See the Series Introduction for Just Tao It, Part I: HERE
See the Just Tao It Series Introduction Tao/It on-ramp, PART II: HERE
See Just Tao It, Chapter 1: HERE

From my interpretation of the Tao Te Ching, Chapter 22 (Unpublished):

Be broken to be whole.
Be empty to be full.
Be small to be great.
Be bent to be straight.

Let the old depart,
the new appears.
What is true—
already here.

Unmoved by appearance—
esteemed.
Unconcerned with reverence—
admired.
Uninterested in applause—
celebrated.

The sage does not contend,
and none contend.

What is bent
becomes whole.

—

We talk about imposter syndrome like it’s one thing. It isn’t.

There are at least two. I see both in my clients—and in myself.

The first is the All-Knower Imposter. Confident to a fault. Has the answer. Says it cleanly. Demonstrates certainty. It’s tailor-made to look strong all the time. You see it in the quick explanations, the deflections, the shifting of burden. It can pass for strength in the moment, especially in rooms that reward sounding certain. There’s something useful here. Clarity matters. People do need direction. But over time it creates distance. Trust erodes. Conversations tighten. People start managing what they say, and the leader never quite understands why.

The second is the All-Shoulder Imposter. Humble to a fault. Carries everything. Questions everything. Second-guesses decisions. More input. More data. More time. It can look thoughtful, even inclusive. There’s something useful here too. Reflection matters. People need to be heard. But over time, the delays start to speak for themselves. People begin to wonder if the hesitation is care—or fear. Same result. Trust erodes, just more slowly and more politely.

The reality is, both work—for a while. And both are exhausting to maintain. Neither builds much of anything that actually matters.

Lao Tzu points to it directly: to be broken is to let go of appearing whole, because none of us are; to be empty is to make room for what you don’t yet know, because none of us know everything; to be small is to stop centering yourself in every outcome; to be bent is to admit your first answer may not be your best, even when it sometimes is.

It sounds poetic. Living it is something else.

Because the All-Knower Imposter overfocuses on owning and stops questioning, while the All-Shoulder Imposter overfocuses on questioning and stops owning. Both can look reasonable. And over time, both erode trust.

And once trust erodes, the system compensates. The All-Knower pushes harder, becoming more certain, more declarative, more closed. The All-Shoulder pulls back further, becoming more cautious, more tentative, more delayed. The pattern reinforces itself, not once, but repeatedly.

Brené Brown helped bring language to this in a way many of us needed. Vulnerability is not weakness. It is uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure—and it is the source of trust, learning, and connection. Without it, we protect ourselves. And in protecting ourselves, we create distance.

Jim Collins found something similar in his research on Level 5 Leadership. The most effective leaders combined fierce professional will with deep personal humility. Not one or the other, but both. He even used the Yin–Yang symbol to describe the tension.

Different language, same pattern.

Confidence and humility, courage and vulnerability, showing up and being real—however you name the poles, they point to the same thing: trust in yourself, trust with others, trust that builds or erodes over time.

For me, in this chapter, I’m going to name the polarity this way: Own Your View AND Question Your View.

When we try to look strong, we’re performing. When we are willing to be real, something else becomes visible—maybe not immediately, and not perfectly, but reliably, over time.

Lao Tzu simplifies it: unmoved by appearance, one becomes steady; unconcerned with reverence, one becomes grounded; uninterested in applause, one becomes free. Not because you are trying to be those things, but because you are no longer organized around them.

That’s the shift, not trying to be those things and no longer organizing around them.

Leaders who learn to live inside this tension develop something quieter but far more reliable: the capacity to make wiser decisions over time.

Here’s a Polarity Map for Own Your View AND Question Your View:

INVITATIONS
If you want to take a quick self-assessment for Own Your View AND Question Your View: CLICK HERE
NOTE: the results include Leveraging Action Steps and Early Warnings (to support maximizing upside benefits and minimizing downside limitations).

Where is Own Your View AND Question Your View challenging you now?
Try the “AI-trained Chat w/AI Cliff for support for Step 1, Seeing Polarities

Ready for the Polarity Advantage? Check out our online self-directed Basics, Credentialing, or in-person training with Barry Johnson and me at Kayser Ridge! Certifications and Courses