Pothole Repair Model
Trace recurring reactions to their root and repair them instead of coping
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 96%
The model treats an unresolved experience as a pothole on the brain's internal map. When the original event jars the nervous system, a person covers it with a coping strategy that helps them continue: control, perfectionism, people-pleasing, overwork, or an if-then bargain. Later situations resembling the original threat cause the brain to anticipate the same pothole, activating stress and the familiar protective response. Because the root has only been covered, the cycle repeats in more sophisticated forms. Repair begins by identifying the recurring behavior, tracing it beneath its apparent trigger, naming the deeper belief or unmet need, and deliberately adopting a response that no longer protects the obsolete bargain.
Origin
Extracted from The Jasmine Star Show, where Dr. Natasha Jordan used a road-map and pothole analogy to connect Jasmine Star's childhood bargaining behaviors with her later leadership decisions.
Core principles
- 01Recurring reactions often originate in earlier survival strategies.
- 02A coping mechanism can conceal a wound without resolving it.
- 03The brain anticipates familiar threats even when circumstances have changed.
- 04Lasting behavioral change requires repairing the root cause.
- 05Coaching can connect past patterns to present leadership without becoming therapy.
How to run it
- 1
Spot the Recurring Pothole
Identify a reaction or behavior that repeatedly appears under pressure, such as overcontrol, perfectionism, anxiety, or taking responsibility for everything.
Pro tip Look for patterns that recur across family, business, and leadership contexts.
Watch out Do not assume the most visible person or event is necessarily the root cause.
- 2
Name the Protective Cover
Determine what you do to keep functioning when the reaction appears. This may be an if-then bargain, compulsive work, people-pleasing, or another strategy that once created safety.
Pro tip Ask what the behavior originally helped you avoid, secure, or control.
Watch out A coping strategy that produced success can still be concealing an unresolved issue.
- 3
Trace the Underlying Belief
Move beneath the immediate trigger and identify the belief, fear, or lack of trust that gives the pattern its power.
Pro tip Distinguish the embodied symbol of the problem from the deeper belief driving it.
Watch out Intellectualizing the pattern is not the same as changing it.
- 4
Choose a Contradictory Response
Act in a way that no longer reinforces the old bargain. Depending on the pattern, this could mean asking for help, tolerating uncertainty, delegating, or making a strategic bet without first earning permission.
Pro tip Start with one consequential situation where the old pattern normally takes over.
Watch out Insight without different behavior merely covers the pothole again.
- 5
Review the New Trajectory
Observe whether the new response improves decisions, relationships, and emotional regulation over time. Repeat the repair process when another version of the pattern emerges.
Pro tip Use a coach, trusted colleague, or reflective practice to catch sophisticated recurrences.
Watch out Do not treat one breakthrough as proof that the pattern can never return.
In the wild
Jasmine recognized that her tendency to do everything perfectly was an adult version of childhood bargains formed during her mother's cancer battle. She initially treated her mother as the pothole, then concluded that the deeper issue was her lack of faith and trust. That distinction changed how she considered expansion, hiring, and the possibility of building a holding company.
→ She could state her ambition more freely and use an important conversation with Gary Vaynerchuk without framing her question around self-protection.
A founder who habitually takes every important task back from the team traces the behavior to a belief that personal control prevents failure. Instead of merely using another productivity tool, the founder delegates one meaningful outcome, agrees on checkpoints, and tolerates the discomfort of not controlling the method.
→ The team gains ownership while the founder tests a response that does not reinforce the original control bargain.
Common mistakes
Blaming the Visible Trigger
The person or event associated with the reaction may only represent the pothole. Repair requires identifying the deeper belief or unmet need.
Confusing Insight With Repair
Being able to explain a pattern academically does not change its behavioral consequences. A different action must follow the insight.
Using Coaching as Therapy
Executive coaching can connect formative patterns to present leadership, but it should not replace appropriate clinical care.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for high achievers whose recurring anxiety, control, perfectionism, or overwork persists despite strong self-awareness.
Not ideal for
It is not a substitute for clinical treatment when trauma or mental-health symptoms require a licensed therapist.
From the transcript
“The pothole happens. That's our trauma.”
“until we cover up the pothole we will continue to come to that same behavior. We will continue to act that way. Just more sophisticated.”
“there is a difference between repairing the pothole and covering the potholes.”
From the episode
Why High Achievers Burn Out (and How to Fix It)