👋 Hi my name is Roslyn, I’m a 2x founder and executive coach. I help founders fall in love with building their companies again. Learn about working 1:1 here.

Hi there,

I’ve had a few conversations with clients recently about team members that have been struggling or underperforming.

This happens. And it’s part of being a leader. Sometimes the answer is that team members just need more clarity, feedback, accountability, or support. 

But today I want to introduce the idea that you can actually try to align your team members with their zones of genius, to unlock more energy, creativity and joy. 

Today we’ll cover:

• What is your zone of genius?

• Why it matters

• How you can align your team with their zone of genius

But first…

I’m opening up Founder Reset, a Q4 group coaching program for founders who want to finish 2025 on a high note, with more clarity, team alignment and the permission and tools to take care of themselves and their wellbeing as a founder.

I’ll be honest, I really second-guessed myself on putting out this program into the world! Read more about that struggle under “Building Within”.

Where we go deep on the outer work or the inner work of building a startup.

Unlocking Your Team’s Zone of Genius

One of the most common conversations I have with founders about their teams sounds something like this:

“I don’t know if this person is performing at the level I need them to. Some days they crush it, and other days it feels like I’m dragging them along.”

Does that resonate?

Being a founder is full of moments where you’re not sure whether the issue is the person, the role, or your own leadership. Sometimes, the answer really is simple: people need some good old-fashioned clarity and feedback. They’re unclear on expectations, they’re unsure how success is measured, or they need some feedback on how to improve.

But often, there’s something deeper at play. It’s not just: “Are they capable?”. It’s “Is this role aligned with their zone of genius?”

WHAT IS THE ZONE OF GENIUS

This concept comes from Gay Hendricks’ book The Big Leap. He describes your zone of genius as the intersection of what you’re naturally gifted at and what lights you up.

It’s not just being competent at something (that’s your zone of competence). It’s not even being excellent at something you’ve trained yourself to do very well (that’s your zone of excellence). Your zone of genius is where your natural ability meets your deepest joy.

When you’re there, time melts away. Work feels energizing instead of draining. You create extraordinary results because you’re operating from your unique brilliance.

SIDEBAR FOR FOUNDERS

If you haven’t already, I recommend completing your own time & energy audit*  to map how much of your week you spend in your own zone of genius. Most founders discover they’re stuck in a cycle of putting out fires, doing tasks their team could own, or running on autopilot.

Your leadership transforms the moment you get ruthless about aligning your time to your genius zone. It’s not indulgent. It’s actually key to being able to scale.

*This template has been adapted from Dan Martell’s Buy Back Your Time

WHY ZONE OF GENIUS MATTERS FOR YOUR TEAM

As founders, we know we need to concern ourselves with our own zone of genius. But how often do we consider it for our employees?

Many people have never even heard of the concept. They’ve gotten themselves into careers or roles because of what they studied, what parents encouraged them towards, what someone told them they were “good at”, or what they happened to fall into. (I did this myself in my early career and even within my last startup. I was achieving on paper but felt extremely drained at the end of the day, and eventually burned out. It wasn’t until later that I realized I was operating in my zone of excellence, not genius.)

So imagine what happens when you help your team step into their genius. Not only do they come alive at work, but your company gets the benefit of their best energy and most creative thinking.

HOW TO ALIGN YOUR TEAM TO THEIR ZONE OF GENIUS

This doesn’t mean everyone gets to do only what they love all the time. Every job has tasks that no one particularly enjoys. But the more you can move people toward their genius, the more engaged, productive, and fulfilled they’ll be. 

Here’s how:

1. HIRE FOR GENIUS

When interviewing, don’t just ask about experience and skills. Ask questions like:

• What kinds of tasks feel energizing for you?

• When do you lose track of time at work?

• What do people naturally come to you for (in work and in life)?

Look for sparks of energy as they answer. Often you’ll learn more about whether they’re a fit for the role asking these questions.

2. EVOLVE ROLES IN THE DIRECTION OF GENIUS

Roles evolve over time. As your business grows, your people should too. When doing growth planning or career development conversations, ask them:

• What are you most enjoying in your role right now?

• What would you love to learn next?

• Where do you feel most in flow?

Then look for ways to align those answers with your company’s needs. For example, someone who lights up when explaining things might take on training and onboarding new hires. Someone who thrives on analysis might move deeper into ops or data.

3. TROUBLESHOOT WITH GENIUS IN MIND

When performance issues come up, pause before labeling it a motivation or skill problem. Ask yourself: Are they struggling because the tasks they own are misaligned with their zone of genius?

It doesn’t mean you ignore accountability. But sometimes, the difference between a disengaged employee and a high performer involves a shift in responsibilities.

4. DO A TEAM-WIDE GENIUS EXERCISE

Try facilitating a “zone of genius” workshop. Have each person reflect on questions like:

• What do I do better than most people without trying?

• What work drains me, even when I’m good at it?

• What work gives me energy, even when it’s challenging?

Map everyone’s answers. You’ll often find surprising potential swaps: something one person dreads is something another would genuinely enjoy. You start seeing the whole field, and you can realign work in a way that benefits everyone.

REAL-LIFE EXAMPLE

When I was at my last company, we had a team member who was in her zone of excellence in a sales role. She was talented and quite accomplished at it, but it wasn’t energizing for her. We absolutely wanted to retain her as a key, talented and wonderful member of the team who knew our business well. Through a handful of conversations, my co-founder explored her genius and other aligned options for her within the company. 

Turns out, she thrived in behind-the-scenes strategy and creative problem solving. Her role was restructured into an integrated marketing role, where she could leverage her sales experience and knowledge of the business to come up with and structure creative partnerships for clients. Her energy shifted, she was happier, more productive, and adding value across the full revenue function, rather than only with the clients she was pitching. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

As a founder, some of the highest leverage things you can do are:

• Freeing yourself up by living in your own zone of genius.

• Helping your team discover and step into theirs.

The result is an organization that has energy, where people aren’t just working for a paycheck but bringing their best selves to the table.

We tend to think leadership is about holding people accountable, setting high standards, and driving results. And it is. But it’s also about helping people flourish.

The truth is, people don’t burn out from hard work. They burn out from doing work that’s misaligned with who they really are.

When you align people with their genius, not only do you improve performance, but you unlock their energy, their creativity, and their joy. 

FOUNDER RESET

I’m gonna be honest! I’ve been second guessing myself about putting Founder Reset into the world.

Founder Reset is a Q4 group coaching program for founders who want to finish 2025 on a high note, with more clarity, team alignment and the permission and tools to take care of themselves and their wellbeing as a founder.

It’s exactly what I would’ve wanted when I was in the founder seat. I remember heading into Q4 feeling emotionally exhausted, stressing about targets and goals, and just trying to make it to the holidays.

With that in mind… a couple of weekends ago I spent a day mapping out the content of the program I would’ve needed:

• Building the foundation for your wellbeing and conscious leadership: practices for deepening your self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and nervous system capacity.

• Reconnecting with your deeper why, refreshing your mission, vision, values, and using those to set inspiring, strategic goals for 2026.

• Learning strategies to align your team on your goals and leave you feeling empowered and confident as the leader of your company.

To be honest, it just kinda all flowed out of me. I finished mapping out the program and creating the website page to promote it, feeling GREAT about this offering.

And then… a week went on without promoting it. And another. 

Doubts started to creep in “What if no one signs up?” “What if it’s not valuable to people?” “Oh no I don’t have a launch strategy. Maybe I should wait till January.” 

I know it’s just my protective parts acting up, trying to keep me from feeling rejected or not good enough. 

I know that deep down, this group coaching program feels aligned and in service.

So here I am! Sharing it with you all despite my fears. 

If this program resonates, if it feels like it would be of service for you. I’d love for you to join us.

You can learn more and apply here. Or reply to this email if you have questions. 💚

FEMALE FOUNDER WALK

Our first female founder walk took place last Friday! We had a wonderful group and chatted about blocks in our businsses. Next Friday we’re doing it again.

This time we’re talking about time.

• When was the last time you felt frustrated because something in your business was “taking too long”? What expectation were you holding in that moment?

• How do you usually respond internally when progress feels slower than you want? Push harder, get discouraged, something else?

• If you zoomed out and looked at the bigger arc of your company (or your life), how might the current pace actually be serving you?

• Where are you putting pressure on yourself or your team with timelines that might not actually be realistic or necessary?

• What would shift if you trusted that things are unfolding at the right pace, even if it’s not the pace you imagined?

Deep & meaningful chats + coffee + movement outside sound fun?

You can find out more about the event and RSVP here.

• 1:1 Coaching: Head into Q4 feeling focused and in flow. Book a free coaching consultation to learn how we’ll work together on this.

• Group Coaching: Learn more about apply for Founder Reset, a Q4 Group Coaching program that will help you end the year on a high note.

• Let’s be friends: on LinkedIn and Instagram. I share more startup content and what’s going on behind the scenes there.

• Finally, tell me how you liked this newsletter. I read every piece of feedback.

Appreciate you!

With love,
Roslyn 💚