Ninpō (Planning): March 2008 Archives

I was exposed to a very interesting concept a few days ago while having lunch with one of my employees. You see, this fellow is renowned throughout our company as someone who just flat knows his stuff when it comes to the outdoors and the gear you need to get where you're going and stay alive doing it. This is the guy who has summited Kilamanjaro, who has done the "Into the Wild" thing, and who knows more about GPS units than Ron Jeremy knows about coitus.

I asked Greg, the aforementioned employee, what his goal was in his parenting. He has two daughters, aged 3 and 5, both of whom ski better than I do, can swim, can roller blade and can snowboard. Basically, in two years these children have amassed more physical prowess than the average 30 year old American. Sad for the average or inspiring for the individual, your choice. Anyway, the question was referring to Greg's goal in his parenting of these kids. His explanation was that he wanted his children to understand the concept of mastery. Greg has "mastered" a number of skills and areas of knowledge, "mastering" being the act of becoming so knowledgeable, so versed, so fluent in something that there are few, if any, that can teach you about it.

The idea of this mastery being something that a child can perceive and build their confidence, their world view, their personality around is a very valuable one, and is applicable to each and every one of us, whether we're a 3 year old snow phenom or a 37 year old leader of people. The thing is, we all think back to a time when we were quite good at something. I personally think back to when I was dancing and teaching a great deal. While there were plenty of people in the world that could teach me more about the art, in my immediate world I was the authority on the topic, and it was a fantastic sensation. I'm not talking about the arrogant "king in the castle" sensation of power, but the idea that you have worked to accomplish something and for it you have to show the confidence that you've earned.

The REAL power of this idea is that you don't always have to be a "master" to understand the concept. Having ever mastered something and keeping that feeling, understanding what it means, is the key. You don't have to master all things, but to know that, having mastered at least one thing, you could master any of them is one of the greatest sensations we as people can have.

And, boy, if you can apply this to your professional world you will see an entire new life rolling out in front of you.