Finding Fulfillment

Enter the Zone of Genius.

Jun 07, 2023

👋 Friends,

I’m writing this from Los Angeles, where I had the opportunity to attend LA Tech Week among other founders, operators, and investors.

Yesterday was the opening night—a welcome party hosted by a16z where Danny Green showed up. It was quite a scene.

It’s been over a decade since my last trip to LA. I’ve been spending a lot of time by the water and beach, watching the surfers and the stillness of the ocean—and I was inspired to write a short piece on finding flow, purpose, and fulfillment.

Enjoy!

In the first few years of my career, I was lost. I had little sense of direction, unnecessarily took advice from others without a second thought, and stumbled from activity-to-activity, chasing shiny things.

Because I wasn’t fulfilled in my career, I was constantly partying, binge drinking, engaging in superficial relationships, and doing things on autopilot, and it wasn’t until recently that I started to learn what it meant to find fulfillment. To find yourself, you have to first get lost—and I now see that first era of my life as a period of exploration and experimentation.

A few years ago, I came across a framework: a very neat Venn diagram, that perfectly summarizes the idea of career fulfillment. It’s transformed the way I think about finding fulfillment in my career, and today I’d like to share it with you.

Your Zone of Genius

Enter the Zone of Genius.

Coined by Laura Garnett, author, speaker, and performance strategist, the Zone of Genius is the intersection of what you enjoy doing (your passions), what you’re good at (your strengths), and what the world needs (your value).

Your Zone of Genius is what is most effortless for you—it’s where your “work” feels like play.

Most of the people I know operate in each zone separately. For example, you might have a lucrative programming job but hate it, or be tremendously talented at drawing, but unable to squeeze a drop of profit from it.

But once you play in the intersection of the three zones, you’ll find flow. You’ll be riding with the wave—not against it.

Let’s explore how 👇

Your Strengths

Start by identifying your strengths—the things you’re exceptionally skilled at. You might already know—perhaps you’re an excellent writer or you have an eye for aesthetic design. Or maybe you’re extraordinary at organizing things.

But if you’re stuck, try this:

Ask a close friend (not a family member, acquaintance or spouse): “Why are we friends?”. Keep asking questions until they share traits and characteristics that are uniquely you.
Ask past leaders, managers or mentors to tell you. They likely have a clear idea.
Try the StrengthsFinders exercise.

Your Passions

Then identify what you’re passionate about. This can be a cause, an activity, a domain area, a type of work, etc. Find your play.

Ask yourself:

What work do you do that doesn't seem like work?
What activities make you completely lose track of time?
What impact do you want to have on the people around you?

When in doubt, experiment. Open your mind and your heart to the world, and try things you normally wouldn’t. You never know what will stick.

Your Value

Finally, determine the value you’re able to create for the community. This may translate to: “What will people compensate you for?”.

Consider new categories—ideas, products, and services that don’t currently exist—beyond evaluating existing business models.

If you’re solving someone’s pain point—they’ll pay for it.