Welcome back to the Levelling Up Your Leadership series, where we’re breaking down the skills that believe to drive practical impact. So far, we’ve covered:

• Resilience (why adaptability beats endurance)
• Strategic Management (why smart choices matter more than rigid plans)
• Creative Innovation (why problem-solving is key, not just creativity)
• Influential Communication (why it’s about how your message lands, not just what you say)
• Resource Management (why it’s about making the most of what you have)

Now, we’re shifting focus to something every leader thinks they have probably nailed, Knowledge & Experience. 

But, here’s the thing: Expertise alone isn’t enough to make the difference. It’s always about what you do with it.

Being the Smartest Person in the Room Isn’t Enough

I’ve worked with a lot of leaders who are definitely experts in their fields. They’ve got the qualifications, the background and the experience. But some of them still struggle to move things forward. The problem? They haven’t learned how to translate their expertise into authority.

Knowledge is only as valuable as how well you can apply it, share it, and use it to your advantage. Some leaders even become trapped in their own expertise, sticking to what they know, relying on past successes and the world moves past them.

The Knowledge & Experience Traps

There’s more than one way to waste the expertise you’ve worked hard to build up. Here are some common examples:

The Legacy Expert

You only lean on what has worked before, assuming past success guarantees future results. But the world evolves, and what worked yesterday might be irrelevant tomorrow.

The Silent Expert

You hesitate to share your expertise, feeling like you need more experience before speaking up. Meanwhile, people with less knowledge (but more confidence) shape the conversation.

The Overloaded Expert

You absorb endless books, courses, and theories but rarely put them into action. Learning is great, but if you don’t apply it, it’s just intellectual entertainment.

The Specialist Who’s stuck in their lane

You stick to what you know, never exploring ideas outside your field. The most impactful leaders cross-pollinate knowledge and bring insights from different industries, disciplines, and experiences to solve problems.

Expertise alone won’t help you to stand out, but adding storytelling will

The leaders who activate their expertise are the ones who know how to communicate it effectively.

People generally don’t just want data or information, they want stories, context, and connection. Telling the story behind why something matters, how you’ve learned it, or what it looks like in action can make knowledge memorable. It will help people to listen and understand.

How to Level Up your Leadership using your Knowledge & Experience

If you want to make your expertise work for you, here’s where to start:

1️⃣ Make learning active

Stop collecting information and start applying it. Take small, practical steps to put knowledge into action rather than waiting for the ‘right moment’ when you have it all.’

2️⃣ Share your expertise through stories

Facts are forgettable, but a well told stories stick. Learn to frame your experiences in a way that inspires, educates, and resonates with others.

3️⃣ Expand your knowledge beyond your field

Don’t just focus in your industry, look outside it. What insights can you borrow from different sectors, disciplines, or life experiences to bring a fresh perspective?

If you’re not sharing your knowledge and experience in a way that engages people, someone with less knowledge but better communication skills will own the conversation.

What’s Next?

Knowledge & Experience is just one of the leadership capabilities that we believe drive real influence and impact. If you’d like to assess where you stand across our eight impactful leadership domains, the Impact Readiness Index is a great place to start. It’s a free self-assessment designed to help you understand your strengths and pinpoint areas to sharpen up.

👉 Take the Impact Readiness Index today and get a free personalised report on your leadership strengths and opportunities.

At The Change Arc, we help leaders and teams build influence and impact—with the right mix of strategy, creativity, and execution. Find out more about how we work here.

About the Author

Iain Fowler is the Co-Founder of The Change Arc, helping leaders and teams build influence and impact. With a background in strategy, leadership development, and communication, he works with leaders to define and activate value, sharpen their leadership brand, and deliver real-world results.