Mastery: The Fierce Urgency of Now

In “Introduction to Collaborative Leadership,” our very first post four months ago, we promised a focus on mastery. We’ve done so in part by highlighting leadership mastery, jazz style, via Duke Ellington, Mary Lou Williams, Miles Davis, Betty Carter, Wynton Marsalis, et al.

But now’s the time to focus on mastery in and of itself.

A Key Text in Mastery Literature

The Journey of Mastery

Mastery is a journey, not a destination, a journey is filled with failure, with disappointments, with what in jazz we call the blues. Mastery ain’t easy. Truly, though, what in a fulfilling life, a life that fills us with a full sense of satisfaction and real accomplishment, is easy? As Jewel Kinch-Thomas wrote in our most previous post, authentic leadership involves high-performance and high-fulfillment.

Mastery can be viewed from several angles. Back in medieval days the mastery development model was a beginner, called an apprentice, studying with a master craftsman, growing in knowledge and skills to the intermediate stage, called the journeyman phase, and ultimately ascending to that advanced place of flowing skill and elegant excellence deemed the status of master craftsman. 

When the individual soloist came to prominence in jazz via Louis Armstrong, the apprentice model held sway. Armstrong apprenticed with Joe “King” Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band and traveled to New York to play in Fletcher Henderson’s Orchestra—the greatest early big band in the idiom. Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker apprenticed in swing orchestras and big bands, before launching their bebop revolution. John Coltrane performed with Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Miles Davis before leading his own pathbreaking bands as a grandmaster.

Today, in music and business, we’re more likely to point to mentors as those who guide others in the direction of growth and development, toward, ultimately, mastery. That’s okay, especially since mentors link directly to the hero archetype we favor, but let’s stay with master craftsman a bit longer.

Tommy Potter, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and John Coltrane

Master Craftsman and Improvisation

In his classic 1973 work, The Hero and the Blues, Albert Murray said that “the master craftsman in any trade is . . . one who knows the tread . . . the tracks which make the course or the way, the route and the routine, the way to and the way to do.” The master craftsman can “execute the most intricate steps in an outstanding manner.” 

But wait, there’s more. Murray extends it further by saying that not only does the expertise of the master craftsman qualify him or her to function on their own, but that they can “extemporize under pressure and in the most complicated circumstances.” 

Albert Murray mentoring Wynton Marsalis in his book-lined living room in Harlem

Such a stage of mastery means that the issue is no longer skill level or quantity of knowledge.

Improvisation, after all, is the ultimate skill. The master craftsman is one for whom knowledge and technique have become that with which he not only performs but also plays . . . The master craftsman is also one who, as the hero in combat and the blues musician in a jam session, can maintain the dancer’s grace under the pressure of all tempos.   

—Albert Murray

How’s that as a question to ask ourselves: can I maintain a dancer’s grace under the pressure of all tempos? 

Why Mastery, Why Now?

This question is crucial, so rather than speaking generally, I’ll get personal.

Over the course of my life, the idea of mastery has loomed large. Within music and the worlds of media and literature, I’ve been fortunate to know true masters and a few geniuses. Yet, for much of my life, unfortunately, I’ve settled for good over great, not pushing myself to truly become the best I can be. I’ve coasted on natural gifts and haven’t been willing to go that extra mile (or miles) to become great myself.

That’s over. I’m making a public declaration to aspire for mastery in four primary areas of life: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. For much of my life I’ve focused on the mental, on the intellectual side of things. Cognitively, I’m fairly sharp. But I’ve come to realize that without integration with the other major areas, there can be not only cognitive dissonance, but, more importantly, a lack of true inner and outer alignment and coherence.

An alignment between what you say and what you do, is fundamental. But when there’s a lack of inner clarity and self-knowledge, what comes out of your mouth can be inconsistent. I’m all too familiar with this, especially in my younger years. How many projects did I begin that were dropped unceremoniously? How often did I made a commitment to myself to do a particular practice every single day but give up the ghost too soon? Far, far too often. Smh.

Perhaps some of you know what I”m talking about. Can I get a witness, can I get an amen? Amen.

But rather than feeling guilty—been there, done that—and berating myself, I’ve decided to change my ways before the end of my days. If mastery is becoming one’s best, if, as Duke Ellington said, “Be a number one yourself, not a number two somebody else,” then in these four crucial areas I’m damn committed to doing so. Every day, then, can become what philosopher Brian Johnson calls a masterpiece day, which levels up into masterpiece weeks, months, years and a life. That’s the vision.

Mastery as Domains of Resilience

If you thought that a vision of four-fold mastery is a big mountain to climb, you’d be right. As I approach 60, I ask myself empowering questions like: what would it feel like to be in the best physical shape I can be? If my body temple, with good nutrition, consistent and purposeful exercise, optimal sleep, daily meditation, and deep rest (alternating with deep work), is at a peak, what difference will it make for mastery in the other domains, including the spiritual?

What would my relationships be like if emotional intelligence becomes emotional mastery, if, rather than being reactive in stressful situations, I responded with improvisational wisdom?

One influence on my conception of four-fold mastery is this graphic, courtesy of the HeartMath Institute:

Swingin’ Coherence

In our Jazz Leadership Project workshops with clients such as Verizon, JPMorgan Chase, and NYPDs Civilian Workforce leadership, we analogize swingin’ in jazz with being resilient, with the flexible strength to bounce back from challenge and the unexpected through individual excellence joined with an ensemble mindset.

The four-fold model above is a path to coherence and resilience as an individual. We’ll unpack these various dimensions in future posts. But for now, we hope that you’ll also make a commitment to mastery in areas and life structures where there’s room for improvement. We, in turn, commit to continuing to produce content for perspectives and pathways to mastery, at work and in life, grounded in the model and metaphor of jazz.

Thank you for taking the journey with us.