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Are You Working Within Your ‘Zone of Genius’?

By November 5, 2014 February 20th, 2019

blog-20141105-are-you-working-within-your-zone-of-geniusCan you remember a time when you were so engaged in your work, it didn't even feel like work? Time just slipped away and hours felt like only minutes, as you were completely and utterly ‘in the zone'?
Perhaps you feel like this when you're reading the Tarot cards or developing new Tarot reading techniques? Or perhaps you find yourself ‘in the zone' when you're teaching others how to read Tarot and inspiring beginners to transform their life with the Tarot cards?

It's an amazing feeling, isn't it?

You know you're doing your best work and serving others at the highest level because you're bringing your passions and your talents together in a magical (and highly productive) partnership.

The zone I'm talking about is called the “Zone of Genius” – a phrase coined by The Big Leap author, Gay Hendricks. (I highly recommend his book – it was a game changer for me.)

When we work within our Zone of Genius, we create magic!

Discovering Your Zone of Genius

So how do you find your Zone of Genius?

The thing to remember here is that everyone is different. For me, my Zone of Genius might be teaching groups how to read Tarot online or growing a thriving Tarot business. But for another Tarot reader, it might be working one-on-one with clients in a Tarot therapy session or reading Tarot at parties.

Your Zone of Genius is unique and individual to you. It is what makes you special.

To discover your Zone of Genius, ask yourself the following questions (adapted from The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks):

  • List the last 3 things you did (or experiences you had) that brought you deep joy. What do these 3 things have in common?
  • What do I most love doing? That is, I love it so much that I can do it for long stretches of time without getting tired or bored.
  • What work do I do that doesn’t seem like work?
  • In my work, what produces the highest ratio of abundance and satisfaction to amount of time spent? That is, what work do I love doing that delivers huge value?
  • What are the special skills and talents that I’m gifted with?

You might also like to draw a Tarot card or two for each of the above questions to help add further insight.

Once you become consciously aware of what is within your Zone of Genius, you can start to create more opportunities to operate from this magical place.

What's Not in Your Zone of Genius

It's just as important to know what is not in your Zone of Genius.

Gay Hendricks talks about a further three zones which we operate from:

  • Zone of Excellence – activities you do very well but don't necessarily get a lot of joy from (e.g. completing 10 1-hour Tarot readings in one day)
  • Zone of Competence – activities you can complete successfully but it's not something you're excellent at (e.g. uploading blog posts to WordPress)
  • Zone of Incompetence – activities you dislike and that take a lot of time (and frustration) to complete (e.g. website coding)

Do you find yourself working from these zones? In fact, I'm going to bet you that you probably spend 80-90% of your time outside of your Zone of Genius, particularly if you're feeling stressed, tired or run-down.

Take the test. Keep a diary for the next week and write down how much time you're spending in each zone (and what you're doing). You might be surprised at how much time you spend on activities that deliver neither value or joy.

How to Work More Within Your Zone of Genius

OK, so clearly we want to work more in our Zone of Genius.

One of the best ways to operate from your Zone of Genius is to make time for it. Easy, right? Prioritise and schedule your time around your Zone of Genius activities.

For example, if you're a morning person, dedicate a couple of hours when you first get up to focusing on what's in your Zone of Genius. Don't open your Inbox or sign in to Facebook. Get moving on where you know you do your best work.

And of course, to work more within your Zone of Genius, you'll want to work less in those areas that are not in your Zone of Genius (i.e. the Zone of Excellence, Competence and Incompetence).

Here's how…

Give yourself permission to say ‘no' to new opportunities that are not within your Zone of Genius. Sure, you might have a client who would love for you to read Tarot about a loved one who has passed, but perhaps mediumship is not in your Zone of Genius, so you politely decline.

Delegate or outsource activities that are in your Zone of Competence and Incompetence. For example, if website development and coding drives you nuts and you'd prefer to be reading Tarot, hire a web developer.

Automate. For example, instead of sending emails back and forth with your Tarot reading clients to set up a Skype call across different time zones, send them to an appointment scheduling service such as Time Trade (I use this for booking coaching calls and love it). It'll save you a lot of time and a lot of headaches.

Limit your time doing activities that outside of your Zone of Genius. OK, so yes, as an online Tarot business owner, it's important I spend time in my communities on social media but do I really need to spend hours in Facebook? Probably not.So instead, I limit myself to 15 minutes at set times of the day. Job done – move on!

Over to You

So, dear Tarot reader, what is in your Zone of Genius? What steps are you taking to create more time for working in your Zone of Genius? I'd love to hear your insights so share your comments below.

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