Growing up I was bullied heavily at school and in my mid to late teens, as I was developing into a young adult my confidence, self-esteem and self-worth took a nose dive for the worse! As I left school at the age of 17 and entered the world of adulthood I had strong beliefs about myself and huge amounts of self-doubt as a result of my years of childhood bullying.

The things I would tell myself, and anyone that would listen, was that I had no skills or talents. I genuinely believed this and thought I had nothing to offer the world. Other than typing, I was good at that! It was only many, many years later that I’d learn the term Zone of Genius (a phrase coined by Gay Hendricks in his book The Big Leap) and discover mine.

Your zone of genius is your unique super power and it’s one of a kind quality that you bring to your life and your business and lets you do certain things better than almost anyone else. You may doubt that you have a unique super power but I’m here to tell you that you do. So keep reading so you can learn how to discover yours!

Discover your uniqueness

A fellow coach and friend once told me that we’re not everyone’s flavour of ice cream, in that the way we show up and deliver for our clients is different. We’re not going to be for everyone and we each have our own unique flavour aka unique gifts and super power that we bring to the table.

It’s easy to tell ourselves that others are delivering what we are, so who are we to make a success of our business and let the self-doubt creep in. But here’s the reality. We each show up in our own unique way, with our own flavour of ice cream. You may be more gifted with intuitive gifts than another coach or you bring your unique sense of humour into your coaching sessions, which helps build relationships. 

Others may deliver the same service as you but no one will ever show up in your unique way, with your super powers, because you are uniquely you. Your audience and clients will be drawn to your flavour of icecream, to your personality and to your personal brand. 

The Zone of Excellence

In his book The Big Leap, Gay Hendricks talks about four zones; the zone of incompetence, the zone of competence, the zone of excellence and the zone of genius. The zone of excellence are activities you do extremely well and can make a good living from but you can stay trapped in this zone as it feels comfortable. I love this extract from his book where he says…

“The temptation is strong to remain in the Zone of Excellence; it’s where your own addiction to comfort wants to stay. It’s also where your family, friends and organisation want you to stay. The problem is that a deep, sacred part of you will wither and die if you stay inside your Zone of Excellence.”

Maybe you’ve got a calling to launch a new service in your coaching business or pivot your business but self-doubt is holding you back and you’re resisting this call. That’s why it’s so important to discover your zone of genius and your superpower! 

The Zone of Genius

The Zone of Genius is where your superhero powers truly lie, but how do you find yours? 

Below are extracts from The Big Leap where he guides you through some deep and thought provoking questions to find your own zone of genius. Take the time to answer them honestly, journal on them and reflect on them. The answer may not jump out at you straight away but when it does, it’s time to step into your zone of genius and unleash your inner superhero powers.

👉What do I most love to do? (I love it so much that I can do it for long stretches of time without getting bored)

👉What work do I do that doesn’t seem like work? (I can do it all day long without ever feeling tired or bored)

👉In my work, what produces the highest ratio of abundance and satisfaction to amount of time spent? (Even if I only do ten seconds or a few minutes of it, an idea or deeper connection may spring forth that leads to huge value)

👉What is my unique ability? (There’s a special skill I’m gifted with. This unique ability, fully realised and put to work, can provide enormous benefits to me and any organisation I deserve)

Hopefully now you can see how much potential you have lying inside of you, often dormant. So take what you need from this blog, ditch any self-doubt you have around your abilities and step into your superhero powers.

Your audience, clients and the world needs what you have to offer but they won’t benefit from it if you stay playing small in your zone of genius. Do you want to wither and die or do you want to expand and thrive?

If you’re looking for support with stepping into your super power and creating a deep transformation in your life and business, book a FREE discovery call with me today. 

We’ll look at how I can best support you so that you can reach your income goals with confidence and self-belief without being held back by self-doubt. Remember, the world needs your superpower and it’s your job to show up so your clients can find you!