Mastery

MASTERY

ALSO BY ROBERT GREENE

The 50th Law (with 50 Cent)

The 33 Strategies of War
(A Joost Elfers Production)

The Art of Seduction
(A Joost Elfers Production)

The 48 Laws of Power
(A Joost Elfers Production)

ROBERT GREENE

MASTERY

VIKING

VIKING

Published by the Penguin Group

Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A. • Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4P 2Y3 (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) • Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England • Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd) • Penguin Books Australia Ltd, 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd) • Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India • Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd) • Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices:

80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

First published in 2012 by Viking Penguin,

a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

Copyright © Robert Greene, 2012

All rights reserved

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Greene, Robert.

Mastery / Robert Greene.

p.   cm.

Includes bibliographical references (p.)
and index.

ISBN: 978-1-101-60102-0

1. Successful people. 2. Success.
3. Self-actualization (Psychology) I. Title.

BF637.S8G695 2012

158—dc23         2012027195

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

To Anna

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

THE ULTIMATE POWER

Higher intelligence—definition of mastery—the three phases of mastery—intuitive intelligence—connecting to reality—the latent power within us all

THE EVOLUTION OF MASTERY

Our primitive ancestors—evolution of the human brain—the ability to detach and focus—social intelligence of early hominids—mirror neurons—thinking inside—mastery of time—working with the grain of the human brain—connecting to our early roots

KEYS TO MASTERY

Charles Darwin following his inclination—traits of all great Masters—our uniqueness and primal inclinations—political barriers to mastery crumbling—definition of genius—the concept of mastery denigrated—role of desire in mastery—the danger of passivity—the plasticity of the brain—overview of strategies and biographical figures in the book

I.

DISCOVER YOUR CALLING:
THE LIFE’S TASK

You possess an inner force that seeks to guide you toward your Life’s Task—what you are meant to accomplish in the time that you have to live. The first move toward mastery is always inward—learning who you really are and reconnecting with that innate force. Knowing it with clarity, you will find your way to the proper career path and everything else will fall into place. It is never too late to start this process.

THE HIDDEN FORCE

Leonardo da Vinci

KEYS TO MASTERY

Examples of Masters guided by a sense of destiny—the seed of your uniqueness—reconnecting with your inclinations—definition of “vocation”—choosing a vocation—finding your niche—the quest for accomplishment—learn who you really are

STRATEGIES FOR FINDING YOUR LIFE’S TASK

1. Return to your origins—The primal inclination strategy

Albert Einstein—Marie Curie—Ingmar Bergman—Martha Graham—Daniel Everett—John Coltrane

2. Occupy the perfect niche—The Darwinian strategy

A. V. S. Ramachandran

B. Yoky Matsuoka

3. Avoid the false path—The rebellion strategy

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

4. Let go of the past—The adaptation strategy

Freddie Roach

5. Find your way back—The life-or-death strategy

Buckminster Fuller

REVERSAL

Temple Grandin

II.

SUBMIT TO REALITY:
THE IDEAL APPRENTICESHIP

After your formal education, you enter the most critical phase in your life—a second, practical education known as The Apprenticeship. Before it is too late you must learn the lessons and follow the path established by the greatest Masters, past and present—a kind of Ideal Apprenticeship that transcends all fields. In the process you will master the necessary skills, discipline your mind, and transform yourself into an independent thinker, prepared for the creative challenges on the way to mastery.

THE FIRST TRANSFORMATION

Charles Darwin

KEYS TO MASTERY

The Ideal Apprenticeship defined—the goal of apprenticeship as self-transformation

The Apprenticeship Phase—
The Three Steps or Modes

Step One: Deep Observation—The Passive Mode
Mute your colors—observe the rules—observe power relationships—interpretation of Charles Darwin story—know your environment

Step Two: Skills Acquisition—The Practice Mode
Gaining tacit knowledge—the apprenticeship system of the Middle Ages—the cycle of accelerated returns—embracing tedium—the frontal cortex and learning tasks—hard-wiring knowledge—the magical number of 10,000 hours

Step Three: Experimentation—The Active Mode
Gradual self-assertion and experiment—overcoming fears

Skill acquisition in the modern world—relevance of apprenticeship—the hand-eye connection—you are a builder

STRATEGIES FOR COMPLETING THE IDEAL
APPRENTICESHIP

1. Value learning over money
Benjamin Franklin—Albert Einstein—Martha Graham—Freddie Roach

2. Keep expanding your horizons
Zora Neale Hurston

3. Revert to a feeling of inferiority
Daniel Everett

4. Trust the process
Cesar Rodriguez

5. Move toward resistance and pain
A. Bill Bradley
B. John Keats

6. Apprentice yourself in failure
Henry Ford

7. Combine the “how” and the “what”
Santiago Calatrava

8. Advance through trial and error
Paul Graham

Reversal

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—Albert Einstein

III.

ABSORB THE MASTER’S POWER:
THE MENTOR DYNAMIC

Life is short, and your time for learning and creativity is limited. Without any guidance, you can waste valuable years trying to gain knowledge and practice from various sources. Instead, you must follow the example set by Masters throughout the ages and find the proper mentor. Choose the mentor who best fits your needs and connects to your Life’s Task. Once you have internalized their knowledge, you must move on and never remain in their shadow. Your goal is always to surpass your mentors in mastery and brilliance.

THE ALCHEMY OF KNOWLEDGE

Michael Faraday

KEYS TO MASTERY

The importance of humility—the value of mentors—the mentor-protégé dynamic—learning as alchemy—interpretation of Michael Faraday story—Alexander the Great—the value of personal interaction—finding and attracting a mentor—famous figures or books as mentors—the mentor as father figure—when to cut the Master

STRATEGIES FOR DEEPENING
THE MENTOR RELATIONSHIP

1. Choose the mentor according to your needs and inclinations
Frank Lloyd Wright—Carl Jung—V. S. Ramachandran—Yoky Matsuoka

2. Gaze deep into the mentor’s mirror
Hakuin Zenji

3. Transfigure their ideas
Glenn Gould

4. Create a back-and-forth dynamic
Freddie Roach

REVERSAL

Thomas Edison

IV.

SEE PEOPLE AS THEY ARE:
SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE

Often the greatest obstacle to our pursuit of mastery comes from the emotional drain we experience in dealing with the resistance and manipulations of the people around us. We misread their intentions and react in ways that cause confusion or conflict. Social intelligence is the ability to see people in the most realistic light possible. Navigating smoothly through the social environment, we have more time and energy to focus on learning and acquiring skills. Success attained without this intelligence is not true mastery, and will not last.