strongest motive can be your greatest asset—or your greatest liability.
Efficiency, like any motive, becomes dangerous when it operates outside awareness. Under stress, unexamined motives take over. We default to instinct instead of choice.
Leaders who see their motives clearly gain freedom. Freedom to respond instead of react. Freedom to design systems that work with their wiring, not against it.
Awareness didn’t slow Thad down. It made him more effective.
Read more about the Behavior Blindspot. →
Ask yourself:
If strong emotion keeps showing up in the same places, your motive may be trying to tell you something.
You don’t need to change who you are to lead better.
You need to see what’s driving you.
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Blindspotting →Identity →Behaviors →Traits → Intellect → Emotion → Motive →
