The Focus 53 Podcast: Business Systems, People, & Processes

F53-069: Experts Dilemma - How To Get Back Into Your Zone of Genius

11.17.2016 - By Ryan Ayres: Business Coach and StrategistPlay

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Download on the App StoreGet it on Google Play

Today's show is about the "Expert's Dilemma" - a phrase I've been using. I don't even know if it's out there or someone else has coined it but I'm going with it. I see it all the time. I see it in myself. And I see it all around the business world as well as with solopreneurs (a lot!), people that run their own one-man businesses and I also see it with small businesses. What is an expert's dilemma? Somebody got into business to do whatever they're gifted at or their zone of genius for their craft, for their trade, for their product. However, they grow their business and the next thing you know, they spend more of their time doing the things that they are not their expertise or their zone of genius. In more times, they do things that they hate - accounting, marketing, HR, hiring, firing, etc. This then starts to erode them. Their business starts to erode and they start hating the thing that they really love and the reason they got into business in the first place. And it causes all sorts of problems. A gradual shift This doesn't happen overnight. It's a gradual shift. Right when you get into business, say you are a plumber and you love plumbing. You're the best plumber in the whole land. You then start doing it, doing great work, and making good money. You spend 90% of your time doing plumbing. But over months, quarters, and years, that 90% of plumbing and 10% of business administration and the other side of the business shifts. The next thing you know, you're doing 50% of the plumbing and 50% of running the business. Then you start hiring people, dealing with issues, marketing taxes, accounts payable, accounts receivable,books, etc. Eventually, you're no longer doing the thing you love the most since most of your time will be spent dealing with issues on your business. Does this sound familiar to anyone? It's seen in big and small business alike. The sad thing is I see this at big Fortune 100 companies. People get into a specific role. It's their zone of genius, they may get promoted or they move to somewhere the grass is greener and they spend all their time doing things that isn't their zone of genius. I see it in small businesses. A business owner may be doing well. They've hired their staff, they're set up and rocking well. The next thing you know, this business owner is in the weeds doing things that are not business owner-type tasks. My personal experience This is the expert's dilemma. You are basically spending more time on things out of your expertise or zone of genius. I have done this. I do this and when I do, I notice that I become frustrated with what I'm doing. I become angry at the type of work I'm doing and I become resentful for the type of work I'm doing. One of the things that I do outside my zone of genius is general marketing. So I literally stopped doing any type of marketing (social, blog posts). The only thing I really do is this podcast. And the reason I stopped is because it's literally outside my zone of genius. I don't like it. I'm not good at it. I have an atrocious looking face so when I shoot a video and look at myself, I'd go, "My goodness. Who is going to watch this guy?" And so I stopped. I found myself sinking back into it every now and then but it's really about the FOCUS. What's the fix? Surround yourself around people that are going to call you out on this. Be aware that you have an issue. Acknowledge the fact that you are not working in your zone of genius and it's not making you happy. I've heard so many times that that's the cost of business. Well, that's not the cost of business. Yeah, there are some things you need to do as a business owner that you don't necessarily like but that doesn't mean you should hate it. It also doesn't mean you should go out and hire a platoon of people to take over every little thing you don't like. The real fix - Awareness Are you aware of what you're working on? Of what you should be working on? Of what's the best use of your time? And of the tasks and the things you focus on during the day? Do they align with your zone of genius? Your challenge Go look at work or tasks you've done last week. See how those align to what you think you are and what you think you aren't. I guarantee it will surprise you and that includes your zone of genius at work, the things that you hate and the things that you do to kill time. Go look back one week, 7 days and take a look at what you did. I bet it doesn't align with what you want. It doesn't align with your zone of genius. It doesn't align with the things that you would say "this is who I am or who I want to be." If I plagiarized anyone else's term with this expert's dilemma concept, I apologize. But we all get in it and it's really powerful when we're in it. We do some of the great work. It feels like it's the easiest thing in the world. And on the flip side, when we're outside of it and doing things we're not good at or continue to be uncomfortable at, it's not fun. It turns our businesses into work and that's not what we want. Books, People, & Resources: I'm researching former professional athletes and how they transition from being an athlete or a new lead athlete into the "real world." I'm interested in hearing about their struggles, their challenges, roadblocks, successes, and everything in between. Sports has always been a big part of my life. I love them. I have a special interest in athletes and specifically the ones that have competed at the highest levels. Do you know anyone like that? If so, I'd love to hear from them or maybe it's even you. Shoot me an email at [email protected]. eye9design - A boutique web design and WordPress agency that just celebrated 10 years in business (an eternity in the web design space). They built hundreds of websites for businesses of all sizes. Finding a web design company is hard. There are lots of options, lots of good ones but lots of bad ones. Let the team at eye9design take care of you. If you need a great website for a great price, visit www.focus53.com/eye9. Mention this ad and get 10%.

More episodes from The Focus 53 Podcast: Business Systems, People, & Processes