The following is an e-mail I received from a man who described himself as a fifty-two year old Sales Rep who is reading Is Your Genius At Work? as part of introspection about a career change. He gave permission for me to use his words here, and asked to remain anonymous.

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My story……

I read the book.
I did the exercises.
Nothing new. Good stuff but this isn’t my first time
around this track.
Got a version of the “genius phrase”(Creating Contributions), good but it didn’t grab me.
Oh well ……………

Then I did the drawing excercise.
Flower, peaceful beach scene…
Then draw your genius…..

I must say I was very impressed with the ah hah moment.
I drew a circle (I had to draw something!)
Then I drew a concentric circle within the original.
Not quite right, I drew a Nautilus like spiral, it gave
the circle some depth.
Still missing something……
It had to be 3D.
So the spiral became a screw like design.
BANG!!!

Creating Contributions became “Engaging Progress.”
The screw-like design is also the image used by
Dante in the Purgatorio to show the soul’s path to
salvation. Too cool.

Now the Purpose piece.
This will take time, patience, openess.
I have some versions but nothing solid yet.

I loved the process.

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I continue to be amazed by the imagery that arises when people seek their genius. In the image above, Dante holds a copy of his epic poem The Divine Comedy. He points to a procession of sinners being led down to the circles of Hell on the left. Behind him are the seven terraces of Purgatory — the “screw-like design” mentioned in the e-mail as “the soul’s path to salvation.” The painting, by Domenico di Michelino, is a 1465 fresco on the wall of the church of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence.