practical genius by gina amaro rudan—read an excerpt!
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Practical GeniusTh Ral Smarts You Nd to Gt
Your Talnts and Passions Working or YOU
G i n a A m a r o R u d a n
A Touchston Book
Publishd by Simon & Schustr
Nw York London Toronto Sydny Nw Dlhi
A Karn Watts Book
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TouchstoneA Division o Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1230 Avenue o the AmericasNew York, NY 10020
Copyright 2011 by Gina Amaro RudanForeword copyright 2011 by Kevin Carroll
Illustrated by Francesca Prado
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portionsthereo in any orm whatsoever. For inormation address
Touchstone Subsidiary Rights Department,1230 Avenue o the Americas, New York, NY 10020.
First Touchstone hardcover edition October 2011
TOUCHSTONE and colophon areregistered trademarks o Simon & Schuster, Inc.
A Karen Watts Book (www.karenwattsbooks.com)
For inormation about special discounts or bulk purchases,please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-866-506-1949
The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event.For more inormation or to book an event
contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 866-248-3049or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com.
Designed by Ruth Lee-Mui
Manuactured in the United States o America
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
Library o Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Rudan, Gina Amaro.Practical genius : the real smarts you need to get
your talents and passion working or you / by Gina Amaro Rudan.p. cm.
1. Sel-actualization (Psychology) 2. Genius. 3. Sel-perception. 4. Success. I. Title.BF637.S4R837 2011
158.1dc222011011987
ISBN 978-1-4516-2604-9ISBN 978-1-4516-2606-3 (ebook)
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For my Beloveds
My husband, Stephen, whose love and support permeate this book
And for my son, Lucas, whose life is empowered by inventive play and
from whom I learn something amazing every day
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1
A Spark of GeniusWhr th Journy Bgins
Do you ever eel as though you are two separate peoplethe ace you
present at the oce and the authentic sel you are in the rest o your
lie?
Do you eel as though theres a whole set o your skills, talents, and
assets that youre not using every day because youve allowed what
you do or a living to become what you are?
So many o us wake up every day to a dreaded alarm clock thatdrags us rom the comort o our cozy beds to pitch us into daily
routinesroutines that we have willingly chosen but oten cant quite
remember why. Many o us go to jobs, earn a living, maybe were even
doing what we are good at or eight hours a day (or more).
But most likely were not doing what we love. We march through
the stages o liecollege, career, marriage, kids, more careerand we
wake up one day and twenty or thirty years have passed, and we won-der, Hey, what was that? What do I have to show or it? Who am I?
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2 PRACTIC AL GeNIUS
How do smart, motivated, accomplished people like us, who are
walking around with all the human assets one could ever hope or,
end up in this no-mans-land? How did we ool ourselves into believ-ing that this was the best we could do?
The DeGen iused SelfThe great American engineer and uturist Buckminster Fuller once
said, Everyone is born a genius, but the process o living de-geniuses
you. Thats a act, Jack, and its why we have two types o problems:
Problm A
Youre going through the motions, armed with the latest technology
and a closet ull o career wear, and youre thinking This is okay,
Ive got a good lie while ignoring the act that there is a whole other
side o you that lies dormant, eager to be released rom the tidy cage
o your conormity. You are one o the millions battling with the Dr.Jekyll and Mr. Hyde syndrome, checking hal o yoursel at the revolv-
ing doors o your oce building, walking through your workday with
an unconvincing smile, sitting silently in one too many meetings doo-
dling a masterpiece in your Moleskine notebook.
I this sounds like you, you have allowed yoursel to be de-geniused.
Problm BYoure a die-hard creative person working rom a home studio, swim-
ming though lie with the imaginative right side o your brain leading
the way while the practical let side is unactivated. You pass your
days, months, and years waiting patiently or a lucky break. You
bounce rom inspiration to inspiration, passionately invested in the
creative process but not in the business o being creative.
I this is who you see in the mirror every day, you, too, have al-lowed yoursel to be de-geniused.
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A SPARK OF GeNIUS 3
So many o us are unconsciously compromising some o our greatest
natural assets because o external actors, past hurts, or current ears.
Or, even worse, we have sacriced our skills, strengths, and passion tothe expectations and infuence o others. Or were consciously hitting
the snooze button, rolling over and going back to sleep every time
were reminded how ar rom eeling happy and ullled we are in our
work and personal lives.
I call this the de-geniused sel, and he has been allowed to sit in
the drivers seat o our lives or ar too long. The de-geniused sel sab-
otages your potential, holds you back, and accepts mediocrity. This isthe side o you that operates rom ear and shines dimly, i at all. This
is the person who has allowed people, organizations, environments,
and circumstances to beat the genius out o you. Enough already!
Are You a Gen ius?Will all the geniuses in the room please raise their hands? I ask thisquestion at every corporate training session I acilitate, and it aston-
ishes me how ew hands go up. Regardless o the industrywhether
I am speaking to an auditorium ull o bankers, marketers, or scien-
tistsmost people hesitate, look around to see who else has raised
their hands . . . and shyly choose notto outwardly demonstrate their
belie in their own genius.
I I asked you the question right now, how would you respond?Would you condently say, Here I am! and acknowledge the spark
o genius within you? Or would you hesitate and stammer that youre
not so smart, not so special, not really.
The second response was the one I most oten received when I
rst started my Genuine Insights practice, and I must admit it drove
the marketer in me crazy. When I discovered how many o my clients
had no idea i they even had a drop o genius inside them, I realizedI was looking at both a crisis and an opportunityan opportunity
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A SPARK OF GeNIUS 19
The Anatomy of a
Pract ical Gen iusPractical genius is your jillion-dollar personal portolio o brilliance.
Its the secret code within you that only you can crack. But once you
do, the possibilities are endless.
Contrary to the traditional belies about genius, practical genius
is based on the truth that each o us possesses genius deep inside and
its just waiting to be activated and set in motion. Thats what practical
genius is all about: identiying and leveraging both the sot and hard
unique personal assets each o us possesses. O course, its also about
using those assets to open doors, attract opportunity, leverage personal
power, and succeed beyond your wildest dreams.
Hrs how it works:
Identify your genius. This mans consciously acknowldging and taking
activ rsponsibility or your uniqu strngths, skills, xprtis, passions,
crativity, and valus. Hint: th intrsction o ths quantitativ and
qualitativ charactristics is whr your practical gnius lis. It rquirs
a particular kind o sl-assssmnt, a sris o rfctiv xrciss that
nabl you to idntiy th gnius ingrdints that you possss. This x-
traction phas o work rprsnts your vry own gnius ull-body scan. I
promis it wont hurt.
Express your genius. Th gratst challng or most poplwhich
is rarly addrssd in ladrship modlsis visibility. I you ar not
activly, purposully sharing your uniqu narrativ with th world, your
compromising your prsonal and prossional impact. This chaptr is all
about your story and how you shar it. Think o this as a long-ovrdu
opportunity to tll th realstory.exprssing your gnius is about turning that swt spot whr your
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20 PRACTIC AL GeNIUS
hard and sot assts mt into th story you tll othrs. A prson without a
story is invisibl. Its hr that I will ask you to considr a rang o aspcts
o your xprssion, including your narrativ, your thms, your vocabulary,and your visuals. exprssing gnius is about not laving any sid o your-
sl out o th gam. It all mattrs. enough with th sam narrativs; hr
w will push th bar and bgin to tll nw provocativ, daring, inspiring
storis about who you ar and why you mattr.
Surround yourself with genius. You ar who you walk with. Rais th bar,
and build your ntwork with othrs who ar living purposul, inspird
livs. This is about raching out in a nontransactional way and cultivat-
ing maningul, dply valuabl rlationships. Rais your xpctations,
lvat your standards, and surround yoursl with popl who ar a posi-
tiv rfction o your gnius.
W hav many kinds o rlationships in our livs, and who w spnd
our tim with is critical to improving and building upon our goals and x-
princs. This chaptr will introduc you to th kinds o rlationships w
should b cultivating vry dayour Yodas (mntors), our ambassadors
(chrladrs), our at brains (smart young popl), and a trib (our
crw). Onc you hav idntid who is on your wish list or ach o ths
typs o rlationships, I will walk you through a simpl procss that has
opnd many a door in my own li. Ths ar th ruls o ngagmnt
and a bluprint or building th gnius rlationships you want to hav.
Sustain your genius. Living your practical gnius rquirs rddicatingyoursl to its mastry vry day. This mans cultivating a constant ocus
on committing to a practic that naturally suits your gnius. And as with
any succssul bhavioral modl, it rquirs applying masurmnts and
prsonal accountability. Brokn down into practical trms, this chaptr
ors you nw daily routins that will kp you halthy, productiv, and
prosprous. Its on thing to dcid to rach or gratnss, somthing ls
ntirly to sustain it. What it boils down to is rsilinc, staying ocusd
on growth, and holding yoursl accountabl to your own gnius. This
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A SPARK OF GeNIUS 21
mans making th right choics or your body and mind, kping your pro-
ssional and prsonal livs dply connctd in ordr to rap and njoy
th bnts o a li livd within a gnius zon.This chaptr is th most important; without constant sustnanc, w all
back upon bad habits. Sustaining gnius involvs a rang o actors, rom
incorporating brain ood into your dit to xrciss that work your crativ
muscls to stablishing rituals that stimulat your intuition. Youll vn crat
a mantra to hlp hold you accountabl to your daily gnius li. Sustaining ral
smarts taks disciplin and commitmnt. I nvr said it would b asy.
Market your genius. This is whr th gam rally changs. Whn you
projct and broadcast your gnius consistntly, with clar purpos and
passion, your prsonal and prossional dynamic shits into crazy growth
mod. This chaptr is ddicatd to lvraging what is distinct and origi-
nal about your gnius to attract, ngag, and grow your natural audinc.
Whn you ar living and working at th intrsction o all your assts,
your markting your gnius on all rquncis.
Its rare that someone can promise you that what they are going to
teach you will make you a better person. But that is what I am promis-
ing you. I am turning on all the lights, opening the doors and windows,
and clearing out the closets to set you on the path to the transormation
o your lie. When I decided to live my practical genius, I remember
eeling guilty about how much un I was having. Work is never un,
Gina. Theres probably something wrong with this, I told mysel. Thiswas just the de-genius devil on my shoulder, trying to throw me o my
destiny. Instead o internalizing these alse ideas, I learned to shut them
up and embrace a more natural, exciting, and truly pleasurable ap-
proach toward lie. My mother used to say, Everything that is natural
is good or you. Working rom a place o obligation and routine or a
paycheck is not natural. Working or joy, innovation, and autonomy is.
Thats it or the practical genius oreplay. Its time to get your ge-nius on.
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