A Genius Guide to Growth  - Education for the Greatest Generation 

In 2013 I was invited to Bali to attend an ILAB – an entrepreneur workshop designed by Roger James Hamilton, creator of the Wealth Dynamics Profiling system and the GeniusU on-line learning platform for entrepreneurs.

At that time I did not consider myself an entrepreneur. I was a Medical Doctor – an Anaesthesiologist – happily working in my local hospital. However, I also had a small business producing inspirational Get Up and Go diaries and journals for adults and young people, and it was the invitation to consider the possibility of growing this business to a level where we could impact globally, that was the deciding factor to participate in the month long program.

Prior to this I knew nothing of the creative genius of RJH, nor his unique profiling system, so, in order to get maximum value from attending the Entrepreneur Retreat, I was encouraged to take the ‘genius test’ and discover “What kind of entrepreneur are you?”

My result gave me a Star Profile with Dynamo energy. I had secondary profiles of Creator and Supporter and also strong Blaze energy.

Mmmm… interesting ….

I accepted Star reluctantly - I was certainly not a ‘stage performer’ and was not entirely comfortable in the spotlight - but apparently the Star was the best profile for ‘shining a light on others’ – and that I could certainly relate to.

I could also fully embrace Dynamo - head in the clouds, visionary, intuitive, always asking what, what, what .. what if? what’s next? what should we do? what could we do .… ?

As for Blaze, I love to meet and connect people.

When Roger inquired into my test result  – I reluctantly admitted to the Star profile - not feeling one bit of it. As an Anaesthetist I put people to sleep for a living, for heaven’s sake !!

When he asked “What’s it like for a Star to be an anaesthetist ?” ……  after a short reflective pause, I answered truthfully - “I think it’s exhausting”.

That was a lightbulb moment for me.

I had spent most of my working life ‘reigning myself in’. My experience was always having to to dampen my enthusiasm, to hide, to play small, to not ‘shine’ too bright that others might be uncomfortable. So I hid my ‘Star’ and dampened down my Dynamo energy for fear of overpowering people. And I also encouraged others shine – even when they didn’t want to!

The impact was my natural ‘genius’ (energy) was being suppressed. I wasn’t in ‘flow’ in life. I was stuck. I was going through the motions but I was not shining. My career was stuck. My relationships were stuck. The result of this small insight was life changing for me and shortly afterwards, I retired from my medical career. I was now free to engage full time on new and exciting entrepreneurial adventures, designing and promoting my beloved ‘get up and go’ diaries, journals and events with the intention ‘to inspire and motivate’ everyone everywhere, to live their best one-and-only life.  

I decided to study Roger’s ideas a bit more. Much of it was based on the IChing – the 5000 year old Chinese ‘book of changes’.  Roger’s mother is Chinese, his father is Scottish; two vastly different cultural heritages, contribution to Roger's unique expression and view of life. During this process I discovered quite a bit more about the Wealth Dynamics profiling system, the concept of genius and the invaluable contribution this can be to the fulfilment of the individual and to the success of any venture, in any area of life.  

Fortunately, Roger also really liked our Get Up and Go Diary format and felt that a Journal would be a valuable tool for his growing GeniusU community of entrepreneurs around the world. We collaborated to co-create the Genius Journal, combining his unique content with our template, to provide inspiration, motivation, encouragement and empowerment specifically for his GeniusU community, but also as a valuable resource for any entrepreneur.  

One of the fundamental tenets of Rogers work is based on the Albert Einstein Quote:

“Everyone is a genius; but if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life believing it’s stupid.” Roger graphically designed the energies as coloured fish:

Dynamo (green),  Blaze (orange),  Tempo (yellow)  and Steel (grey).

The other principle is flow – that state of ‘being’ when life is flowing, unfolding easily and effortlessly, in harmony with its surroundings, finding its own level and naturally going around obstacles. We have all experienced this state of flow at some time in our lives. And we have also experienced when we are not in flow – we are stopped – stuck – in an eddy current – experiencing struggle and effort, upset, frustrated, feeling helpless and overwhelmed. We are out of flow and looking for ‘who to blame’! 

When fish are naturally swimming in the water we perceive them as flowing effortlessly. We admire the sailor/surfer – surfing the waves with grace and ease. Both swimming and sailing / surfing take practice if you’re a human being! We need to learn to recognise the currents, swim and surf with the waves, in order to navigate life’s stormy waters and avoid drowning or getting stuck in eddy currents.   

Where do we learn this? Where do we learn to navigate the ocean of life? We know that 'smooth seas never made skillful sailors'. However, we need to prepare people for life, not just for a career. Our entire education system globally is now being challenged and it will be compelled to go through an inevitable and necessary transformation. We need an education system that will serve a rapidly evolving generation, and it will not suffice to teach them lessons from the past. Young people are demanding it. It is evident that everyone does not fit the same 'cookie-cutter' student profile. Our current system prioritises academic ability, and rewards those who fit this profile, and has failed those who don’t, leaving too many ‘fish' who failed to 'climb the tree’ feeling bitter, rejected and useless. Increasingly, and at a younger age, children themselves not willing to be labelled. They struggle to be contained in a classroom. They see the state of the world and they are not happy with the mess we have made of it. Many are in despair. They want to do something. The time has come for a new approach to education. The world deserves fully engaged and contributing humans. 

For years our education system has not encouraged ‘genius’ in the natural sense. In many cases it has punished and repressed natural self-expression and used measures to control, dominate and subjugate youthful enthusiasm and curiosity, in order to conform to societal norms. Our society still admires, encourages and demands academic success, equating ‘success’ in this arena to personal achievement and financial success in later life. We admire the Doctors, Lawyers, Accountants, Scientists and Engineers – responsible and useful members of society - but where would we be without the writers, artists, dancers, dreamers and musicians? What of the gardeners, growers and nurturers? What about those who clean up after us? What about who bury us? 

We all know successful academics who are less than happy in life. Many are unfulfilled, and dissatisfied, despite successful careers. They suffer from poor health, stress, interpersonal conflict and relationship difficulties.   

Many young people are now looking at these older ‘role models’, ideals of ‘normal society’, and are not inspired by what they see. They see stressed, overworked, dissatisfied and cynical adults, resigned to their lot, still striving to make it in life. They are no longer buying into the promise (myth) of ‘someday it will all work out’. They want to be inspired now. They want to know that their lives can, do, and will make a difference.

Young people now want to assert their individuality, express their unique selves and find a place in the world where they know they belong. They want to be seen and heard for who they are and they want what they want in life. Mostly they want to be happy.

The Genius School and the Genius Educator Program is a real step in this direction, where the intention is ‘to ignite the genius in every child’ and nurture their spirit. The world we have now has been largely created by people trying to right the wrongs of the past. What kind of society would we have if all our children were truly educated, encouraged and empowered to become fully realised and responsible adults, powerfully dealing with what the world needs today, for tomorrow. What if life was lived building a better world not merely trying to fix a broken one, or looking for who to blame for where it all went wrong?

What if billions of people on the planet were fully engaged, fully alive and fully performing to the best of their natural abilities? What if all these billions fully accepted and appreciated the contribution of others, to solving the world’s problems for the benefit of all, as opposed to squabbling amongst themselves, fighting over the crumbs? 

The ‘genius’ test (www.my geniustest.com) is a simple questionnaire that when answered truthfully and intuitively will identify what is your natural genius in terms of your ‘energy’. I’m clear I have a lot of Dynamo energy as I get my ‘energy’ from hearing and sharing exciting new ideas. We Dynamos spend a lot of time in our head. I also have Blaze energy, which is more about connecting on a heart level with people, being in great company, partying and sharing over food. Tempo people are more grounded. They stand back and observe. Is everyone being taken care of? Is this a good time to refill the glass, launch that product or make a suggestion? I don’t’ have  lot of Tempo energy. I am more impulsive and spontaneous. And then there’s Steel, my least natural energy. This concerns the small details, the numbers, the analysis, the overview. Every good team will have a balance of these natural energies and abilities.

Knowing my strengths and weaknesses – not as personal deficiencies that I have to correct, but natural tendencies that I can embrace - gives me huge freedom to be myself. It also gives me an understanding of others who are not  like me, and allows me to fully recognise and appreciate the contribution of the value they bring.  

The Profile Test (Wealth Dynamics / Talent Dynamics / Impact Dynamics) is a deeper dive that measures the combinations and relative percentages of energies that the genius test identifies. The combination of my dominant Dynamo (46%) and Blaze (34%) energies results in my Star Profile. I can now identify other Star Profiles and connect easily with their way of thinking and behaving. I can also easily recognise the other Profiles. In the Entrepreneur Movement, Roger has named these as Creator, Star, Supporter, Deal Maker, Trader, Accumulator, Lord and Mechanic, and connect with their way of thinking. Each profile has specific predominant talents and characteristics that when that person is fully in flow, and naturally expressed, provides maximum value to a project, a team or a purpose.

 I am happiest coming up with new ideas and connecting with people who can share them with others. I am a poor judge of timing or what really serves people in the moment, so I rely on my Trader and Deal Maker team mates to keep me right in this regard. Also, being easily distracted I lack the focus required to process the data so rely on those in my team who love to “crunch the numbers”.

This unique Profiling System for Entrepreneurs works equally well with any dynamic group of people – at any age - on any team, be it a school project, a major event or a new product launch. Much of the conflict that occurs within groups and teams stems from a lack of trust and appreciation for what the other brings to the table. When we can each be responsible for our own self expression and accountable for our unique contribution, and listen to, and welcome others as theirs, we can then focus on the result we want to achieve. Not held back by individual issues and personal justifications, a team in flow with a desired and intended outcome, can cause miracles.