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Mastery

Summarising my knowledge on the concept outlined by Robert Greene

expertise


Navigation

  1. Premise
  2. Key Principles
  3. Phases of Mastery
      3.1 Find and occupy the perfect career niche
      3.2 Undertake an apprenticeship
      3.3 Acquire social intelligence
      3.4 Achieve mastery
  4. Application
  5. Resources

Premise

The concept of mastery is about achieving tremendous skill in a given area. This is something that is not purely about natural talent or luck, but a deliberate and patient journey to deep levels of understanding and intuition.

“Mastery— the feeling that we have a greater command of reality, other people, and ourselves.

Although it might be something we experience for only a short while, for others— Masters of their field— it becomes their way of life, their way of seeing the world.”

Source: Mastery by Robert Greene

Key Principles

  • To follow any career path is difficult, and requires the cultivation of much patience and discipline. We have so many elements to master that it can be intimidating. We must learn to handle the technical aspects, the social and political gamesmanship, the public reactions to our work, and the constantly changing picture in our field;
  • Real pleasure comes from overcoming challenges, feeling confidence in your abilities, gaining fluency in skills, and experiencing the power this brings;
  • All that should concern you in the early stages of your career is acquiring practical knowledge in the most efficient manner possible;
  • Mastery is not a function of genius or talent. It is a function of time and intense focus applied to a particular field of knowledge. But there is another element, an X factor that Masters inevitably possess, that seems mystical but that is accessible to us all;
  • The greatest impediment to creativity is your impatience, the almost inevitable desire to hurry up the process, express something, and make a splash.

Phases of Mastery

I: Find and occupy the perfect career niche

  • This will typically be a combination of your natural talents, interests and whatever is practical.

II: Undertake an apprenticeship

  • Choose places of work and positions that offer the greatest possibilities for learning;
  • Observe the rules and procedures that govern success in this environment, and observe the power relationships in the group;
  • Do not make the mistake of imagining you must get attention, impress people, or prove yourself in this stage;
  • Reduce the skills to something simple and essential—the core of what you need to get good at;
  • It is essential that you begin with one skill that you can master, and that serves as a foundation for acquiring others. You must avoid at all cost the idea that you can manage learning several skills at a time;
  • Accept and embrace the tedium in the initial stages of learning a skill;
  • As you gain skill and confidence, you must make the move to a more active mode of experimentation.

III: Acquire social intelligence

  • Speak through your work—be efficient, detail-oriented, and make what you write or present clear and easy to follow, and this will show your care for the audience or public at large;
  • Craft the appropriate persona—people will judge you based on your outward appearance, be aware of this and plan for it;
  • See yourself as others see you—look at negative events in your past and dissect these occurrences. What patterns can we observe that reveal flaws in our character? Seek opinions from those you trust about your behaviour as well, and begin to cultivate the ability to see yourself as you really are;
  • Suffer fools gladly—they are simply part of life, like rocks or furniture. Smile at their antics, tolerate their presence, and avoid the madness of trying to change them.

IV: Achieve mastery

  • It is not a matter of studying a subject for twenty years, and then emerging as a Master. The time that leads to mastery is dependent on the intensity of our focus;
  • The key, then, to attaining this higher level of intelligence is to make our years of study qualitatively rich:
    • We don’t simply absorb information—we internalize it and make it our own by finding some way to put this knowledge to practical use;
    • We look for connections between the various elements we are learning, hidden laws that we can perceive in the apprenticeship phase;
    • If we experience any failures or setbacks, we do not quickly forget them because they offend our self-esteem. Instead we reflect on them deeply, trying to figure out what went wrong and discern whether there are any patterns to our mistakes;
    • As you accumulate skills and your mind becomes more active, you must avoid becoming conservative and fitting with the group. Instead, become increasingly bold and begin to experiment, reforming the rules of your field.

Application

  • Constantly seek to present work that demonstrates attention-to-detail and improves the current norms in my career;
  • Take the time to formalise completed work in order to build a personal portfolio;
  • Notice when I am confused and ensure that I am filling in the gaps within my knowledge in real-time;
  • Take the time to step back and assess how to refactor a problem or understand the context in which the problem exists.

Resources