We are bursting at the seams, both on a macro and a micro level… What we see happening now during these alarming coronavirus times, is actually an expression of what has been happening for a much longer time on a micro scale. Our society, our organisations and our people seem to be bursting at the seams. On a daily basis, I meet people in my practice who used to be very confident, hard-working leaders, who are now exhausted by the open space offices; drained by the continuous strain; overwhelmed by the 24/7 demands of running international businesses. We seem to have reached the limits of bigger, better, faster,… Given the fact that we are continuously balancing on the edge, it only takes one small virus to throw us off balance. No wonder this results in panic. What should we do then? Run along with the mass hysteria? Or instead give up our way of living and return to a rural lifestyle? Not necessarily. Let these times, in which business meetings and travel schedules are cancelled out of fear of spreading the pandemic, be an invitation to use the extra time to connect. To yourself. To your mastery. To the way in which you want to touch the world. Subtly. I wrote: touch the world. Not conquer it :) It is time for
less, slower, subtler. Make room for subtlety. For grace.
Building mastery Mastery shows itself in the details. It takes time to foster. Growing from being skilled to being a master is continuously focusing on details, improving the subtleties, discovering and establishing your own mark. Building mastery is more likely to happen when you spend 20 minutes a day for the rest of your life, rather than rushing through a 10 days crash course. Touching the world by your mastery means infusing your everyday actions with your way of being. Say that again?? How?? Let’s say your mastery is “bold decision-making under stress”. Why don’t you carve out some time in your schedule to teach your colleagues how you do it? Or maybe even more out of your comfort zone: teach local school children how you do it. Just the first steps. What is your secret recipe? How did you get started long time ago? Unraveling the process that has led up to your mastery is even likely to teach YOU more about your own gold. Other suggestions: Use your decision making skills to become the president of a local charity. Or assist your grandmother in choosing a new sofa. Mastery shows itself in subtlety and grace. Make it come to life in your everyday endeavours, rather than waiting for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to show it off on stage. Not sure what your mastery is? Or should be? Maybe one of these questions can help you on your way:
1. What is it that you want to be commended for during your eulogy -or less morbid- during your retirement speech?
2. In case you overhear strangers “gossip” about you, what would make you really proud?
3. What do you want your children to brag about to their schoolmates about your biggest skill?
