The Journey of Mastery

 “Art calls for complete mastery of techniques, developed by reflection within the soul.”_Bruce Lee

Life is not a sprint but a marathon. By the same token, mastery is not an event but a process; mastery is a lifelong journey. 

And more importantly, mastery doesn’t just happen; we have to diligently work to make it happen. That is to say, mastery never happens by accident but, it is always a result of a conscious decision.

In all fields of endeavours, mastery is earned after a lot of time has been devoted to learning and intense practice. So, if we yearn to become an expert in anything of value, we need to commit ourselves to practicing the thing on a continuous basis.

Without exception, remarkable masters have all had to put in years upon years of labour before they are recognized as icons in their fields. In other words, the creams of the crop in all walks of life willingly demonstrate a greater measure of diligence, commitment and consistency than everyone else.

Today, I want to examine the key to the work ethic of masters so that we can learn from them how to improve and get better in any area that we choose.

Master Yourself First: Change Your Identity

“One can have no smaller or greater mastery than mastery of oneself.”_Leonardo da Vinci

From study and experience, I have learnt that consistency of performance is what separates great masters from amateurs like us. As it usually happens for most of us, sometimes, we are on fire to put in the work, and at other times, it is even hard for us to get up and move. 

However, unlike us, virtuosos have learnt to work with regularity and consistency that may seem impossible for many people. For example Milo of Croton became the strongest man in Athens by lifting a calf, every day, until he was lifting a full grown bull. 

Ray Radbury became an icon of literature simply by writing everyday for more than sixty years. Michael Phelps became the most decorated Olympian by swimming everyday for over 12 years without a single miss.

So to become like the greats, we need to develop the identity of person who is a master at his or her game. We need to develop the identity of a person who doesn’t miss a practice.

 

We need to shift our focus away from the goals (outcomes) that we actually want to achieve. And redirect our attention to the systems that we can sustain, to the processes that we can follow, not just on our best days, but even on our worst.

In your own life, your new goal is to become the type of person who doesn’t miss a day; the type of person who always shows up to work. Since you now understand that mastery is not an event but a process, your new primary goal is no longer the prize but the consistency of your delivery.

With this in mind, you think less about how you are performing now. And you don’t bother if the work is subpar at the moment. By this approach, know that you have achieved something— however little— by just showing up today.

By shifting your focus away from the ultimate outcome that you desire, you're giving yourself a chance to change and improve. You are giving yourself an opportunity to build momentum and resolve through a slow but steady process.

Certainly, mastery happens through sheer consistency of good performance.  If we practice our craft regularly, we can easily make ourselves better in reasonable time.

Mastering the fundamentals of a skill may be a long journey but we can make it less demanding by redirecting our mindset from outcome orientation to the identity of person who loves showing up to practice, day after day.