Finding Mastery.


When you hear the word “Mastery,” what comes to mind? For me, it’s the warriors at the Jedi Academy, learning how to recognize and harness the force within them. I also think of opera singers, concert violinists, and Ph.D. candidates.

The question arises: Can the average person find mastery in anything?

I believe the answer is yes. George Leonard wrote a simple book called “Mastery,” in which he suggested you can master anything as long as you love the practice, not just the performance of your skill. In our quests for mastery, we’re often stuck at a plateau for an extended period. In other words, we better love learning for the sake of learning. I outlined in this earlier blog post how we help our MEA compadres learn what they might be able to master.

Just six weeks ago (which seems like a long time ago), I was in Southern California doing a podcast with sports psychologist Michael Gervais, who has effectively introduced mindfulness and a mastery mindset to the Seattle Seahawks NFL team. Our podcast can be found here and it’s filled with helpful suggestions on how to find your own mastery. I’ve also included a short video below that I took while I was in town. I shot the video from the terrace of my hotel room, as I watched in awe as Olympic volleyball players tirelessly and joyously worked for excellence. Mastery is everywhere if you look for it.

Where can you witness mastery, and how does it inspire you?

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