Am I in My Zone of Genius? How to Tell When You’re Off Track

Looking for support? I work with founders and leaders who want to build great companies without breaking themselves. If that sounds like you, let's connect live.

As I recently shared, I have been building a product again for the first time in 5+ years. Much of the journey has already been great—but lately, I find myself wrestling with a rising question: How do I ensure I stay in my zone of genius?

For those unfamiliar, one’s zone of genius might be thought of as the intersection of what one is uniquely gifted at and energized by. In the context of work, we might add a third piece: something that provides value to others thus generates income.

When you are in your zone of genius, you can do something you love, be energized by it, and provide value to others by doing so.

It is a beautiful thing.

When I coach, I have zero doubt I am in my zone of genius. When I first began coaching, I had a visceral experience that I was experiencing my zone of genius for the very first time in my professional life.

As a pro athlete, I was good at my sport, but it did not bring me joy.

As an entrepreneur, I was talented and found the initial work fun—tinkering, building a product, working out of my apartment with a good friend. But as my most successful company grew, I found myself in the scattered experience I witness with many startup CEOs:

• The job changes every month
• There is little opportunity to build mastery
• My energy dropped as the company grew

Yet I have been drawn to build again. And I want to make sure I am doing so in a way that leverages my zone(s) of genius. I am not finding this to be an easy question.

I do not think I will ever stop coaching. Coaching will be something I do until I die. That feels like a given.

I have also felt a pull to build something again.

I am not sure exactly what I am drawn to build. I do not think it is a full-time, large company. Is it a side hustle? Something I help create and then entrust to others?

Not certain; and I am not sure it matters yet.

What does feel like it matters—and what is giving me pause even this morning—is wanting to hold my commitment to living and working in my zone(s) of genius. I see some builders and founders whose purest form of creative expression is building software or companies.

I am not yet clear which parts of building are truly me.

I am asking myself: How would I know? How do I reconcile this pull to create with an awareness that many parts of the process do not light me up or give me joy?

This is not a post where I have five tactics or an easy answer. I think what is coming up is wanting to keep myself honest. And wanting to check in with myself as I go.

To that end, I thought I would open up a bit of my internal process - how I am coaching myself through this exploration in real-time.

To start with, I am asking myself what I know about what lights me up. And I am forcing myself to put in in writing:

What I know about what lights me up

• Bringing people together around a shared mission: YES
• Exploring what could exist that does not: YES
• The grind of building something up: Maybe no? (But is there another way?)
• Scaling a team: No. (I can do it, but it does not light me up anymore.)
• Building high-leverage products and services with lean teams: YES

Wrestling a bit with where that leaves me.

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If I Were My Own Client, I Would Suggest:

It is okay to build the road as you go. To see what you see. To hold a day at a time as an experiment.

What is important is to not lose yourself along the way. Be honest with yourself. Be honest with the people around you.

Here is the homework I am giving myself. To sit down each Friday and write down my answers to the following prompts.

Weekly Check-In:

• What have you learned this week about the work that is yours to do?
• What have you learned about the work that is not?
• What courageous conversations are waiting to be had? Actions to be taken?

What About You?

What do you know about your zone of genius? What questions are you holding about your own work as you read this? I would love to hear.

Looking for support? I work with founders and leaders who want to build great companies without breaking themselves. If that sounds like you, let's connect live.

In the meantime, from one wandering creator to another, sending a big hug your way from my desk in LA.

-Matt