The Leadership Multiplier: From Hidden Strengths to Superpowers

Great leaders don’t need capes — they need curiosity. By spotting and amplifying the hidden strengths in their teams, they unlock potential, drive innovation, and build organizations that thrive.

The strongest teams aren’t built of solo superheroes. Google’s Project Aristotle proved it: the best-performing teams weren’t stacked with résumés or IQ points — they were the ones where people felt safe to bring their unique strengths to the table.

Think about it: the Avengers don’t win because Hulk smashes or Iron Man flies. They win because everyone gets to bring their quirks, skills, and powers into the fight. They win because quirks + skills combine into something bigger than the sum of their parts.

And that’s the leadership multiplier. Unlock the strengths already in the room, and you don’t just get performance — you get momentum, creativity, and teams that actually want to stick around.

So, what do superpowers really look like?

Here’s the twist: they don’t look like capes or rooftop silhouettes. (Would be awesome if they did, though.)

They look like everyday people. The teammate who walks into a tense meeting and — suddenly — the air shifts. The colleague who takes a jargon-filled tech mess and makes it sound like common sense. The teammate who spots the detail everyone else overlooks — the one that saves the project from going off the rails. Or the quiet analyst whose insight slices right to the heart of the issue.

If you walked into my office, no capes or gadgets in sight — just quiet sparks. A storm-stopper, a slip-spotter, a clarity-creator. No flash, just steady fire. And the more I named it, the stronger it burned.

These are “secret identities.” Buried under job descriptions. Tucked behind outputs. And unlike in the movies? They shouldn’t stay hidden.

What’s the point of a superpower if no one ever sees it?

How Do You Hand Out Capes at Work?

So how do you move from just managing tasks to multiplying strengths?

Here’s a summary of the playbook I call The Leadership Multiplier Effect — your step-by-step guide to handing out capes at work.

1. Spot the sparks. Watch for when people light up or do something that looks easy to them but impossible to everyone else. That’s your clue.

2. Name it to claim it. Most people don’t see their own strengths. Call it out: “You simplify chaos.” “You connect people.” Boom — you just handed them their cape.
   If this were Marvel, lightning would strike and I’d be glowing with greatness overnight. In reality? It was quieter — a colleague calling out my knack for slicing through clutter and spotting the big opportunity. No rooftop reveal, just one moment named, owned, and practiced until it stuck.

3. Create space. Superpowers fade if they stay hidden. Adjust roles, give projects, stretch job descriptions so those strengths get daylight.

4. Scale it. Don’t stop at recognition — help it grow. Training, stretch assignments, mentorship. That’s how you go from one hero to a whole Avengers lineup.
   

Simple. Not easy — but simple.

And here’s the kicker: Gallup found that teams who use their strengths every day are six times more engaged and 12% more productive. That’s the Bruce Banner → Hulk effect: same person, totally different level of impact when unleashed.

What's the ROI of Superpowers?

Why does this matter? Because it pays off.

• Engagement/Retention: People stick around when they feel seen and valued.

• Innovation: Unique strengths = fresh ideas and faster problem-solving.

• Leadership pipeline: Today’s hidden superpower is tomorrow’s leadership skill.
  

Google backed it up. And just like Project Aristotle showed at the start, the strongest teams thrive because everyone feels safe to bring their strengths to the table.

That’s the real return: less Justice League-on-paper, more Justice League-in-action — quirks, clashes, and all.

Time to Suit Up

Your role as a leader isn’t just to deliver results — it’s to multiply them. The fastest way? Help your people discover, own, and use their unique superpowers.

So here’s my challenge: next time you’re with your team, don’t just ask what they’re working on. Ask where they feel most alive.

I ask myself the same thing often — where do I feel most alive? For me, it’s when I’m helping people see what they can’t yet see in themselves. That’s when I know I’m in my zone of genius.

That’s where the powers live. And it’s your job to make sure they don’t stay a secret. Don’t let their cape gather dust. Hand it to them — and see what happens.