The final key to mastery from George Leonard’s book Mastery is The Edge. Thus far we have reviewed the following:
- Instruction – the coach and other forms, reading, video, etc.
- Practice – the verb and the noun
- Surrender – to the instruction and demands of the discipline and of your own proficiency at times
- Intentionality – visualization and holding the vision
The Edge is a willingness, a boldness to challenge previous limits and take a risk for higher performance. Examples in sport abound. The breaking of the 4-minute mile barrier had been perceived by many as impossible for human beings. Yet Roger Bannister lay this to rest in 1954 and subsequently so did many other runners.
Playing The Edge is not to be taken lightly. In sports it can mean actually putting your life at risk as a result of the physical demands on the body. In business, it could mean the end of a career or company. However, the Master who has invested years of instruction, practice, surrender and intentionality has an “edge” in understanding the discipline and their own capabilities. These Masters are just the people who can advance all of us by demonstrating the possibilities – just as Roger Bannister did.
The quote that follows perhaps best sums up the rewards of mastery, which can never be known, understood or sought for along the journey. Roger Bannister on breaking the 4-minute mile (Cameron,1993: 185):
No longer conscious of my movement, I discovered a new unity with nature. I had found a new source of power and beauty, a source I never dreamt existed.
While our own journey in mastery may not lead to new world records, our pursuit of it elevates not only ourselves but those around us, making it a journey of far greater value than we can begin to imagine.