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Foreign. What do you want to be known for? I don't want you to think too far away when you think about what you want to be known for. I really want you to think about a year or two, because our life changes and our priorities changes. And I talk a lot about this in my keynotes. But here I just want to give you a little bit about. The reason why I want you to focus only about these specific weeks is because you have value that you can give today. And the question is, what is it? Right? So maybe it's businesses and you know how to operate in lean situations, or you know how to entertain kids remote, or you can help adults with lower stress meditation, building their reputation. Right? Whatever it is. So what is it that you can help today that will give value immediately in the coming weeks and build that reputation while you do it? And when you do that, you're going to do two things. One, figure out if you love it. And also start building that trust that you can be known for this. Now I want to talk about what do you want to be known for? Right? How do we figure out what you want to be known for? So Gay Hendricks actually creates a really interesting pyramid in which he divides our skills into four categories. One is incompetence. So incompetence, basically, you're not really good at this. When we were kids, we were taught to focus on the skills that we're not great at. But here, as adults, I will tell you, stay away, because you're always going to learn new things. You always going to have gaps. But if you're focusing on an area that you're never going to get better, then you're really focusing on the wrong place. Okay, so for me, it's probably me in the kitchen. Nobody wants me there for too long. But the good news is that I married well, so at least I got that right. But that's my zone of incompetence. Then to a zone of competence. Competence is basically, you're okay, you're doing pretty okay, but honestly, others will do it better. This is probably me in coding. Yes, I was a good coder, but honestly, the minute I started working with customers, that's when I realized that's my zone of genius. Not the coding. There are better coders. There are people that love to do it 9, 10, 12 hours a day. That was not me. So figure out what are those skills. And then there's zone of excellence. Zone of excellence is actually a tricky one because you can actually have a really good job for the rest of your Life paid well and you're going to be at that zone of excellence. But the problem is with zone of excellence is that it's not your zone of genius. So you're going to be good, but you're not going to be uniquely extremely amazing or it's not going to make you as happy. Okay? So there's definitely some things that I can probably put at that zone of excellence, but I can probably assure you that I'm not as happy as I am now because now I'm operating at my zone of genius and I love it. Okay, so figure out what that is for you because if you can focus on that, you're still going to have gaps, you still going to learn a lot, you're still going to have things that won't work well and you're still going to fail all the time. We're going to talk about it in other videos, but you're still going to focus on that zone of genius and that's what's going to make you remarkable and really successful and happy, shining. Okay? Proud of yourself. So this is what we want, okay? We want to find that zone of genius. Now in Career Leap, in the actual program, we dive super deep into this and analyzing your skills and everything. But here I just going to give you a few tips. Okay? So first of all, focus on your strengths. Literally write those down. So take a piece of paper, shut down any social media and write down what are those strengths? What are you great at? And really think from childhood, what did you do as a child that was amazing. And let everybody look at you and like, wow, like she did that. Like that's amazing. Okay, so really look back and what people were amazed by and write down those skills. What is that? Where do you think you're actually at the excellence in genius mode. And then write down what is interesting for you because that's not necessarily the same. So I can assure you that in my previous startup I was focusing on cloud data centers. It, I was pretty remarkable at it. That was probably my zone of excellence. But guess what, I'm not as interested in it now. So yes, I can help startups from time to time. They're in this space, I can help companies in the space and that's what I've been doing now. But that's not where I want to be all the time. Right. I want to focus on what's more interesting for me, which is growing people, growing teams. So really focus on what is interesting for you. And the other thing that is a big tip for me is figure out what other people are intrigued by you. Okay, so you my friend, are already an authority. People already come to you for something. What are those things? What are they intrigued by? Why are they impressed by you? Why do they come to you with questions? What is it? So literally list those down. Now sometimes it's really good to go back to like messenger and see what people message do. I looked at my LinkedIn recommendations and I was pretty impressed by some of the things that they read because it wasn't even in my line of thought. Like I didn't really think that that was something I'm unique or as people see it in a different light. So look at everything that people think about you and if you don't have enough, just ask. People will love to tell you good things. You're asking for a good thing, right? So ask people, hey, what do you think of me? What are the things that you're impressed by me? What are the things that you liked about me? What did you like to work with me, et cetera. So ask and you're going to love what you're going to see. The other thing is really list down those wins and accomplishments and when you really had milestones that were kind of above and beyond and a list them. In Career Leap we actually create what I call a brag bank and it's actually a great document because from that you can literally copy paste things to your Resume, to your LinkedIn and to email and create a little brag bait for yourself and literally write down those wins and accomplishments. But also think about in what scenarios are you operating above and beyond, right? And with scenarios like is that stressful moment, is that places where you need emotional intelligence, Is this times when you need to problem solve things like try to really figure out what is that that made you above and beyond what was the scenario? Because that might be a hint about that zone of genius. Another big thing is that many times we get to the zone of genius after we overcome a significant obstacle for ourselves. Okay, so if we battled with something specific, a big problem that we solve for ourselves, that sometimes become that zone of genius because we literally solved our own problem. That was a painful month. That's how I got to Career Leap because I solved my own problem when I lost my job in my startup and my investment and everything at the same time. And I needed to reinvent myself and leap in my career. So this was a big one for me. So figure out if you have an obstacle that you overcome because that sometimes really hints towards that zone of genius. So do that homework and that will really help you hone what is it that you want to be known for and really divide it into two overall what I want to be known for in the next year or two but what is it that I can do now to help businesses or to help kids or to help adults or to help in these situation now in the coming weeks because you can add value and build your reputation and personal brand along the way. There's also a free webinar that you can join. So there's a link and you can just click below because I talk a lot about your priorities and your zone of genius and all that. So you can click below and join a full one hour free webinar. So let's do that. Do the document, do your homework, stay healthy. Wow. I hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did. If you did, please leave a five star review below. This really helps us continue to bring amazing guests now. Also, if you're feeling stuck or simply want more from your own career, watch this 30 minute training@leapacademy.com training. That's leapacademy.com training. It's completely free and I will see you in the next episode of the Leap Academy with Elana Galancho.
Episode Title: Ilana Golan: 7 Steps to Unlock Your Zone of Genius
Release Date: March 13, 2025
In this insightful episode of The Leap Academy Podcast, host Ilana Golan delves deep into the concept of the "Zone of Genius." She outlines practical steps and shares personal anecdotes to help listeners identify and harness their unique strengths, ultimately paving the way for remarkable career leaps and personal fulfillment.
Ilana begins by introducing the framework created by Gay Hendricks, which categorizes skills into four distinct zones:
Zone of Incompetence: Tasks that individuals are poor at and should avoid focusing on.
Ilana shares humorously:
"For me, it's probably me in the kitchen. Nobody wants me there for too long."
(00:30)
Zone of Competence: Skills where one is adequate but not exceptional.
She reflects on her own experience:
"This is probably me in coding. Yes, I was a good coder, but the minute I started working with customers, that's when I realized that's my zone of genius."
(02:15)
Zone of Excellence: Areas where one excels and can sustain a well-paying job but lacks true passion.
Ilana cautions:
"You're going to be good, but you're not going to be uniquely extremely amazing or as happy as operating in your zone of genius."
(03:45)
Zone of Genius: The unique area where one's greatest passion and talents intersect, leading to exceptional performance and personal satisfaction.
Emphasizing its importance:
"This is what's going to make you remarkable and really successful and happy, shining."
(04:20)
1. Focus on Your Strengths
"Take a piece of paper, shut down any social media and write down what are those strengths."
(05:10)
2. Identify What Interests You
"In my previous startup, I was focused on cloud data centers... but now I want to focus on growing people, growing teams."
(06:50)
3. Understand How Others Perceive You
"Look at everything that people think about you and if you don't have enough, just ask."
(08:30)
4. Compile a Brag Bank
"In Career Leap we create what I call a brag bank... write down those wins and accomplishments."
(10:05)
5. Analyze Scenarios Where You Excelled
"Is that stressful moment, places where you need emotional intelligence... that might be a hint about that zone of genius."
(12:20)
6. Overcome Significant Obstacles
"That's how I got to Career Leap because I solved my own problem when I lost my job in my startup..."
(14:50)
7. Continuous Self-Reflection and Adaptation
"Our life changes and our priorities change... focus on what you can help today and in the coming weeks."
(16:30)
Ilana encourages listeners to apply these steps diligently to unlock their zone of genius. By focusing on immediate value and building a reputation based on unique strengths, individuals can achieve significant career advancements and personal happiness.
Key Takeaways:
Ilana concludes with an invitation:
"Do the document, do your homework, stay healthy."
(21:15)
Listeners are encouraged to join a free webinar for further exploration of their zone of genius and to access additional resources through Leap Academy.
Identifying Incompetence:
"For me, it's probably me in the kitchen. Nobody wants me there for too long."
(00:30)
Discovering Genius Through Customer Interaction:
"That's when I realized that's my zone of genius."
(02:15)
Happiness in Genius:
"You're not going to be uniquely extremely amazing or as happy as operating in your zone of genius."
(04:20)
Creating a Brag Bank:
"Write down those wins and accomplishments."
(10:05)
Overcoming Obstacles:
"I solved my own problem when I lost my job in my startup..."
(14:50)
Continuous Adaptation:
"Focus on what you can help today and in the coming weeks."
(16:30)
This episode serves as a comprehensive guide for anyone looking to identify and leverage their unique strengths to achieve extraordinary success and fulfillment in their careers and personal lives.