Three Types of Competencies

Understanding How Your Strengths and Skills Show Up in Action

Competencies go beyond just skills or potential—they are how your strengths actually manifest in real life. Recognizing the ways your abilities express themselves helps you grow with awareness, focus your efforts, and lead with purpose.

Competencies fall into three meaningful categories: Signature, Emerging, and Over-used. Knowing where your strengths land can transform how you develop and apply your talents.

1. Signature Competencies

Your Standout Strengths — Skills You Lead With
These are your well-developed, dependable strengths—the skills you confidently and consistently use. Signature competencies shape how you perform and lead at your best. They are your trusted assets, often noticed and valued by others.

Tip: Know your signature competencies deeply, use them with intention, and keep sharpening them.

2. Emerging Competencies

Your Developing Edge — Strengths in Growth
Emerging competencies represent your potential. These are skills you’re cultivating or hidden talents beginning to surface. They open doors for new learning, adaptability, and greater impact.

Tip: Dedicate time and energy to nurture emerging competencies—they’re the seeds of future strength.

3. Over-used Competencies

When Strengths Become Challenges
Even strengths can become liabilities if overdone. Over-used competencies happen when talents are stretched too far without balance—leading to burnout, rigidity, or blind spots. Examples include excessive decisiveness, over-empathy, or hyper-attention to detail.

Tip: Learn to recognize when a strength needs re calibration to stay effective and sustainable.

By identifying your competencies across these types, you gain powerful insight into how your strengths operate in your current life and work. This awareness guides your development with intention, balance, and lasting effectiveness.