Know your craft, know your organization, and be a team player… words of wisdom from a senior leader in my branch of service, which has proven true throughout my career. It’s easy to believe others are getting ahead of the pack because they are somehow genetically superior, or because they simply have the personality to complement the task at hand. Not true…
Hard work beats talent that doesn’t work hard.” ~Professor Tom DeBlass, The Road to Black Belt
Sets and Reps
The road to mastery is built around the rule of 10 thousand hours of the task at hand. The 10 thousand hour rule was developed by Malcom Gladwell who suggests if you reach 10 thousand hours of practicing a certain craft you will reach a mastery skill level of said craft. I would offer that if you continually aim to develop your competency at any certain art or craft, you’ll surely reach a higher level of competency regardless if you reach the 10 thousand hour mark or not.
I often struggle with standardized tests, always have, but I do not believe it’s because achieving a high score is beyond my reach. This mentality would take away from all the hard work and hours of study the rest of my peers invest to earn their desired scores. It’s not the capability, it’s the willing to go through the mental crucible to achieve a score at the highest level, and that goes for mastery in any aspect of life.
This reflection was inspired by a leader-training event I participated in this past week. I’m not the biggest fan of the military planning process, and I’d rather run a marathon instead of go through another iteration of the military decision-making process . However, the lessons learned and the sense of accomplishment felt after completing the cycle is nothing less than euphoric.
My disdain for MDMP is not without having a deep respect for the process, especially the outcome. I’ll be the first to tell you that I’m no General Patton, but with the same criticism, I’ll also tell you I’ve grown accustomed to being out of my comfort zone due to the experience. The process often calls for more than expertise at a certain skill set, that’s the easy part, it requires a staff to pull together and work on products that resemble an alien language to be communicated down to the lowest level, meaning the troops that have to action the plan. The military planning processes may be the most evil way to measure human intelligence, but once the plan is generated it will increase the success rate of the organization to accomplish its mission and reduces risk of injury and loss of life to friendly forces. This process also affords leaders the opportunity to assess who the team players are in the organization and who are not.
If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” ~Sun Tzu, The Art of War
Master the Fundamentals
I had a leader of mine once tell me, “You’re not a rock star.” This was after he was giving me feedback from my evaluation. I share this story because I’ve had good fortune in my career and I know now, more than ever, that my former leader’s statement was accurate, but in a good way. There is a fine line between confidence and arrogance, and the latter will surely hinder your ability to learn and handicap your drive to attain your goals. Keep your eye on the prize, consistently train on the fundamentals of your craft and the achievement will follow.
Focusing on the basics will open doors to an increased level of understanding building your capacity to master and develop advanced techniques down the road. Mental agility goes a long way, especially in career fields that are more autonomous than others. I’ve accepted that I am not a rock star a while ago. I see myself as more of a journeyman, a competitor, a contender, or the tortoise that keeps moving forward, slowly, but in the race nonetheless. This consistency has helped me immensely in the military, on the mats, and as a family man.
FAIL
One method I use to help me overcome new challenges is to see the word fail as an acronym. First Attempt In Learning (FAIL) – I saw this on a motivational sign at Hobby Lobby a few years ago and it changed my life. Many high-level athletes, even “His Airness” Michael Jordan, will attest to having to overcome many set back to get to the next level. It’s what you do after your failure which matters the most.
I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games… 26 times I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot, and missed. I’ve failed over, and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” ~Michael Jordan
My current literary journey has taken me under the wing of Tim Ferriss, author and entrepreneur, in a journey to understanding the “The 4-hour Workweek”. Like many other motivators and influencers, Ferriss speaks to his setbacks and how he used those experiences to condition himself for failure to help set him on the path to success. Now worth millions, Ferriss encourages others to focus on their goals in terms of experiences and not be afraid of the unknown.
Putting It All Together
Nothing worth having comes easy. If you are willing to face the crucible for your goals knowing success is not guaranteed, you will get there. If you put in the extra 10 percent each day to get after the sets and reps required to increase competency on what you intend to master, you will get there. And if you focus on mastering the fundamentals of your profession instead of the Flying Armbar type techniques, you will get there. Build your blue print to success knowing that many of the leaders in industry you intend to emulate have rose from the ashes many a time, just remember…
“It’s not how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you get hit and keep moving forward.” ~Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa
Do great things out there friends, and remember… one team, one family!