The Zone of Genius

As part of my business coaching with my badass therapeutic coach Tamara, she’s having me read The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level by Gay Hendricks, PhD.

Here’s a bit about the book:

The book explores the concept of the "upper limit problem," providing insights into how we sabotage ourselves and offering strategies to break through these barriers. With compelling stories and relatable examples, it keeps readers engaged, making personal growth an exciting journey rather than a dull chore.

The book dives into four different zones that we often live in:

— the zone of incompetence

— the zone of competence

— the zone of excellence

— the zone of genius

Most of the time, most of us tend to spend a majority of our time floating in-between the zone of competence and the zone of excellence. Ideally, we want to be living full-time in the zone of genius.

The zone of genius, as created and identified by Dr. Hendricks, is “the zone where your natural talents and enthusiasms intersect. When you’re in your genius zone, you’re taking advantage of your unique abilities and doing what you love. As a result, you have an ‘unfair advantage’ over your competition because you’re using your gifts to the fullest extent.”

For me, I found that my zone of genius is the following:

I am a creative, authentic, and vulnerable gay mindset coach supporting gay men through sexual and relational confidence.

My unique ability is listening with empathy and compassion, and helping to bring inspiring “AHA” moments to someone seeking support.

When I’m in my zone of genius, I can be the catalyst for someone’s life-changing inspiration.

My zone of genius is leading with vulnerability, authenticity, and creativity to give permission for others to do the same for themselves, leading to deeper connection to themselves and their partners, loved ones, and community.

When I’m in this space and this zone, I’m able to show up as 100% Kevin. There, that’s where I do my best work, and that’s where I provide create the deepest impact on the world around me. My coaching sessions and the member’s only space I’ve created for gay men are two spaces where my operation within the zone of genius have come to be.

For years, I’ve been living in the zone of excellence — doing the things that we are good at and that we can be successful with, but that’s not quite aligned with our unique abilities (the things that set us apart).

This awakening is becoming a quantum-level shift for me. It’s helping me to set the boundaries I need to set and make the adjustments I need to compassionately and kindly make to ensure I’m operating in the zone of genius as close to 100% of the time as possible.

I want to encourage you to do the same.

Start by reading or listening to The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks.

Then, ask yourself:

What does my zone of excellence look like?

What does my zone of genius look like?

Where am I most often spending my time?

How can I begin to start spending more time in my zone of genius?

What boundaries and adjustments may I need to set to operate within my zone of genius?

I can’t wait to hear how this self-exploration and self-discovery goes for you. Check out the book, and let me know if you have any questions or concerns. If I can be of coaching support to you, schedule a session here for when it’s best for you.

I love you bunches,
Kevin