Mastery is “available to anyone who is willing to get on the path and stay on it-regardless of age, sex, or previous experience.” These are the words of George Leonard in a book he wrote called Mastery. This is not a new book. My copy was printed in 1992 and looks/feels like it has been on the journey that the author describes.
This predates the 10,000 hour discussion I presented (see past blog), but reminds us that committing to Mastery is really about getting on a path and staying there for a lifetime. For achieving Mastery is not about the destination, but the journey to get there. The author provides many vivid images of the journey, from sports analogies around tennis to illustrations using the martial art of aikido. If you are interested in a rich exploration of the topic, read the book. But let me share a couple of parts that stuck with me.
A significant point was around our view of practice. Practice if often viewed as a verb, but as it relates to Mastery it is best viewed as a noun. The author points out the Chinese word tao and the Japanese word do – both of which mean road or path. So achieving Mastery is about practice (remember 10,000 hours). Practice is a journey on which you embark.
Leonard also shares his five keys to Mastery, which are:
- Instruction
- Practice
- Surrender
- Intentionality
- The Edge
So what can you do as a leader to increase Mastery?
First, your performance management system has to promote Mastery conversations. These questions need to be addressed:
- What Mastery is needed in a role? (defined and measured at some level yearly)
- What Mastery is the individual interested in attaining? (their own career goals – integrated into what the organization needs)
- How is the Mastery journey going? (for you and for us)
Secondly, the ownership of the journey has to be made very clear. It is up to the individual. A leader/organization owns providing a target and the support and resources. Ultimately, the decision to go on and stay on the journey is owned by the individual. Do you agree with this? Think of it this way, most leaders will not be around a person for five years, and keeping track of 5 or 10 or 30 different people is not realistic for any leader. So if the individual owns the plan, the commitment of the leader become to create the time to review it, provide feedback on their progress, and assist in removing barriers that might be encountered along the way. (ex. time, resources, skills)
So how does your organization promote the journey to Mastery? How well are you leading this journey?
