Discover more from Graymatter by James Gray
My Notes
Some of us fear making a significant change in our lives and accept the status quo. Our self-limiting beliefs create barriers and artificial boundaries that hold us back from experiencing our true potential. As we break through these barriers, we create new energy and clarity to perform work activities that leverage our unique gifts and strengths. Our strategic vision to recognize the work we are uniquely called to do and the disciplined choice to overcome barriers enables us to take the Big Leap to success, fulfillment, and abundance. Operating in our Zone of Genius sets us free.
Upper Limit Problem
The Upper Limit Problem is our universal human tendency to sabotage ourselves when we have exceeded the artificial upper limit we have placed on ourselves.
The Upper Limit Problem is caused by a too-low thermostat setting on our ability to achieve and enjoy our ultimate success.
The thermostat gets set low early in our lives, at a time when we could not think for ourselves.
Later, as we dream about big goals and move up into realms of love, abundance, and creativity that are above our old thermostat setting, we bump up against the artificial lid that we have placed on our success through unconscious childhood decisions.
Unless we solve the ULP, we will keep finding ways to bring ourselves back down when we’ve blown past our old setting.
Those unconscious decisions become barriers we must overcome in order to express and enjoy our full measure of success.
Four Hidden Barriers
Feeling Fundamentally Flawed - if we carry this false belief within us, we sabotage our success because we think we’re essentially bad. If something good happens, we must mess up to offset it, because good things can’t happen to bad people.
Disloyalty and Abandonment - the false belief that by succeeding, we are being disloyal to and leaving behind people in our past.
Believing That More Success Brings a Bigger Burden - the false belief that we are a burden in the world. If we carry this feeling inside us, we sabotage our success so that we won’t be a bigger problem.
The Crime of Outshining - the false belief that we must dim the bright lights of our brilliance so that we won’t outshine someone in our past. If we hold this feeling inside of us, we tend to hold ourselves back from expressing the full potential of our innate genius.
Understanding why we’ve limited ourselves liberates a new energy in us, which we can draw on to propel us to new heights of abundance, love, and creativity.
As we spiral upward in our quest to express our unique genius, we will likely soar past ghosts and shadows of those old barriers.
For this reason, it’s best to think of our quest as a continuing journey of transcending upper limits.
The payoff for the work is a gift of enduring value: we get to live in the full rainbow of our potential, in our Zone of Genius.
Zones
Zone of Incompetence - all the activities we’re not good at. Others can do them a lot better than we can. The best way to handle things in your Zone of Incompetence is to avoid doing them altogether.
Zone of Competence - you’re competent at the activities in the Zone of Competence, but others can do them just as well. Successful people often discover that they expend far too much time and energy in this zone.
Zone of Excellence - the activities you do extremely well. You make a good living in your Zone of Excellence. For successful people, this is a seductive and even dangerous trap. It’s where your own addiction to comfort wants you to stay. You’re reliable there, and you provide a steady supply of all things that family, friends and organizations thrive on.
Zone of Genius - the set of activities you are uniquely suited to do. They draw upon your special gifts and strengths. Liberating and expressing your natural genius is your ultimate path to success and life satisfaction. Your Zone of Genius beckons you with increasingly strong calls as you go through life.
How to Transcend Our Upper Limit Problem
We transcend our Upper Limit Problem each time we make more room inside us to feel more love, abundance, and success.
It’s done moment by moment, and the moment goes like this:
We catch ourselves worrying or starting an argument.
Suddenly we realize we’re Upper-Limiting.
We let go of the train of worry-thoughts or the huffy point of view, taking a deep breath or two for relaxation.
A moment later, we break free of the Upper Limit and feel a flow of good feeling again.
In wink-of-an-eye moments such as these, we expand our capacity to enjoy more love, abundance, and success.
These moments are the springboards of our Big Leap.
Committing to Your Zone of Genius
I commit to living in my Zone of Genius, now and forever.
If it weren’t for ______________, I could be doing what I really want to do.
Longing is a persistent, lingering feeling of wanting something you can’t quite get or something you’ve judged unobtainable.
Most people have a carefully crafted, well-justified story about why they can’t take their Big Leap.
Just notice the voices and feel the fears.
All you need to do is acknowledge them, wave to them, let them know you’re aware of them.
ZoG questions:
What do I most love to do? (I love it so much I can do it for long stretches of time without getting tired or bored)
What work do I do that doesn’t seem like work? (I can do it all day 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 do only ten seconds or a few minutes of it, an idea or a 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 realized and put to work, can provide enormous benefits to me and any organization I serve.)
I expand in abundance, success, and love every day, as I inspire those around me to do the same.
My Reflections and Call to Action
If you are experiencing success, assessing your activities in the Zone of Excellence is more critical than ever. It could be that these activities, and your value proposition, are now relegated to the Zone of Competence due to AI or your lack of advancing your skills in a competitive market. Conduct an audit of your skills and the demand for them in the market.
What are the calls from your inner voice to pursue a higher purpose or dream but ignore or consciously push out due to urgent demands or fear? What is stopping you? Will you regret this on your deathbed?
We are often so close to our work and how we operate that we don’t have the context of our unique skills and strengths. It’s easy to assume that others have them and are not necessarily unique. Now when someone shares feedback about something I am good at, I take that as a signal that identifies my Zone of Genius. Ask colleagues, customers, managers, friends, and family members to share feedback about what makes you unique and the activities you are specifically suited for. State that you are refining your career strategy to be more intentional about your path and would love their input.
What are the activities when I shine and exude energy?
What am I uniquely great at, compared to the interactions of other successful people?
What is the work that I do that others can do equally well or better?
As we travel throughout our careers, we will likely experience multiple Zones of Genius as our needs change, and the market dynamics shape the jobs to be done. Identify your ZoG for the present and pursue that as your top priority. Open up your creativity to imagine other ZoG’s in your future. This consciousness will guide your self-development of skills and build a network over time to experience your potential ZoG at a time when you are well-positioned to take another Big Leap.
Delegating work or finding others to do your work activities they are better at and at a lower cost is critical to operating at your true potential. Make a list of these activities and find a way to eliminate them from your calendar.
Successful people can often be perfectionists and perform work for fear that others will not do it as well. Assess the opportunity cost and the hours in a typical week that could be freed up to work in your ZoG by delegating this work.
Life is uncertain, and we are not promised tomorrow. Committing to and working in our ZoG is within our control and certain. This is where we create mutual value for ourselves and those we serve.
I commit to living in my Zone of Genius, now and forever.
I expand in abundance, success, and love every day, as I inspire those around me to do the same.