Have you ever gotten to the end of the day, feeling exhausted and, even more, feeling like you didn’t accomplish much outside of checking off your to-do list? Perhaps there was a flurry of activity, with you at the center, and yet, you couldn’t really recall anything you had done that was valuable, exciting, or even just interesting.

On the other hand, can you recall a similarly long day, having worked the same number of hours, but coming home energized, excited about the work you're doing and the impact you're making, feeling like you could stay up all night, ready to tackle the projects that will be waiting for you the next day?

What’s the difference between these two situations? It might be something we at ProAdvisorCoach refer to as "the Sweet Spot"—the intersection of Purpose, Passion, and Profit.

Now, before you go off thinking that this is some kind of Willy Wonka style fairytale world where everyone can just magically do what they love all day, every day, hear me out...

What we’ve found at ProAdvisorCoach, over and over again, is that when people are able to operate more consistently in their Sweet Spot (it is possible, keep reading), they, and their companies, see a massive return for their efforts, especially when you compare that to the unfortunately common focus many people give to putting out fires, crossing off tasks, and heading off the unexpected distractions that continually come their way.

While the ideal target is to be in a place where you're spending 75–80% of your time operating in your Sweet Spot(s), we know that there are factors that affect the ability to do this. Maybe you're a leader who is just getting started down this path, or an individual contributor who doesn't have full autonomy to make that happen. Regardless, know that any additional time spent in your Sweet Spot(s) is time well spent.

For example, in working with the leader of a real estate and property management company, we learned that he was frustrated with all the daily tasks he was facing.

He was surrendering all his time to tasks, addressing whatever felt most immediate and urgent throughout the day. This approach had him running around and putting out fires all day in support of his team and his clients. He felt like he had to hit the ground running at full speed at the beginning of each day, and the running didn’t stop until late in the evening. Yet, despite all his activities, he didn’t feel as if he was accomplishing much of value, other than keeping the company afloat.

So we worked with him on completing his Sweet Spot Analysis. When it was complete, we discovered that his Sweet Spot centered around people. This is something he had understood but lost track of in the race against the Tyranny of the Urgent, as he struggled each day just to keep his head above water. So maybe we should say, instead of helping him "discover" his Sweet Spot, we helped him "recover" it.

In focusing on his Sweet Spot, we were able to highlight what it is he does best, what he enjoys the most, and where his greatest impact lies for the company. This not only provided new energy for him as the leader of his company, but through the process, we were also able to empower his team to take on some new challenges in order to free him up. What we found was that his company grew AND he was able to create a more exciting and enjoyable role for himself.

Finding Your Sweet Spot

So, how do you go about finding your Sweet Spot? Chances are, you may already have a good idea about the type of work that you love the most. For some people it may be solving interesting problems, for others it may be centered around people and leadership, and for others perhaps it is being alone and engulfed in the numbers. But let’s not leave it to pure speculation or assumption.

There is power in putting pen to paper here to dive deeper into our Sweet Spot. And, as is the case with everything, action leads to insight. First, let's complete a short exercise to explore; then, we’ll test it out to see what we’ve learned.

The "Sweet Spot" Exercise

Grab a piece of paper and a pen or pencil and draw out three large, intersecting circles that fill up the entire page. This may take some of you back to elementary school, but what you’ll have is a Venn diagram, with one intersecting piece in the middle.  See the visual for some help getting started and for some questions to consider for each area.

Once you have completed the larger circles with as much detail as possible, look for overlapping themes among them. What are some things that you’ve noticed fit into all three? Start to map out what some Sweet Spot activities could be for you. Record those activities, the ones that align with your Purpose, Passion, and Profit, in the center of your diagram.

This is the first step. Give yourself some dedicated time to think about this and put pen to paper to get your thoughts out. To get you started, here are some suggestions for mapping out your Sweet Spot activities in your diagram:

• BE OPEN TO THE POSSIBILITIES. Don't assume you know what your Sweet Spot is.
• BRAINSTORM FREELY. Don't hold back. Write it all down. Assess later.
• USE PROMPTS & QUESTIONS related to each circle. For example, "What causes do I care about?" or "What would I do if money wasn't a concern?"
• LOOK FOR OVERLAPS & CONNECTIONS. This is where the magic happens.
• PRIORITIZE & REFINE. Not everything on your list will be equally appealing or reasonable.
• GET CREATIVE. Don't be afraid to combine ideas or explore new possibilities.

Take Action!

After you’ve discovered some overlapping themes, give yourself some time to test things out. For example, if you’ve found that time with people is a Sweet Spot, make time next week to spend some extended time with people, in whatever capacity that may be for you.

Wherever you think you've landed for your Sweet Spot(s), give it some time to see how those thoughts fit into your everyday activities. ProAdvisorCoach’s Time Tracker tool is a great companion for this to help you determine just where your time is going.

Remember, this is an ongoing process. As you learn and grow, your Sweet Spot(s) may evolve. This initial exercise is a valuable starting point to spark your self-discovery and guide you towards activities that bring fulfillment and success.

Harness the Power of Your Sweet Spots

If you’re here, you're at least curious about how to improve yourself, your business, or your leadership. If you’d like to learn more about how to live and work in your Sweet Spots, more powerfully and more consistently, the team at ProAdvisorCoach can help.