Are you working in your Sweet Spot - or doing it all?
- PG Geldenhuys
- Sep 9
- 3 min read
Six years ago, I rehired Yolanda as my assistant. It felt indulgent: surely I could manage my own inbox and calendar? But the truth was, those “small” tasks were stealing my energy from the things only I could do: coaching, strategy, and storytelling.
Fast forward to today: Yolanda, before she wrapped up, trained Abby, and we have been going for five years. We don’t just divide the work... we multiply it. With the help of ChatGPT, she and I can delegate and automate even further. My calendar gets managed, research on new contacts arrives fully packaged before I step into a meeting, and coaching call action items flow seamlessly into Monday.com.
In short, I focus on the handful of things that are truly my role to play.
And that is exactly the story playing out in world sport right now.
When Keegan Bradley was named captain of the U.S. Ryder Cup team, he faced a huge temptation: pick himself as a player. He is still competitive, still hungry, still able to contribute. But he made the hard call - his sweet spot is leadership, not playing. By not picking himself, he ensures his energy is fully devoted to guiding the team.
Across the fairway, Luke Donald takes Europe to America with almost the same side that triumphed two years ago. He is doubling down on experience, trust, and continuity, not chasing novelty. His sweet spot is orchestration - bringing out the best in a proven group.
Both captains are showing us the Sweet Spot principle: stop trying to do it all, and instead lead from where you are most valuable.
This echoes what we are seeing on the Springboks’ tour to New Zealand: two titans of rugby clashing, with home ground advantage tilting the balance. For the Boks, it is not about everyone being everywhere - it is about each player executing their specific role within the system. Siya Kolisi does not throw lineouts. Pollard does not jackal at the ruck. They trust teammates to play their positions, and together it adds up to world-class dominance. It is still a tough call over there, and the Europeans, for all their advantages, are going to find Bethpage Black a hostile place to succeed.
The Sweet Spot principle is not just for sport - it is everywhere:
Sport: Bradley shows us that leadership sometimes means removing yourself from the field. Donald shows us that focus and continuity beat shiny distractions. The Boks show us that system trust outmuscles individual brilliance.
Movies: In Ocean’s Eleven, the heist works because each character sticks to their specialty - nobody tries to do everything.
Business: Steve Jobs cut dozens of projects so Apple could pour energy into the iPod, iPhone, and iPad. That ruthless focus changed industries.
Greg McKeown’s Essentialism puts it plainly: if everything is a priority, then nothing is.
PG’s Pro Tip:
Here is how to run your own Sweet Spot Exercise this week:
List your top 20 activities from the past month.
Tag each one: Stop, Delegate, Automate, Outsource, or Sweet Spot.
Choose one handoff this week - either to a person (assistant, colleague) or to a tool (AI, automation) - that frees up at least 5 hours for your high-value zone.
ChatGPT Prompt: "Act as my Sweet Spot coach. I’ll paste my last two weeks of calendar entries and to-dos. Categorise them into Stop, Delegate, Automate, Outsource, or Sweet Spot. Then design a simple plan to free up 5 hours for high-value work this week."
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