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 sarah@nysh-strategic.com.