I re-read John Maxwell’s 2008 book Leadership Gold: Lessons I’ve Learned from a Lifetime of Leading. You can read my review of the book here. One of my favorite chapters in the book is “Get in the Zone and Stay There”. The chapter is about working in your “strength zone”. Maxwell writes that the more you work in this zone, the more successful you will be.
I was introduced to the idea of discovering and working in your strength zone through the work of Marcus Buckingham. Primarily through the use of his 2007 book Go Put Your Strengths to Work: 6 Powerful Steps to Achieve Outstanding Performance, I was able to see the difference (of team members and myself), that working in your strength zone can make. People are energized, highly engaged in their work, and look forward to coming to work each day if they are doing work in their strength zone. I appreciate that Maxwell states that good leaders help others find their strength zones and empower them to work in them.

I have found personality tests such as Strengthsfinders and Buckingham’s own StandOut to be helpful tools in our paths towards finding our strength zone. In Leadership Gold, Maxwell offers us four helpful steps as well:

1. Ask, “What am I Doing Well?” When you consider all of the tasks and activities you do in your work, it’s obvious that you will do some better than others. This may not always match up to the work you enjoy, however. For example, I worked with a team member who was very skilled and had a lot of experience in accounting work. As a result, she was always asked to do the team’s budget work. The problem was that she didn’t like that work – it weakened and drained her. To work in our strength zone, we should be doing work that we are good at, and that also strengthens or energizes us.
2. Get Specific. Maxwell tells us that the more specific we can get about our strengths, the better the chance we can find our “sweet spot.” For example, you might say that you enjoy working with people. That in and of itself doesn’t mean that you should pursue a leadership position. However, stating that you want to help move an organization forward, improve it and the lives of the people working in it, more specifically lines you up to being a leader.
3. Listen For What Others Praise. Just because you enjoy a particular type of work, doesn’t mean you are good at it. For example, I may enjoy public speaking – teaching, speaking at conferences, etc. However, if I never get any positive feedback from my speaking engagements, that may be a clear sign that this is not work that falls within my strength zone. Maxwell tells us that we are not called to do something we are not gifted for. In addition, if you are in a situation in which you receive written feedback reports, pay attention to what people say that you do well.
4. Check Out the Competition. Our competition could refer to many things. For example, if you are competing for a leadership position, what do the other candidates for the position have that you don’t? If you are an author or painter, have you established your own brand or niche that distinguishes you from the competition? Maxwell tells us that we don’t want to spend all of our time comparing ourselves to others, but we also don’t want to waste our time doing something that others do much better. To help us get a better picture of where we stand in relationship to the competition, Maxwell suggests that we ask ourselves the following questions:

• Is someone else doing what I am doing?
• Are they doing it well?
• Are they doing it better than I am?
• Can I become better than they are?
• If I do become better, what will be the result?
• If I don’t become better, what will be the result?

Maxwell tells us that we will discover our purpose by finding and remaining in our strength zone. You will also be more fulfilled and satisfied in the work you do.

What have you found helpful in discovering and working in your strength zone that you could share?