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Mastery

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Mastery
Mastery by George Leonard is a book that deals with the key terms and concepts anyone must know to truly master any skill. The book gives us four different types of students, each different in there learning method and in their achieved skill level. It also gives us the five steps to mastering any skill.
The four different types of learners, the dabbler, the obsessive, the hacker, and the master. Each learner has their own techniques of learning the same skills. The dabbler learns one skill or technique very quickly but then gives up and moves on to a new area of study. The obsessive, like the dabbler, learns the skills very quickly. Unlike the dabbler, the obsessive does not move on but works twice as hard to keep his …show more content…

The next key is a painfully obvious one, practice. Practice is needed to perfect any skill, as well as master it. While trying to master a skill, many refer to practice as something they have not something they do. Leonard goes on to write, that practice is a path upon which you travel, the ending destination is mastery. Practice should become a part of daily life, not only something that must be done but needs to be done. Surrender, is the next key, it is inevitable that any new learner will feel clumsy. This sometimes can hinder the learning process, because the learner’s defenses are up. In order to master any skill you must get past the initial feelings of uncertainty are truly learn to trust your instructor. If he or she asks you to do something, give it a shot, it just might work. Personally I believe this next key is the most essential to the success of mastering any skill, intentionality. Leonard describes intentionality as character, willpower, attitude, imaging, and the mental game all wrapped up into one. The mental game is what I believe is the single most important thing to success in any skill. Visualizing a perfect golf swing and then attempting will help the shot. Golfer Jack Nicklaus said “A successful shot was fifty percent visualization, forty percent setup and only ten percent swing.” The last key to mastery the Leonard gives us is what he calls “the edge.” The edge comes when someone has mastered an art and is more likely to push the

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