What's Your Genius?

Pablo Picasso was once asked by a journalist "what does it feel like to be Picasso, master of the arts?" nnPicasso slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out a dollar bill. nnHe took a pen in his hand and signed the dollar bill before handing it to the journalist. nnThe famous painter then remarked "that dollar bill is now worth $500...that is what it feels like to be Picasso!" nnEvery time I recall that story it makes the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. For me, it’s a constant reminder of the rewards that flow from spending a lifetime dedicated to what you are truly good at. nnSo what’s your Genius? nnIf you want to succeed in business it is critically important that you are able to work out where your true talents lie. nnTake a moment to think about the 3 things you do best (no reading forward until you have them - close your eyes if you have to!) nnYou should also consider asking your three closest friends what they believe you three greatest talents are. Compare their answers with your own. It just might surprise you! nnThe Entrepreneurial Challenge nnOne of the biggest challenges every entrepreneur faces, particularly when starting out in business is trying to be good at everything (no lecturing here - I’m actually working on this one myself!). nnBut consider what would happen to your business if you could completely flip this one around? What could you do to focus more of your time on the things you are truly good at? How could you attract people to do the things that you don't have a natural talent for? nnEmployee Performance Appraisal nnIf you’ve ever worked as an employee, chances are that you’ve had to endure a typical performance appraisal. You know the ones I’m talking about. Where you spend a couple of minutes talking about the things you’ve done well and then a couple of hours talking about all the things you needs to improve upon. Often the result of this kind of approach is that you spend the following six months focusing on all the things you aren’t good at, sending your motivation into freefall. Can you imagine the collective effect of this approach where entire organizations are in a similar frame of mind? nnAs an entrepreneur, I don’t believe you can afford that kind of luxury. It is of critical importance that you create the habit of recognizing and developing your strengths and delegating your weaknesses. nnWhat would you like your business to be recognized for? nnSo what are the extraordinary things that you would like your business to be recognized for? How far and wide would you like that recognition to spread? Do you want your business to be the best of its kind in your local town, city, and country or across the globe? nnIf you can maximize the time you spend developing your core genius and can find an effective way of commercializing your ideas, you’ll very soon be banking your own autographed dollar bills!n