| Circle of competence is your area(s) of ‘expertise’. It is your ‘sweet spot’.
One way to eliminate weaknesses is to not do them. If you perform more task in your circle of competence, you will perform at a higher level, be more fulfilled, and be more energized.
The same goes for other staff members. Align their circle of competence with their roles, responsibilities and assignments to help them perform at a higher level.
Training/Learning
Ages 20-30’s: As a young person, you will want to have as many roles and responsibilities as possible. You are learning your circle of competence. You are also forced to do things that will never be in your circle of competence but need to improve enough to get them above the screech line.*
Solidifying
Ages 30-40’s: This is when you start to really hone in on and solidify what your circle of competence is. You start to get a great idea of your strengths, constraints, things that light you up, and things that drain you.
Clarity
Ages 40-60’s: During this period of your life we most likely know, with great clarity, what our circle of competence is. We should spend a large majority (90%) of our time doing the things that are in our sweet spot.
*The screech line is the lowest level necessary to be able to function. We don’t have to be great at everything, but we must be above the speech line. For example: Take someone who is not a detail person. They will most likely never be great with details. They see the world from a big picture perspective. If they are a total zoo when it comes to details, this will most likely hurt them over the course of their career. When we are below the screech line, it can derail our career trajectory and therefore prevent us from ever being able to one day focus on our circle of competence. |
