#111

Welcome to Whisper #111.

Mastering Your Craft

If you’ve been living off the grid for a few weeks you might not know that The Ashes are being played at the moment. The biennial cricket fixture between Australia & England has created some interesting headlines that even the respective Prime Ministers of each country have made comment. As a Scot no favouritism from me 😊

I’m interested in some of the back stories that bring to life what you might see in the arena. One such back story is about Steve Smith who recently played his 100th Test match. A significant achievement in itself.

However, I also learnt that he is such a master of his craft (or geek depending on your view!) that he can tell which bat he has in his hand whilst blindfolded!

Watch the clip and catch your jaw as it hits the floor.

Can Steve Smith identify his bats blindfolded?

Assuming it’s not a fake video (we’re all a little sceptical these days). It’s amazing that he is so in tune with the tools of his trade that he can tell which one it is just by ‘feel’.

Got me thinking. I’ve been playing golf for a long time and I’ve had my clubs for a while. Wonder if I can do the same? Surely it can’t be that difficult.

I tried 5 at first just with feel. 0/5.

I then tried feel and length and even held the club head. Still 0/5.

0/10 and I’m OK at golf and have played for years.

When I think about my own tools of the trade my mind skips to frameworks, models, exercises, intellectual jolts, questions, and anything else that might stimulate the environment to make the learning easier and more sticky.

Do I know those tools well enough to ditch the plan and use what’s necessary in the moment?

What about you? Do you know your tools of the trade well enough to be sensory deprived and still tell which one it is and what and with whom you might use it?

Quote of the week:
If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn't seem so wonderful at all - Michelangelo

A reminder that there’s no substitute for putting in the hours. As Tim Notke once said, “hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard”.

You might have the talent but unless you commit to still doing the work then the odds are greater of them showing up under pressure.

Question of the week:
Are you willing and capable of being ‘bored’ whilst developing mastery?

Repeat, repeat, repeat. Conscious repetition of good form can be dull, boring and can allow our mind to wander. We wander into mindless repetition for the sake of it.

Could you put up with a lack of novelty and stimulation for the sake of building mastery?

How many repetitions can you do before switching off?

 
NEW RELEASE
Freedom Fridays Episode 75 Featuring Pete Lawson

In Episode 75 Pete chats to another Pete – Pete Lawson, a livestock farmer based in country NSW. They met through a mutual friend and connected whilst completing the Overland Track in Tasmania.

What was intriguing about Pete’s story is the framework he was introduced to as a 19-year-old that he has used in setting and delivering on his goals ever since – not just for himself but his entire family! It’s a practical take on the "Know, Do, Be" goal-setting framework in which they chat about on-farm and off-farm assets; caring for the landscape beyond his tenure; and what sort of person he wanted to be and how that’s evolved.

It's a great example of the practical and genuine application of a theoretical framework that Pete wasn’t aware he was following. Tune in to hear some real-life examples of how you can bring it to life.

        

        

That's all for this week. If you’ve been enjoying the Weekly Whispers please feel free to forward it to friends and anyone you think would benefit.

As always, email me at [email protected] to share your feedback or to let me know your thoughts.

Cheers

Pete