How to Discover your Zone of Genius
There’s not too many topics I get more excited to see or discuss, then the zone of genius.
If you’re not familiar with the term, it was coined by Gay Hendricks in his book “The Big Leap.”
Admittedly, I am more than obsessed with it.
As an avid reader, who spends anywhere from 30 minutes to one hour with my head behind a book (nearly every single day), this one is easily in my top 5 (and I have a feeling it’ll always remain there).
I receive so much inspiration and joy from it, that I’ve actually read it from cover to cover three times in just the past five months alone.
So, with all that being said, I’d like to share more of what this beautiful term actually means, as well as how identifying your own unique zone, can change your whole entire life.. from an increase in peace, joy, and abundance level.
What is the Zone of Genius?
The zone of genius is an area that each and every one of us has access to.
It’s the area where when we are immersed within it, time effortlessly floats by.
We’re doing something that we absolutely love, which creates a deep sense of expansion in every cell of our bodies.
Not only that, it’s something that is specifically unique to us.
Does anything at all pan across your mind when I mention this?
If not, don’t fret, as you continue to read I’m going to share four (4) specific questions that will support you in discovering your own.
Also, if there’s still a bit of confusion and you’d like to intentionally slow down and receive a mirror from someone who has personally helped others identify their own, I’ll also share more towards the end on how you can go about scheduling a one-time Genius Session, to create clarity on how this unique gift may show up in your own life. 🙏🏿
However, for now, let’s start with a couple questions to exercise your mind a bit :- )
Think back to when you were a kid.
What did you enjoy the most?
What activities did you get lost in when you were completely immersed within them?
For myself, one of the first memories I recall as a child was my absolute love for watching NBA games.
My favorite team was the Dallas Mavericks, and even though they weren’t that good then (this was between the years 1990 to 1994 – shout out to the great hall of famer, Jason Kidd), my face was glued to every single game.
To take it a step further, I also played basketball too.
I remember basketball goals being installed at my elementary school in the 4th grade, and that’s when I really began playing the sport more frequently.
On the weekends I went to the local park to play outside.
At home I played the video games (shout out to the NBA Live 1996 on PlayStation with Shaquille O'neal throwing it down on the cover).
I also loved the Lil Penny commercials too – my diehard millennial basketball fans will know exactly what I’m talking about).
I even had my mother bring home the Sunday paper each week, so that I could look at the stats of each player.
I’d memorize them all and could spout of the exact points, rebounds, and assists averages of all the starting lineups in the league (plus the whole squad of my home team Mavericks).
And last but not least, I found myself being a commentator during each and every game.
Often talking to myself or even getting a laugh from my mother or friends, from the passionate and effortless nature of my communication.
So, you may be thinking what does all of this have to do with genius (and even more specifically, how does it relate to the work I do today)?
Well you’re in luck my friend, because I’m about to tell you exactly why ;- )
From a young age, I recognized I had a healthy obsession towards focusing all of my energy towards what it was that I loved.
It just so happened that basketball was my first love, so that was my very first experience of how that energy was channeled.
However, since then, I’ve developed a healthy obsession towards writing around topics pertaining to self-help and personal growth, emotional expression, meditation, and listening to delicious music J.
All of these are at the foundation of what I do now as a Personal Coach.
I help creative and highly sensitive men slow down, authentically express their emotions, and clarify their unique gifts, so they can tap into their fullest potential and live a life on their own terms.
These aspects didn’t become clear to me until I did an inventory of my own life and just how much joy I receive by ultimately living as that same 10-year-old version of Brandon (though I’m channeling the energy in a much different way).
Rather than focusing solely on basketball (which I did for a near 10-year period), I now utilize it in ways that not only provide a deep sense of upliftment and inspiration for myself, but I believe (and have been told) that it naturally can be felt as it’s passed on towards others.
Now, please allow me to describe how all of these uniquely show up for me today, and hopefully through the self-reflection, something may bubble up inside of yourself too (if it hasn’t already).
Writing
My first taste of writing was in a Creative Writing class in my sophomore year of university.
I remember the professor passing the syllabus out on the first day of class, as he mentioned that the semester would encapsulate the writing of three (3) essays on whatever topic we desired.
As someone who was previously only used to the more structured and grammatical side of writing (from my middle and high school English classes), I perked open with a curious fascination.
He then assigned us to write our first paper within the next couple of weeks and be prepared to share it with the entire class for discussion.
“Wait a minute…. What do you want me to write it on?” I immediately thought to myself.
At the end of class I actually stayed back so I could ask him for a bit more direction.
“Dr. Stephen” I softly muttered.
“Yes.” He responded back, not yet knowing my name to express it.
“So do you have any ideas or topics that our first paper could be written on?” I said with a mild gaze on my face.
“No, it’s just really up to whatever you want to write on… no limits.” He said in a nonchalant way.
“Really?” I said, as my face dawned a slight frown with a halfway smile.
“Yes, really.” He exchanged a smile back.
This was my first experience with this form of writing, and it felt natural and fun to me.
It wasn’t about summarizing a book or technical based (where my grammar was strongly put to the test).
I felt it was more freeing and allowed the expansion for me to choose whatever my mind and heart desired at the time.
Since that particular class, I then graduated to writing in a journal (where I would not only express my emotions, but create vivid visions of my future).
That would then eventually lead to writing blogs, which has now presently led to working on my first published book.
When I write (which I do, each and every day), I feel a rise and expansion of energy throughout my body.
The topics that excite me the most are personal growth and emotional expression.
I also started reading more intentionally, my sophomore year in college too.
Then I was obsessed with books around health and fitness (as I was a workout warrior who went to the gym an average of 5-6 days a week).
This naturally led to being consumed with countless books from different authors around the importance of not only physical fitness, but nutrition as well.
Some that immediately come to mind from back then were:
- “Sculpt Your Best Body Ever with Hollywood’s Fittest Star” by LL Cool J
- “Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle” by Tom Venuto
- “Wheat Belly” by William Davis
Over the years, once I completely transformed my physical health (here’s my story of “How I Lost and Kept Off Over 50 Pounds of Weight”), I then graduated into more spiritual and mindset-oriented topics in 2011.
It was at this time when I first came across and read “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle.
I’ve read 100s of books since then, and though they’ve taken on many different flavors, the foundation of what’s been underneath them all has been alighted with two areas:
1. Personal Growth
2. Purposeful Living
As an example, at the time of writing this (which is just a couple days shy of the beginning of April 2021), I’ve read 16 books thus far thus far this year (which if I kept the same pace, would equal over 60 by years end).
Some people I’ve connected with find this crazy, but to me reading is effortless and something I highly love and do every single day.
As I believe combining knowledge with intentional experience is a great way to stretch the mind, and continually evolve.
Emotional Expression
Growing up, I wasn’t the best communicator of my emotions.
I had no issues expressing laughter and happiness when in a jovial mood, however when it came emotions of sadness, frustration, or anger, I used to do what many men are taught to do, in stuffing them.
This wasn’t fully evident until I was in the middle of prior corporate career.
I was making great money, working for arguably the top sports organization in the world, and I was one of just 10 Senior Sales Executives for the organization (the only African-American).
However, there was only one issue.
I reached a point where I wasn’t happy. I didn’t understand that true happiness is much deeper than just a position title, money in the bank, or how society at large viewed me. (I speak more in depth about this in my “What To Do When Your Heart Isn’t In Your Work Anymore”).
For the essence of time, I won’t share too much on that experience, but I will say there have been numerous ones within my lifetime, which have led me to deeply ‘being’ with, processing, and understanding the core of emotions and how they show up within the body.
A few personal ones are that I’ve:
- Experienced the passing of both my mother and father (whom I was with at their end of life)
- Experienced how it feels to be bullied my 7th grade year of middle school
- Experienced being kicked off the varsity basketball team for a year, for an arrest the summer of my sophomore year
- Experienced how it is to struggle with weight and body image issues through my the youth and early adult years
- Experienced being arrested for a public intoxication
- Experienced how it feels to resign from a six-figure profession that no longer aligned (to start over and build something completely new from scratch)
- Experienced the emotions that go into battling and overcoming an over 15-year porn-addiction
- And last but not least, I’ve experienced how it feels to stuff my sensitivities and live most of my life up until a few years ago, with a mask of “tough masculinity”
While these clearly aren’t all of the emotional activating events in my life, they are definitely some of the strongest that proved to previously be require the most the most grace to move through. 🙏🏿
I now recognize that the best way to process emotions is through a mixture of three practices:
1. Intentional deep breathing (this creates an activation of the parasympathetic nervous system – which places the body in a rest/relaxation mode (rather than high stress / fight or flight)
2. Recognizing the location of the emotion in the moment (bringing awareness to where the emotion is showing up in the body and breathing into it, creates a mindful way of being with it, allowing the body to over time be able to face it in a more conscious and expansive way
3. Being very compassionate with oneself (when certain emotions appear, it can be easy to become judgmental or fearful of ourselves, however when we are more compassionate, gentle, and loving towards ourselves – the body doesn’t feel like it’s being attacked, and it more easily goes into a more relaxed state
Now, emotional expression is not only a superpower of mine (as doing ‘the work’ in life has created this as a deep awareness for me), but I also have the fortune and opportunity in guiding clients through how to mindfully ‘be’ with and process their own, each and every day.
I’ve also spoken to the leadership teams of two (2) professional sports organizations (as well as their staffs) around how to be reduce mental stress, quiet the mind, and be more mindfully productive sales executives.
This discussion led to the next topic….
Meditation
Meditation is something I began for the first time in 2011.
After reading “The Power of Now” (which I mentioned above), I began a breathing meditation on my then 15-minute drive to work.
As the time I was living in Scottsdale, Arizona and working in professional baseball for the Arizona Diamondbacks of the MLB.
I remember it like it was yesterday.
I felt a strong affinity for the Radiohead “King of Limbs” album and the trance like state I felt while listening to it.
To add an even deeper level to what I already was naturally experiencing from the album, I began an experiment where I would listen to it on my drive to work, while completely focused on my breath (each and every inhale and exhale).
I consistently did this practice for around two weeks.
During this time, I began noticing how my thoughts slowed down and I felt more clear-headed.
While this felt very appealing to me then, I actually stopped meditating (as I thought the stillness of the mind would naturally continue).
It didn’t.
And it wasn’t until 2014 that I intentionally began meditating again.
During that particular period, I was in a highly stressed state.
I knew with clarity that my career no longer served me (though I still needed at the time to work the 50-60 hours per week to perform my job duties).
I was planning my exit strategy, while at the same time I was responsible for supporting my mother financially too (which I had been doing for close to two years at that point).
I had just ended an intimate relationship that I still felt emotionally raw from.
And my mother, who was a 10-year breast cancer survivor at that point, began having other health issues (not related to her breasts) which required several tests and hospital visits (causing me to miss an abundance of work over a period of a couple months).
On top of that, when I did return to work, there was that funny (or not so funny) aspect of having additional work that I needed to do in order to catch up and do my best to stay on par with others.
As I mentioned earlier, I was in Senior Sales role too, which as you can probably imagine was highly competitive.
The majority of my colleagues were either previously college athletes or at minimum were very ambitious in being successful in growing not only their income, but professional status too.
I felt stuck.
I literally didn’t know what to do.
But then it came to me…
“What if I start meditating again?”
I knew the last thing I needed was to add something else on my plate, however this felt ‘right’ to me, and I intuitively knew that it was just what I needed at the time (in order to honestly keep myself sane).
I then began meditating once a day for 20 minutes.
After a couple weeks I then added another 20-minute mediation in the late evening (an hour or two before bed).
There’s genuinely only one word to describe what this experience was for me:
Life-changing (or maybe that’s two...)
I’ve not only had a consistent practice ever since, but I’ve led mediations for not only corporations, but also privately to a group of C-Suite executives and entrepreneurs in countries as foreign as Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Thailand.
Meditation is something I feel very natural and connected with.
I receive a ton of energy from it, and I love sharing that gift with others who are interested in developing a practice for themselves (or just creating more respite in their lives, when they may need it the most).
Just like what I mentioned above, the reason why I mention this as a part of my zone of genius, is because it’s effortless and provides me an abundance of energy (rather I’m doing it for myself or others).
Now let’s move on to last but not least…
Delicious Music :-)
Firstly, if you’ve made it this far along and are still reading, I’d like to say congratulations.
I recognize I can be long winded at times in my text (this is page 10 of 12 by the way… so hang in there!), but I promise you’re about to be rewarded soon for your patience :- )
Also, you’re also probably wondering two more things too:
1. What is delicious music?
2. How is that categorized as a genius (if I’m not directly playing an instrument or producing something along with it).
Guess what, you’re in luck again… because I’m going to share it with you J
Music is something I’ve always had an affinity for, since as early as I can remember.
I love the ‘feeling’ and experience of being so deeply connected to the combination of a tune and lyrics, that an emotional experience is created within the body.
I remember the first song I cried to being “Bittersweet Symphony” by Verve (# Please Don’t Judge Me lol).
I also remember spending all the money from my 13th birthday to buy a boombox and three albums:
1. The Slim Shady LP by Eminem
2. 400 Degreez by Juvenile
3. Extinction Level Event by Busta Rhymes
I played all three albums endlessly and would rehearse the lyrics and dance in my room with the door closed.
Even two years before this when I was 11 years old, I remember LOVING ‘N Syncs first album entitled ‘N Sync (how clever).
I would sing along and dance to all of their songs (though I hid this from all my guy friends, as I was afraid of how the other 5th graders would perceive me).
Fast forward many years later and I’ve attended an absorbent amount of concerts.
There’s way too many to name them all, but some of my favorites included:
- Lupe Fiasco
- Muse
- Citizen Cope
- Jay Z
- Radiohead
- TV On The Radio
- Nas
- Pharrell
- Outkast
- 311
- Lil Wayne
- Multiple music festivals in including Coachella in California, Lollapalooza in Chicago, and Flow Festival in Finland
I absolutely love listening to an eclectic mixture of music, each and every day.
It opens my heart, puts me into my body, and often times it can even bring tears to my eyes (when doing so after my daily yoga practice).
Identifying delicious music and allowing it to be one of the foundations of my daily experience, creates a deep level of peace, excitement, and overall joy within my life.
It inspires my creativity and writing.
I feel it in the depth of my soul, which creates the space and vibration to connect more deeply with the souls and hearts of others too.
It also creates the experience of me wanting to move my body in a rhythmic flow, creating even more high vibes and joy within my life.
Music is a part of my genius because it allows me to tap deeper into my own genius.
When combined with writing about topics pertaining to personal and emotional growth, meditating, and creating a safe space for purpose-driven and creative visionaries to receive intentional support through my coaching, I feel like there’s truly nothing else that I’d rather be doing on a day-by-day basis (and I truly meant that).
The more frequently I’m tapping into these creative and genius measures for myself, the happier, light, and more peaceful I am.
It doesn’t hurt that I also live in Costa Rica too, where I spend the vast majority of my waking hours outside in nature (with this view from my work station).
All and all I feel very blessed to channel my energy towards the things I love, each and every day :- )
Now, to the four questions that can help you identify your unique zone of genius:
1. What do I most love to do? (Something you can do for long periods of time without getting tired or bored)
2. What work do I do that doesn’t seem like work? (You can do this ALL day and never break a sweat)
3. In my work, what produces the highest amount of abundance & satisfaction, to the amount of time spent?
4. What is my unique ability? (Your unique ability is usually camouflaged inside of a skill you already possess)
I’d recommend creating some undistracted time in a quiet space to truly ‘be’ with each question and freely allow (and trust) whatever may show up before you.
Also, a tool that’s been useful for many clients is to ask those closest to them what do they believe they’re really really good at.
Oftentimes our genius is right underneath our noses, but sometimes we get so consumed with ‘living’ (or better yet, rushing from one thing to the next), that we often don’t slow down enough to truly see it.
However, answering the questions not only provide a great start in stretching your mind, but can also play as a foundation of what may be most needed, for you to incorporate into your life on a day to day basis (no matter even it’s just a nominal amount.. like 20-minutes), as anything is better than nothing.
If after doing these exercises, you still find yourself in a place where you desire additional 1:1 support, click here for a 30-minute Complimentary Discovery Call.
In it you can share whatever’s on your mind, ask me anything, and we can see if there may be a mutual fit in working more deeply together, in order to create a life that fully utilizes your unique gifts, in this very beautiful world :- )
With Love,
Brandon
P.S. – This is actually the 2nd time I’ve written in depth about identifying ones Zone of Genius, if you’d like check out the previous writing, you may do so by clicking here too.