It has been said that life is a journey. I’m tempted (as I’m sure most are) to respond to such waxing with something like: “Don’t I know it.” Or, “Enjoy the journey.” Well, that’s all well and good. But here’s the rub. At some point in our lives, many of us have no idea where we are heading. Or, if you’re like me, you tend to keep a stoic face and just put one foot in front of the other with some vague notion of a destination. Or, if you’re like a good friend of mine you simply skip through life, attempting to find joy at every turn. There is a certain blissful ignorance in both of these modalities in life. However there’s a better way.
I believe this better way can only truly be known by truly knowing yourself. And to that, one must look back upon the path that has already been traveled. The journey to this point.
Now if you know me, you know I love to read but seldom find the time to indulge in recreational reading. I enjoy loftier fare of Philosophy, Theology, Great Literature, and Epic Fantasy. Recently, I made time to do some quasi-assigned reading.
After struggling to find satisfying entry-level employment in the Web/Software/Design/Development arena, I was considering entering a coding bootcamp. I wasn’t really enthralled with the idea of spending more money, time, and resources on “training”. I just wanted a decent company to give me a decent job that brought value to both parties. But, as is my style, I researched the heck out of bootcamps. One that interested me (theoretically, not financially) was LaunchSchool. I reviewed their site, and found their intentional focus on deep skills mastery, as opposed to the shallow fire hydrant style, to be an interesting concept. So I went through their free introductory classes, just to get a feel for them. Then they gave me a reading assignment before writing or looking at a single piece of code. Now that was different.
In his book, Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment, George Leonard outlines his cumulative observations about the art and practice of mastery. Over the course of tens of decades, Leonard has studied Psychiatry, Aikido, and various other “intense” things. But the most profound thing that Leonard imparts from his repertoire of studies is his perspective on, what I shall call, the art of mastery. Or, to be more concise, the artful practice of aiming at mastery.
To sum up his views, one could say that mastery, in an existential sense, is fundamentally an impossibility. That is to say, the state of mastery is an illusion, and those that are fixated on that singular point of attainment are delusional fanatics at best. At worst they are monsters and beasts chained to an all consuming furnace of progress. The perceived end justifies all manner of anti-social, self-destructive means. The alternative, as proposed by Leonard, is a zen-like embrace of the mundane tasks and practices that in their essence move us toward the asymptote of mastery. He evangelizes the art of embracing the path over and against straining for the destination.
Half-way through, I started to examine the stress and torment that I had put myself through over the years for not being “masterful” at things. Maybe part of it, for some at least, is the competing ideals of perfectionism and rapid results. The dynamics involved with that quarreling pair of paradigms are myriad. They tend toward a very low view of self and others, and generally make for an unpleasant time. And as I found myself in the midst of this personal revelation, I simultaneously began to tear at my self with the same old accusations and dispersions. And there I was at once enlightened and horrified. I found some grain of higher truth, and yet my nature was to throw that seed right into the furnace.
That long road behind became regret not because there were no redeeming qualities to my experiences and educations, but because my base nature caused me to chose regret. Well. I am not a lower creature, nor a mindless animal. I can, decide to choose to remember those previous bumps in the road to here as worthy training exercises in my own path towards mastery. For me, Leonard’s good news was truly a good word needed at the right time. I think, on the whole, his book is a poignant read for the current time.
While not the most stimulating prose or award-eliciting writing, his outlook is cool glass of water in the desert of hyper-technological, hyper-consumer, hyper-results-seeking atmosphere of this current age. Leonard reminds us that any difficult thing that is worthwhile takes a lifetime to even approach a modicum of masterful expertise. It’s a long journey however you get there. To come out with satisfaction on the other end, requires that we find satisfaction along the slow, arduous, ever-undulating path. And while I’m not clear on whether a “bootcamp” style course is in my future, I have decided to enjoy the journey either way.
Enjoy your own path, and honor others who walk in the same direction, though their path may be different than your own.
Ben Codes All 