It's no mystery that I'm all about Mastery. And clever word play. Everything about Mastery lights me up. I've been called 'intense' (and some other descriptors that may not be as diplomatic). Heck, I even created a Mastery Track called Elite Cohort, an intimate cohort of like-minded individuals who aim to master themselves in all aspects of life. But the pursuit of mastery doesn't have to encompass everything all at once. In fact, trying to do so is sure to trigger a fair amount of anxiety and overwhelm. Ever seen the movie Everything Everywhere All at Once? Instead, it can be as simple as mastering the small things inside your everyday life. Then watching them compound, creating a significant impact on your experience of life, and over time…creating mastery. Maybe we call it Everyday Mastery.
One of my colleagues on the leadership team often quotes her father, as saying: You can raise any job to the level of an artform—washing dishes, changing diapers, you name it. There's something to that, I think. Let's take loading the dishwasher, for example. This same colleague has a theory about a correlation between how a person loads the dishwasher and their willingness to delay gratification—a hallmark of someone who's up for mastery. So here's the question: If the dishwasher is completely empty and you've got a dirty mug or a glass, where do you put it? (feel free to close your eyes and think about it for a moment). If you load the mug or glass in the back corner that's farthest away from you, then you, my friend, are more likely to be a candidate for mastery. At least, according to this budding theory. Here's why: you're willing to put in a little extra effort up front in order to enjoy more ease on the back end. There's a correlation there to the ability to delay gratification -- ease later versus ease right now. Clearly this is just a theory and a very small thing, but it's food for thought, and may give us insight into how we operate in the small things in life.
We’ve all known someone like Jennifer. The person who approaches every task, no matter how small or large, as a tedious chore or something that’s beneath her. Which is quite a challenge for Jennifer, considering she works as the assistant to a very busy executive. Her entire day consists of executing on list after list of tasks, and more than 90 percent of them are in service to her boss. It can be very easy for most people, Jennifer included, to feel like they’re nothing more than a servant. Even though it’s her job, and she happily collects her paycheck every week, Jennifer shows up to work frustrated and resentful, grumbling through her day, and creating a generally unpleasant environment for her coworkers. Even worse, if she keeps it up, she’s not going to have her job much longer. Most bosses aren’t interested in assistants who aren’t interested in assisting.
So now Jennifer comes to me and says, Joey, I’m ready to achieve mastery in my life. I say, Okay, let’s talk about your job. And for those of you thinking, If she hates her job so much, why doesn’t she just quit, let’s put her feelings about the job aside for the moment. Mastery isn’t about what we like or don’t like, what we want or don’t want. It isn’t about our station in life. I don’t care if you’re CEO of the world or just a guy living in a cabin in the woods, Mastery is about how we approach whatever life we’re living.
Alright, back to Jennifer. One of the things she hates the most is getting coffee for her boss. It’s not so much the getting of the coffee as it is the frequency and unpredictableness. The man processes more coffee than the Colombian border and the requests never come at the same times any two days in a row. Which means Jennifer is often interrupted from whatever she’s doing to go on a coffee run. Okay, perfect place to start. Something that seems small, insignificant, a waste of time. A chore. Jennifer can continue to hold it that way, and what will she create? Only misery for herself. The boss isn’t going to stop wanting coffee and, unless she wants to get fired, Jennifer isn’t going to stop getting the coffee.
Instead, she can take the simple task of running to Starbucks to the next level. Turn it into an artform. She can decide to be the best coffee getter that’s ever gotten coffee. She can figure out ways to spend the time it takes more efficiently. What can she accomplish during the walk down to the corner? What can she accomplish on the way back? Instead of waiting at the pickup counter with her arms folded and a pouty face, Jennifer can get to know the baristas, create relationships there. Who knows? There may be some future benefit there that Jennifer can’t see yet. And at the very least, being a pleasant person not only creates a better experience for the baristas, it creates a better experience for Jennifer. Let’s face it, being a grump all day takes a lot of energy and is just a shitty feeling in general. If you’re going to do something no matter what, why not do it with a smile and a little spring in your step?
Again, getting really good at delivering coffee to the boss may seem like something hardly worth considering, but that’s the whole point really. When we're looking to create mastery we need to start SMALL. Start with one small commitment, and use our Vision tools, techniques, and strategies to fulfill that vision. For Jennifer, it’s Zen and the Art of The Triple Venti Latte. Then move on to the next small thing. And for Jennifer, maybe that’s mastery of the dreaded copy machine on the 8th floor. When you cluster together enough small things, you start to create mastery. The mastery to commit and fulfill, mastery within a particular area of life, mastery over anything life puts in your path.
So what small thing are you going to start with? I’ll give you a second…Then I’ll tell you that whatever you’re thinking is probably too big. The biggest mistake people make is biting off more than they can chew, creating anxiety and overwhelm, and then the whole thing falls apart. I’m talking small. Something you do everyday. Let’s go back to coffee, just for fun. Just about everybody starts their day with a cup of joe. But how much thought do most people put into it? And I’m not just talking about the coffee itself, I’m talking about the whole process. If you’re a coffee drinker, here’s one on the house:
Be the best coffee maker you can be. Get your routine down. How efficiently can you grind those beans, fill that pot, replace that filter? Make it a game; time yourself. Treat it like an Olympic event. It might sound silly, and we can laugh about it, but when we train mastery in the everyday things, we’re building a foundation. We’re creating a pattern of developing mastery in everything we approach. So when the big things in life come along we’ll have the tools, techniques, and strategies we need to manage them.
Speaking of tools, techniques, and strategies, here’s another small thing you could start with: Join us for a Power Series program. Just a weekend. There are even virtual programs so you don’t even have to leave the house! Just cozy up with a partner, or maybe a couple friends, and Zoom in for a live program. We’ll get you everything you need to start your own journey toward Mastery. Click HERE to learn more about the Power Series and sign up today!