Last week, I completed my 54th orbit of the sun.* As I sat in morning meditation, I received a message. “Let this be a Year of Mastery.”
I must confess, I felt more than a little resistance to this suggestion from the Universe. Much of my recent journey has felt like unwinding an attachment to mastery, and now you’re suggesting I return to it?
As I sat with the suggestion, it began to grow on me, and in so doing, I recognized that my understanding of mastery had deepened.
Releasing Mastery
When I first contemplated a year of mastery, I was reminded of my world as a competitive runner. That was a pursuit of mastery. It required discipline and focus. I logged a lot of intentional miles. I mastered nutrition. I mastered sleep. I mastered race day rituals. All in pursuit of a sub-three-hour marathon. I was embodying arete.
Eventually, I let go of my attachment to the goal, as I wrote last year in The Unwinding of an Athlete. Releasing my attachment to the goal was releasing my quest for mastery as an athlete. I continued to run, but I did so for my physical, mental, and spiritual health, not for the mastery of an athlete.
The unwinding continued in other ways. I began to let go of my quarterly goal-setting process. The business remains healthy, and I continue to learn and grow, so I have grown comfortable with my less structured existence. This, too, felt like a step away from mastery.
If a year of mastery means putting these techniques back into play, I’m not sure I want to sign up for that, even though I’ve come to place a great deal of faith in guidance from the Universe.
Rediscovering Mastery
I followed my morning meditation with a birthday run, filled with prairie dogs and turkeys. As often happens on these runs, my default mode network took over and began to explore the idea of a year of mastery further. I peeled off a layer of understanding to find a deeper concept of mastery underneath.
When I pursued mastery in the past, with my structured goals and regimented marathon training plans, I pursued mastery as a “striver.” Arthur C. Brooks writes about striver’s syndrome in From Strength to Strength. Many of us are addicted to striving and achieving. We crave the dopamine hit we get from each achievement and continually strive for more. Striver’s syndrome has helped many of us be very productive and successful, but it comes at a cost.
I now recognize that I can pursue mastery without the burden of striving. Mastery does not require setting audacious goals. It does not require goals at all. Mastery can be about being mindful and present in the current moment. When we practice mindfulness, we recognize that every moment is an opportunity for mastery.
If I’m present and living a life of mastery, I will be healthy. Each time I’m faced with an unhealthy option, if I’m practicing mastery, I will make the healthy choice. In some cases, the healthy choice may even be to indulge, recognizing that is what my soul needs in that moment.
As I processed this new appreciation of mastery, I recognized this is a richer embodiment of arete. Arete is living a life of virtue and excellence from moment to moment. Setting and achieving goals may feel like living a life of arete, but in fact, it leaves the door open for all kinds of unvirtuous choices. We pat ourselves on the back because we achieved our goals, and don’t place our attention on the choices we made that were out of alignment with arete.
A Year of Mastery
I find myself exploring a new way of being. After gradually distancing myself from arete in favor of teliodosis, I welcome it back with open arms. I do so in a more integrated way that honors both arete and teliodosis. I will not define mastery in a goal-oriented way that limits my focus. Instead, I’ll endeavor to be mindful from moment to moment, demonstrating mastery in my daily actions and choices.
The “year” feels arbitrary. I have no desire to put a time boundary on the experiment. And yet, a Year of Mastery feels right. This is not a short-term activity. Perhaps it will be a year. Most likely, it will simply become my new way of being.
Putting It Into Practice
Reflect upon what mastery means for you.
- Where would you like to be more intentional about mastery and embodying arete?
- What choices would you like to shine a flashlight on and be mindful of in the moment?
- Is striver’s syndrome adversely affecting your mastery?
Walkabout Corner
Colorado continues to connect me with amazing wildlife. I have seen Turkeys, Prairie Dogs, Chipmunks, Hawks, Elk, Deer, and countless new species of birds. While I could not see them, I also heard Western Chorus Frogs making a great deal of racket. The Hawks have, at times, made dramatic entrances. As I spoke to a friend on the phone and recounted a dream with two Hawks, suddenly two Hawks appeared in the sky, circling together and continuing to circle for several minutes.
I am an executive coach and life coach with software executive roots in higher education and EdTech. I coach because I love to help others accelerate their growth as leaders and humans. I frequently write about #management, #leadership, #coaching, #neuroscience, and #arete. For an AI-powered search of the blog archives, please visit The Aretist.
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* The philosopher in me questions this assertion as I contemplate impermanence, but I’ll avoid wandering down that path today.