You’re running at a fraction of your potential. And the thing slowing you down? Well, here’s the reality – you put it there.
Back in the day, NASCAR engines were beautifully engineered to produce between 750 and 800 horsepower. They were built for it. Designed for it. Every component calibrated to perform at that level.
Then, NASCAR placed a restrictor plate on the engine to slow the cars down without requiring teams to build different engines for different race tracks.
The restrictor plate is a small, light, and unassuming piece of metal – four tiny holes that sit between the carburetor and the intake manifold on a NASCAR engine. Its role is simple, restrict the amount of fuel and air that goes into the intake manifold.
Just like that, 200 to 300 horsepower – gone. Not because the engine changed. Not because something broke. But because a plate was placed between the engine and its full potential.
Here’s the part that always gets me:
The moment that restrictor plate was removed that engine went right back to producing every bit of horsepower it was designed to create. (read that again!)
It never forgot what it was built for. It never lost the capability. The plate just blocked it from getting through. (see where we’re going here, friends?)
Our minds are not much different than those engines. And our beliefs are no different than those restrictor plates.
The Plates We Install on Ourselves
Your restrictor plate isn’t made of metal. It’s made of beliefs.
“I’m not the type who gets promoted.”
“Our team has always struggled with this.”
“We’re not a company that can compete with them.”
These aren’t facts. They’re stories. Stories that, over time, become our operating instructions.
Where Did the Plate Come From?
Most restrictor plates aren’t installed all at once. They’re installed one conversation, one setback, one “you’re not ready for that” at a time. They even come from our childhood where those in ‘authority’ told us what we were or weren’t capable of doing – so, please be intentional with the words you use with children or young people!!
A leader gets passed over for a promotion. A new initiative gets dismissed. A bold idea gets laughed out of the room. Each of those moments is a bolt being tightened on the plate.
Eventually, the limitation feels like reality. You start to believe the beliefs.
You don’t have to!
ACTION STEP 1 – Your Individual Diagnostic
Start here: Grab a blank piece of paper and finish this sentence three times –
“I can’t ________ because ________.”
Now look at each answer and ask: Is that a fact – or is that a plate I installed?
You’ll be surprised how many “facts” are actually beliefs wearing a hard hat.
What’s the Plate Costing You?
In racing, the gap between 800 HP and 500 HP is the gap between contending and sitting in the middle of the pack – lap after lap – wondering why you can’t quite get there.
In your organization, that gap shows up in plateaued performance, disengaged teams, and strategies that look great on paper but never quite fire.
The talent is there. The potential is there. The restrictor plate is in the way.
ACTION STEP 2 – Team Reality Check
On a scale of 1-10: How much of your team’s actual capability are you accessing right now?
If you answered anything below an 8, there’s a plate somewhere.
Now the harder question: Is that plate a circumstance – or a conclusion you drew a long time ago that just never got revisited?
Sit with that for a minute. That’s interesting… is always the right first response (not judgment).
Removing the Plate
Here’s the most powerful truth from that NASCAR engine analogy:
You don’t have to rebuild the engine. You just have to remove the plate.
The capability is already there. The horsepower never left. The engine hasn’t forgotten what it was designed to do – and neither have you or your team.
ACTION STEP 3 -Team Exercise This Week
Pull your team together for 30 minutes. Ask two questions:
- “Where are we running at full power – and what made that possible?”
- “Where do we feel like we’re capped – and when did we decide that?”
Don’t rush to solutions. Just surface the plates. Name them. Because you can’t remove what you haven’t acknowledged.
The goal isn’t to manufacture false confidence. It’s to separate the real constraints from the installed ones and start leading from what your team was actually designed to produce.
What plate have you been driving with and what would change if you removed it?
Drop your answer below. I’d love to hear what this unlocks for you. 👇
Keep digging. 🏁