Here’s something nobody warns you about: the better you are at what you do, the worse your videos probably are.
Not because you’re not smart enough. Because you’re too smart.
You know your craft so deeply, so automatically, that you’ve forgotten what it feels like to not know it. And that one blind spot is quietly pushing prospects away from your videos before they ever pick up the phone.
There’s a name for this. Psychologists call it the curse of knowledge. And once you understand it, you’ll never make a confusing video again.
Come with me!
The Blind Spot Every Expert Has
The curse of knowledge is simple, and almost impossible to feel from the inside. Once you know something well, you can no longer imagine what it’s like to not know it.
Picture tapping out the rhythm of a song everyone knows on a tabletop. In your head, you hear the whole melody, the instruments, the words. It’s obvious. But the person listening hears only a string of random taps. They have no idea what song it is. You’re convinced it’s clear, because you can hear the music. They can’t. All they get is the tapping.
That gap is exactly what happens in your videos. In your head, every concept comes with years of context attached. To your prospect, your words land as taps on a table. You’re hearing the music. They’re hearing noise. And you can’t feel the difference, because the music never stops playing in your mind.
Why This Quietly Wrecks Business Video
When you’re an expert, you skip steps without realizing it. You use shorthand your prospect has never heard. You answer the question three layers deep while they’re still standing at the front door of the topic.
And here’s the part that actually costs you money: when a prospect can’t follow you, they don’t blame your explanation. They blame themselves. They feel a little lost, a little behind, maybe a little embarrassed. And nobody hires the person who makes them feel dumb.
So they don’t comment. They don’t argue. They just quietly click away and watch someone else — someone who probably knows less than you, but explains it in a way that makes them feel smart. That competitor isn’t winning because they’re better. They’re winning because they’re clearer.
The Fix: Explain It Like They’re Smart but New
The answer is not to dumb things down. Your prospects are intelligent professionals, and they can smell condescension instantly. The answer is to assume they’re sharp — but brand new to your world.
Start by saying the thing that feels too obvious to mention. That obvious thing is usually the exact piece your prospect was missing. Define your terms in plain language the first time you use them. Cover one idea per video instead of cramming in everything you know. And before you record, run the coffee test: could you explain this to a smart friend across a coffee table, in a few sentences, without losing them? If not, simplify until you can.
Watch for the small words that give the curse away. “Obviously.” “Of course.” “As you know.” Every time one of those slips out, stop — because the thing you just called obvious is probably the thing your prospect doesn’t know yet. Those words don’t make you sound smart. They make the viewer feel like they missed the class everyone else attended.
When you interview a client on camera for a testimonial — in person or remotely — you’ll notice they explain your value better than you do. That’s not an accident. They aren’t cursed with your knowledge. They describe the transformation in the plain words a prospect actually uses. Pay attention to how they say it. That’s your script.
The Payoff Nobody Expects
Here’s the twist that makes this worth the effort. When you explain something complex in simple, human language, you don’t look less expert. You look more expert.
Anyone can hide behind jargon. It takes real mastery to make a hard thing feel easy. When a prospect watches your video and thinks, “Wow, that finally makes sense,” they don’t conclude you’re basic. They conclude you’re the one who can actually help them. Clear beats clever every single time.
So the next time you record, remember the tapping on the table. Your prospect can’t hear the music in your head. Your only job is to play it out loud, one clear note at a time. Do that, and the people who used to click away will start booking calls instead.
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See you in the next Video Lion!