The Squeeze You Feel Isn't Failure - It's Growth Calling

If life is like a box of chocolates, growing into leadership is closer to the life of a hermit crab.

The humble hermit crab provides nature's perfect lesson for personal growth.

Every hermit crab starts life exposed and vulnerable, drifting through ocean currents. Their survival depends on finding that first shell, their initial safe space. But here is what’s interesting—that protective shell, perfect as it may seem at first, eventually becomes their biggest limitation.

I've seen this same pattern play out countless times in professional life.

We build our careers like that first shell - crafting our reputation, collecting achievements, and developing a comfortable way of working that feels safe and reliable. But just like the hermit crab, we start feeling that squeeze.

Maybe you're experiencing it now - that nagging sense that something needs to shift. Perhaps you're still doing the hands-on work that got you noticed, even though your role demands broader thinking. Or you're trying to control every detail when you should be empowering others. The skills that brought you success have become your constraint.

The parallels are striking. Like the hermit crab's old shell, your current operating model likely represents thousands of hours of refined expertise. It's gotten you here – perhaps to that Director or your first VP - even CEO position. But here's what I consistently observe in leaders approaching their highest potential: The skills that secured your first big job (and big salary) can actively prevent your next promotion or move.

Consider the intricate decision-making patterns, relationship management, and problem-solving that have become your professional exoskeleton. They're not wrong; they're just incomplete for your next evolution. The technical expert must become the strategic visionary. The decisive executor must learn to orchestrate emergent possibilities. The reliable problem-solver must transform into the opportunity architect.

The most fascinating aspect of the hermit crab's transformation isn't just that it changes shells – it's that it must create a moment of profound vulnerability to enable that change. 

This is where true executive coaching becomes invaluable. It provides a protected space to explore new modes of leadership before you need them and to practice new responses before old patterns become costly constraints. Just as a hermit crab must risk exposure to find a better shell, growth requires stepping beyond what's comfortable. Through coaching, we explore what it means to let go of old patterns - not because they're wrong, but because you've outgrown them.

Consider this: A hermit crab doesn't just outgrow its shell physically. The constraint triggers a cascade of biological changes, preparing it for a momentous leap.

I've watched leaders struggle with this transition. The technical expert who needs to become a strategic thinker. The problem-solver who must learn to be a vision-setter. The doer who needs to become a guide. It's not about abandoning your strengths but evolving how you use them.

You might need a coach if:

• You feel constrained by the very approaches that drove your earlier success
• Your challenges seem different from the ones you know how to solve
• You sense there's a bigger impact you could make if only you could figure out how
• The path forward feels less clear than it used to

Remember the hermit crab - growth isn't optional. That uncomfortable squeeze you're feeling? It's not a warning to retreat. It's an invitation to expand. The only question is whether you're ready to explore what's next.

Your next level of leadership is waiting. When you're ready to discover it, coaching can provide the space and support to make that journey.

I’d be remiss to leave out the most beautiful part of the story: sometimes, dozens of hermit crabs line up in a row by size, and they wait for the first hermit crab line to move to the larger shell they have chosen. What happens next is a chain of what I am calling the great exchange - each taking a risk, stepping outside of the shell that has kept them safe - entering into the big scary ocean to move into a new shell that will keep them safe until the next time they feel uncomfortable - but more importantly leaving something behind for someone else.  

One last thing you should know - a hermit crab can change shells dozens of times in a lifetime. So, if you want to move your career faster, farther, or in new directions, the next time you are uncomfortable - this is your hermit crab moment.

While looking for your next shell, remember you can’t get there without vulnerability. And - as with the hermit crab, it is okay to choose a shell bigger than you need (one you may not feel exactly confident in). Over time, it will get more comfortable, but this evolution will demand more than just adding new skills. It requires something far more nuanced: the wisdom to know when your greatest strengths have become subtle limitations.

The future belongs to those brave enough to grow into it.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

I work with leaders moving into their most influential, powerful and profitable years. Let's connect to discuss how prepared you are for this time in your career: https://www.thenetworkconcierge.com/learn-more-1.