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 Whether it's a gold medal, a blue ribbon, or a glistening trophy, we view those at the top of their craft, no matter what field of expertise, with respect and awe. These external awards seem to signal some sort of extra special mastery level.
In fact, all of those award-winning musicians, athletes and executives know that the key to success is their commitment to continuous lifetime growth. The awards of excellence or achievement received merely signal a signpost on the road instead of the end of the road. In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell talks about how it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to master a skill. Those committed to personal mastery understand there will always be new frontiers to cross, nuggets to learn, and ways to grow.
Why is adoption of a personal mastery discipline important? Mahatma Gandhi said, "We must be the change that we envision" and personal mastery is the route to making change. A personal mastery discipline thinks of life as a creative work, and we can create infinite possibilities for our lives when we are inspired to keep striving to go beyond ourselves. Living from that place of empowerment can help us choose the actions and achieve the results that move us toward our personal vision we truly desire. The benefits of focusing and refocusing on our vision are increased happiness, peace, purpose and success.
Personal mastery is perhaps the most important of all invisible and intangible assets to which we can dedicate our life energy. Mastery is a journey, not a destination and the real jewels abound in the journey.
7 Steps to Accelerate Personal Mastery
1/ Create a Personal Vision: Without an evocative personal vision, your journey is directionless. Clarifying what is important to you and creating a vivid picture of your 'possible future' will add compelling fuel to your mastery journey. Noted leadership thinker and author Peter Senge said "It's not what the vision is; it's what the vision does". A vision adds energy, excitement and garners support for your journey and your life legacy.
2/ Define your Current Reality: Become self-aware and willing to look at yourself without judgment or labels. See your current reality clearly for it is from this place that you launch your quest for personal mastery. Every step forward from where you are right now is a step forward. I call this the power of incremental improvement.
3/ Embrace the Creative Tension between your Vision and Current Reality: Senge talks about the force generated inside ourselves that is the gap between our personal vision and our current reality. He calls this force "creative tension." Tension always seeks resolution and when we commit ourselves to relieving that tension by cultivating the thinking that will have us working towards our personal vision we in turn move toward personal mastery. Senge recommends that we live life from a creative vs. reactive viewpoint and lean into that creative tension.
4/ Show up as a learner: Open up your world and your thinking by actively showing up as a learner in everything you do. Seek knowledge. Be curious. As soon as you think you know it all, you atrophy. There is no end to the mastery continuum that we can set for our lives.
5/ Share your knowledge: Teaching or mentoring another is a quick start way to deepen your personal mastery skills. Allow your knowledge and experience to enrich and influence the lives of others and feel your inner light glow as you watch the light bulbs come on for someone else.
6/ Challenge yourself daily: Do one new thing daily - to relieve your creative tension and move you toward your vision.
7/ Surround self with people who are ahead of you: It is said you are the sum of the 5 people you spend the most time with. Take a look at your Top Five. Are they actively working to improve themselves, enrich the world, contribute and learn? If not, find some people who are and fuel your journey with renewed energy.
Finally, get support and be sure to celebrate each signpost on your journey. You deserve it!
Resource: Peter M. Senge, The Fifth Discipline, Doubleday USA 1990, 2006
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Jan Carley BA, CEC, PCC 
I am committed to helping you identify or revisit what's most important to you and help launch your personal journey. Spring is the perfect time to get started and what better way than with a 30-minute complimentary Personal Mastery coaching session with me. Your session will give you a taste of the power of coaching and get you refueled for the journey to your brilliant future. 
