THE FACT OF THE MASTERY

Name a goal, any goal. I was talking to a young guy two days ago about his, He’s a good basketball player, probably good enough to play professionally overseas and he’s attempting to do just that in Korea. We talked about being negatively motivated. Maybe my terminology is technically inaccurate. What I mean is that we discussed how the approval of others factors in to our motivation for completing objectives. For instance, my young buddy said he competed to prove to everybody that he could play. He told about how he walked on at a UC (University of California) and actually made the team. Then a new coach came in the following year and cut him without even having a real conversation with him. Well he did have a conversation with my buddy but it went something like, “Oh, uh, yeah…about that playing on the team thing…”

So as is the rule, disappointment turned to anger and extrinsic motivation was born. So back to the conversation I was having with him. He asked why he should compete if not to prove something to someone and in so many words I said, “Play to Play”. Because it will never be enough to walk on to a UC campus and hold your own so-to-speak. Empires have been built on hierarchical caste systems and if you live in the U.S., we’re no different. I didn’t run it down quite like that to him but you get the gist. He reminded me of my “underdog” self but I was excited that his future can entail a more liberated impetus through which he learns to value mastery of something for mastery’s sake. What a tough sale…to convince yourself and others that the uncontrollable elements in this world don’t matter. You could rise from rags to riches and folks will revile your new money. You could outperform a perennial superstar and not even make the team. But those scenarios don’t change the fact of the mastery. Applause is the sound of hands clapping. Validation is much more distinct but you’ll know it when you hear it.