Zone of Genius: Unlocking Success and Happiness
The Zone of Genius is the intersection of passion, talent, and purpose. An energy audit helps leaders identify and eliminate energy-draining tasks that fall outside their Zone of Genius. For leaders, combining the Zone of Genius concepts with the power of energy audits has revolutionized how they can optimize their performance and unlock their full potential.
Take Naval Ravikant, a visionary entrepreneur and investor. Under his leadership, AngelList experienced remarkable growth and became one of the most prominent platforms for startup fundraising and talent acquisition. As CEO tasks required of that job fell outside of his Zone of Genius.
And Naval was burning out. Naval enlisted the most sought after coach in Silicon Valley, Matt Mochary to help him unlock his potential and happiness.
Mochary first had Naval identify his zone of genius. There are four zones we all play in at work:
- Zone of Incompetence
- Zone of Competence
- Zone of Excellence
- Zone of Genius
Take Naval Ravikant, a visionary entrepreneur and investor. Under his leadership, AngelList experienced remarkable growth and became one of the most prominent platforms for startup fundraising and talent acquisition. As CEO tasks required of that job fell outside of his Zone of Genius.
And Naval was burning out. Naval enlisted the most sought after coach in Silicon Valley, Matt Mochary to help him unlock his potential and happiness.
Mochary first had Naval identify his zone of genius. There are four zones we all play in at work:
The first two are obvious. But let’s break down the key difference between zones 3 and 4. The Zone of Excellence are areas in which you are excellent (better than most) but do not enjoy. The world gets value from you focusing on these tasks, but you become drained by doing them.This is the zone where leaders can get trapped.
The Zone of Genius on the other hand are activities where: You are uniquely good at them (best-in-class)You enjoy them so much that you lose track of time. This is where you add the most value to an organization (and yourself!).
Mochary then had Naval do an Energy Audit to clearly define his Zones of Genius. He took the last 2 weeks of his calendar and categorize EVERY activity by the following criteria:
- Did this activity give me energy? (green zone)
- Did this activity drain my energy? (red zone)
If you are on the fence, consider it energy-draining (red).
Take Naval Ravikant, a visionary entrepreneur and investor. Under his leadership, AngelList experienced remarkable growth and became one of the most prominent platforms for startup fundraising and talent acquisition. As CEO tasks required of that job fell outside of his Zone of Genius.
And Naval was burning out. Naval enlisted the most sought after coach in Silicon Valley, Matt Mochary to help him unlock his potential and happiness.
Mochary first had Naval identify his zone of genius. There are four zones we all play in at work:
This is where the Zone of Genius concept comes in. It is so important.”
—Naval Ravikant
Mochary interviewed Naval a year after making this shift.
Matt
“How was your life as CEO of AngelList?”
NAVAL
“3 out of 10 in terms of enjoyment”
You can’t actually hire Matt Mochary as a coach. As @balajis would say, he is “post-economic.” He only works for the people he chooses. His clients are either the fastest-growing tech companies or the top 5 VC firms. Fortunately, he is very generous with sharing his techniques. Perform an Energy Audit to find your Zone of GeniusDelegate, Outsource, Eliminate or Make Sacred anything that drains your energy. Partner and hire those with complementary Zones of GeniusAim for 80% of life in your Zone of GeniusFor more on Energy Audits and Zones of Genius, check out the Conscious Leadership Group
