Your Zone of Genius is where your interests, passions and skills align.
Operating in your Zone of Genius means playing games you are uniquely well-suited to win.
Once you identify it, you can stop playing *their* games and start playing *yours*.
Adopt a Positive Sum Mentality
Want to get ahead in life? Start genuinely rooting for others to succeed.
When one of us wins, we all win—winning spreads.
If you adopt that mentality, you’ll become a magnet for the highest quality people.
Speak Up
Closed mouths don’t get fed.
A little push goes a long way. Don't sit back and wait for good things to happen.
If you want something—and you’ve put in the work for it—ask for it.
Worst case: you’re told no and nothing has changed.
Best case: it’s yours.
Play Long-Term Games
Life is the ultimate long game.
Those with low time preference play it more effectively—they happily delay gratification to allow compounding to work its magic.
In a world of people seeking instant gratification, this is a meaningful edge.
Have a High Tolerance for Failure
We fear failure, so most of us play it safe to avoid it.
But our greatest moments of growth often stem directly from our greatest failures.
Don't accept failure, but don't fear it either.
You will fail. Embrace it. Fail smart and fast.
Follow Your Curiosity
Humans are born with astonishing curiosity. But somewhere along the way, we're told to stop asking questions.
Push back.
Learn to follow your curiosity—trust it.
For the curious mind, anything is possible. Fortune favors the curious.
Adopt a Process Orientation
Prioritize process, not outcomes.
When you prioritize process, you become flexible in where you are headed—you focus on the inputs and stop worrying about the outputs.
Just keep laying one brick at a time—forward progress is all that matters.
Prioritize People
Everything in life comes down to people and relationships.
Networks compound as well as any financial investment.
Build an army of mentors, friends, and evangelists that is deep and wide.
Cultivate deep relationships, but also embrace the power of weak ties.
Work Like a Lion
Modern work culture is a remnant of the Industrial Age. It encourages long periods of steady, monotonous work unsuited for the Information Age.
If your goal is to do inspired, creative work, you have to work as a lion works.
Sprint when inspired. Rest. Repeat.
Become Antifragile
In Greek mythology, the Hydra is a creature that has multiple heads. When 1 head is cut off, 2 grow back in its place.
Life is random and chaotic.
Don't be broken by the chaos—rather, adopt a mentality and build structure such that you will benefit from it.
Change Your Mind
Willingness to change one's mind is a rarity in today's society.
It's great to have a strong view, but always open your mind to counterarguments.
Stubborn objection to alternative perspectives stalls progress.
Strive for strong opinions, weakly held.
Never Get Too Big to Do the Small
The leaders of the All Blacks rugby team famously stay late to sweep the shed after a match.
Why? Because small things become big things.
Whether you're in the mailroom or the corner office, never get too big to do the small things well.
Learn Storytelling
Storytelling is a foundational skill—but it's one we don’t learn in the traditional education system.
It's no coincidence that the highest performers are the strongest storytellers.
High-leverage storytelling is a supercharger for all human endeavors.
Develop a Bias for Motion
A body in motion tends to stay in motion—a body at rest tends to stay at rest.
When in doubt, just start moving.
Become Relentlessly Consistent
Many people are able to produce bursts of energy—few are able to produce consistent, steady flows of energy.
The former is flashy, but the latter is relentless.
It's hard to bet against the person who just keeps showing up.
Simplify Where Others Complicate
“The definition of genius is taking the complex and making it simple." — Einstein
Complexity and jargon are often used to mask a lack of deep understanding.
Learn to convey the complex in simple, digestible ways.
Find beauty in simplicity.
Be Comfortable with Discomfort
We are conditioned to avoid discomfort, so most of us do.
The problem?
Discomfort is a precursor to growth—it is an absolute necessity.
Steel your mind and body—accept and embrace discomfort. Those that do have the ultimate competitive edge.
Have Strong Plans (Loosely Held)
It's important to have a plan.
But as Mike Tyson famously said, "Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth."
Plans have to be dynamic (and punch-proof!).
You'll only go as far as your ability to absorb and pivot on the fly.
Pay It Forward
No matter how far you go, realize that you didn’t make it on your own.
Pay it forward. Be a mentor. Be a champion for others.
Their growth should become a source of tremendous joy and pride.
Become a Polymath
A polymath is a person with wide-ranging, multi-disciplinary knowledge.
Lifelong learners tend to be polymaths—their curiosity naturally leads to knowledge accumulation in a variety of disciplines.
Learn both horizontally and vertically.
Give More Than You Receive
Focus on what you can do for others, not what they can do for you.
Focus first on the amount of value you create—not the amount that you capture.
This mentality will lead to more success and growth, but also to more fulfillment and joy.
Learn to Compartmentalize
The most successful people in the world share one trait in common: an almost supernatural ability to compartmentalize.
Create boundaries across your work and personal endeavors.
When you focus on one, close the others and really focus on it.
Be Present
With the rise of technology—and the instant access to millions of people and things that it has provided—the ability to be truly present has become a rarity.
When you’re with someone—whether a business contact, friend, or partner—be WITH them.
Put the phone down.
Well there you have it—How to Win (without talent or luck).
This idea changed my life (and may change yours)...
The Law of Reversed Effort:
In a Zen parable that I love, a martial arts student approaches his teacher and asks, "How long will it take me to master this craft?"
The teacher replies, "10 years."
The student, looking impatient, responds, "I want to master it faster than that. I will work harder than anyone else. I will push myself to practice for many hours every single day. How long will it take then?"
The teacher considers this new information and answers, "20 years."
My entire life changed because of a leap of faith.
There are a lot of people out there who feel stuck, but trust me, you don't have to stay that way.
If you want to take a leap, here's exactly how I'd do it:
The change you want to make in life scary because of two asymmetries:
1. Information Asymmetry: You know exactly what this path looks like, but very little about what the other path looks like.
2. Evidence Asymmetry: You have abundant evidence that you can make it on this path, but very little evidence that you can make it on the other path.
To break through the fear and take the leap:
Step 1: Gather Information
The first step is to solve the information asymmetry.
The questions you should be asking (and answering):
What does the new path look like? Visualize it in detail.
How reversible is a decision to take this new path?
Note: Most people underestimate the reversibility of a big decision. You assume that if you leave your consulting firm, you'll never be able to get another job in consulting. That is usually patently false. Most of these career decisions are reversible.
What case studies exist on successful (or unsuccessful) execution?
What perspectives can you learn from people with real, earned experience on the new path?
Are there any examples of people who have made a similar shift to what you are considering? What can you learn from them?
If you use a thoughtful process to gather information, you'll balance the information asymmetry and shorten the gap considerably.
Step 2: Create Evidence
The second step is to solve the evidence asymmetry.
While still on your current path, you need to create tangible proof that you can build a life on the other side.
What proof points can you generate of your ability to execute?
• Find one customer for your prospective new venture.
• Make $100 selling something on the internet.
• Generate a few client leads to your new coaching practice.
The tiny wins build momentum and help solve the evidence asymmetry.
Step 3: Confront the Fear
Gathering information and creating evidence should get you most of the way there.
But the fear still exists.
Here's how to address it:
1. Reframe the fear as a good thing: It means you care, it means this is something that matters.
2. Deconstruct the downside of action: What is the worst that could happen? How bad is it, really?
3. Deconstruct the upside of action: What is the best that could happen? How great is it?
4. Deconstruct the regret: How much would you regret inaction when you're 90-years-old? Could you live with that regret?
As Seneca famously wrote, "We suffer more in imagination than in reality."
These steps get the fear out of your imagination and force it into reality.
Your Player's Guide to the Leap of Faith
There's never going to be a perfect moment to make a dramatic change.
The leap of faith isn't for everyone, but if you follow this general process, you'll be well-positioned if you decide to jump.
1. Gather information 2. Create evidence 3. Confront the fear
I hope this helps a few people out there take that leap they've been too afraid to face.
A new life is on the other side...
The most important piece here:
Recognizing the fear as a byproduct of the information/evidence asymmetry.
It turns something abstract into a solvable problem.
I love this quote from Inception:
"Do you want to take a leap of faith or become an old man, filled with regret, waiting to die alone?"