Mastery (The Modern Machiavellian Robert Greene Book 1)

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Opening: “After your formal education, you enter the most critical phase in your life— a second, practical education known as The Apprenticeship. Greene breaks this into two kinds of knowledge: specific knowledge of human nature — the ability to read people, to get a feel for how they see the world, and to understand their individuality, and the general knowledge of human nature, which means accumulating an understanding of the overall patterns of human behavior that transcend us as individuals, including some of the darker qualities we often disregard. Instead you want to see your work as something more inspiring, as part of your vocation… Your work then is something connected deeply to who you are, not a separate compartment in your life. This craftsmanship involves creating something with an elegant, simple structure, getting the most out of your materials— a high form of creativity.

Choose something that appeals to your sense of unconventionalness and has a hint of rebellion, it will keep you emotionally engaged. Mastery: You've been a humble student and has attained the knowledge about the internal semantics of your skill, it's time for you to invent something new and substantial with your knowledge. Golfer Jack Nicklaus, for example, let it be known that he never hit a shot without first clearly visualizing the ball's perfect flight and its triumphant destination, "sitting up there high and white and pretty on the green.Porque ese momento es efímero, mientras que todo el camino que recorriste para llegar ahí es eterno. Impatience: The best way to neutralize our natural impatience is to cultivate a kind of pleasure in pain— like an athlete, you come to enjoy rigorous practice, pushing past your limits, and resisting the easy way out.

One of the key themes in this book is the idea that learning happens in a series of spurts, which are separated by long periods of apparent stagnation ("plateaus"). Apprentice yourself in failure: When a machine malfunctions, it shows you where you need to improve it. But genius, no matter how bright, will come to naught or swiftly burn out if you don't choose the master's journey. But mastery isn't reserved for the supertalented or even for those who are fortunate enough to have gotten an early start.By now we should all know that real success does not come quickly and in fact requires the utmost dedication. Accessing this level of thinking on a more regular basis, they can fuse it even more deeply with their rational forms of thinking. The book is structured well, first telling you what Mastery is, then describing the tools needed to achieve it, and then describing the hindrances to achieving it.

We always remain on the outside looking in, and this is the cause of so many misunderstandings and conflicts. Inflexibility: You must know your field inside and out, and yet be able to question its most entrenched assumptions. To get material on the contemporary masters, of whom there are nine in the book, Greene conducted in-depth interviews with each.

Am I just getting fooled by Greene and riding an emotional high of "anything is possible to master if you set your mind to it"?