Mastery Blog #2

         "For most people, it (mastery) starts with technical excellence in a chosen field and a commitment to that excellence.  If you are willing to commit yourself to excellence, to surround yourself with things that represent excellence, and to pursue events and experiences that become miracles, your life will change.  (When we speak of miracles, we speak of events or experiences in the real world that are beyond the ordinary)."

        For many of us, our chosen field is our careers, before that it is usually our field of study, and for some it is a hobby or chosen sport/activity.  What these all have in common is an initial interest, and most often, PASSION.  Now, for those of us that have been in our chosen career for a while, I'll say 5+ years for the sake of posterity, we know that passion comes and goes.  In reality, this can happen at any time.  Passion is something that needs to be nurtured and reignited.  Fed, like you feed a smoldering fire.  There will be times when this passion burns brightly, and some times when it's just creating a lot of smoke and not much else.  Passion alone CANNOT sustain you because of this, you have to put in the work; but if you put in the work, you can help to sustain your passion.

        Aside from my Kung Fu, my chosen path is Acupuncture, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), and Sports Medicine.  For reference, I have been in the field for 13 years now, and my passion has been tested many times.  I have kept working at my personal practice, and now my business.  I have taken extra studies in Sports Medicine, fertility, and herbs.  Sports Medicine is my main passion.  I am fascinated with the human body and how interconnected and integrated everything truly is.  From the fascial layer to the bone, it all matters.  It also provides me a deeper understanding of my Kung Fu, my harmonies, and my mind-body connection.  The reason I bring this all up is because it is my commitment to this profession, my commitment to improving my skills, my knowledge and understanding, seeking out mentors and instructors who are more knowledgeable than I which culminates in the miracle of creating a pain free patient.  That is what the miracle is to me.  I say this, because a lot of the times, Acupuncture is a last resort for people.  They've tried all the usual modalities, and most of the time, I am able to make headway where other haven't.  This hasn't been without my own trials and learning.  It is not something that happened overnight or out of school, I had to work and develop this.

        Now if I can create Mastery in my field, what is stopping me from pursuing and creating it elsewhere?  NOTHING.  I just need to apply commitment to it, which also involves making it a priority.  From there I just need to work at it.  I can develop/rekindle my passion, but am aware that that can ebb and flow.  I need persistence.  COMMITMENT and PERSISTENCE.