That's Genius!

Understanding the Value of the Six Types of Working Genius Assessment

One of the two assessments that I use most frequently is the Six Types of Working Genius (6ToWG), which was developed by the Table Group and Patrick Lencioni. The 6ToWG assessment doesn’t measure personality. It measures your energy level during specific types of work. Part of its brilliance is in how it defines the stages of work.

In any major project there are three phases of work:

• Ideation: asking the right questions and coming up with the right proposal for developing into an execution plan.

• Activation: Choosing which projects to pursue, getting people ready to launch and the project off the ground after a troubleshooting process.

• Execution: Putting the right people and resources around the project and getting it done. This is the part that most people think of as “work”, which devalues the important work that is happening in the other stages.

Any major initiative that tries to skip over one of the phases of work has a strong likelihood of failing. You need proper attention given to every phase for a project to both be completed and be excellent.

The Working Genius assessment identifies your sweet spots in the work phases. Think about it. You have tasks that you do that drain your emotional and mental batteries quickly, like a mobile phone that can’t find the tower. You have other work activities that you do for hours and feel as energized at the end as you did when you started. If you could do more of the kind of work that energizes you and less of the draining type, wouldn’t you and your team be better off?

Like with any assessment, it's not perfect and it isn't meant to tell the whole story. It does help you to better predict when you're going to be "in the zone" and when you're going to be struggling. It also helps you to pick the right teammates to help, advise and consult in any work product or project. If you're fantastic in the Ideation Phase but awful at the Execution, you may have a gazillion ideas but never get them off the ground and live in frustration. Working Genius helps you to own your gifts and to rejoice in the gifts of others. We need each other.

This assessment has been a game-changer for my marriage and family as well as my professional team. The simplicity of understanding where your gifts and energies line up and where the gaps are is fundamental. Being able to define what phases of a project we are in has cut down on miscommunication and frustration with each other. It allows for clarity on what energies fit best and which ones can get in the way. Knowing that most of our family lacks Tenacity nudges us to be gracious with ourselves on all the things we started but didn’t finish. It also gave us clear insight on what kind of team member to add when we went looking for an assistant last year!

Think of each phase as an airplane descending from a high altitude and the perspective you have and need at that phase. When you’re getting started in that Ideation phase you need to think strategically and broadly. It’s not time to think about the final touches or who’s going to do what: you’re exploring! The Wonderers make sure you are asking all the right questions and not just copying whatever system everyone else is following. The Invention folk take the insights of Wonder and come up with amazing ideas. Then it’s time to activate! Deciding which idea is the very best while considering all the possible factors is natural and easy for those with the genius of Discernment. Gathering the right people to work on the project is the Galvanizer’s job. Then comes executing and completing the project, where Enablement and Tenacity shine.

When you’re in the Execution zone, you don’t want to be re-inventing the project. Have you ever worked with someone who keeps redirecting and adding to the project long after you thought everything was already decided? Defining what phase you are in gives you freedom to lean into the energies of the right team members at the right time and to succeed together.

It also gives understanding for team members that need to lean back and wait. My Discernment gift is unproductive until the Inventors are ready for it! It is frustrating for creatives when their ideas are picked apart and discarded before they are even finished, and frustrating for the managers who wonder why everyone at a creative meeting seems mad at them.

I include the Working Genius assessment in all team and individual multi-session packages because it fits so nicely with CliftonStrengths for helping you be the best version of yourself! It also will help your team lean in to the right person's gifts at every phase of every initiative and bring the kind of success that's only possible with diverse teams. (I Cor. 12) I truly love helping Christians understand their God given talents better.

I recommend reading the book and getting your assessment done. Even better, meet with a coach to talk about the practical implications of your Working Geniuses and Frustrations, helping you work with others more effectively!

Want to know more about the nuts and bolts of how I approach coaching? Check out what I wrote about why I use assessments in coaching.