The great danger is that we give in to feelings of boredom, impatience, fear, and confusion. We stop observing and learning. (Location 232)
Note: Never stop learning at the job
As we continue to observe and follow the lead of others, we gain clarity, learning the rules and seeing how things work and fit together. If we keep practicing, we gain fluency; basic skills are mastered, allowing us to take on newer and more exciting challenges. (Location 234)
The basic elements of this story are repeated in the lives of all of the great Masters in history: a youthful passion or predilection, a chance encounter that allows them to discover how to apply it, an apprenticeship in which they come alive with energy and focus. (Location 411)
This intense connection and desire allows them to withstand the pain of the process—the self-doubts, the tedious hours of practice and study, the inevitable setbacks, the endless barbs from the envious. They develop a resiliency and confidence that others lack. (Location 422)
Our levels of desire, patience, persistence, and confidence end up playing a much larger role in success than sheer reasoning powers. Feeling motivated and energized, we can overcome almost anything. Feeling bored and restless, our minds shut off and we become increasingly passive. (Location 425)
If we don’t try too much in life, if we limit our circle of action, we can give ourselves the illusion of control. (Location 443)
First, you must see your attempt at attaining mastery as something extremely necessary and positive. (Location 464)
Second, you must convince yourself of the following: people get the mind and quality of brain that they deserve through their actions in life. (Location 471)
“Just as a well-filled day brings blessed sleep, so a well-employed life brings a blessed death.” (Location 618)
Too often we make a separation in our lives—there is work and there is life outside work, where we find real pleasure and fulfillment. Work is often seen as a means for making money so we can enjoy that second life that we lead. Even if we derive some satisfaction from our careers we still tend to compartmentalize our lives in this way. This is a depressing attitude, because in the end we spend a substantial part of our waking life at work. (Location 662)
Finally, you must see your career or vocational path more as a journey with twists and turns rather than a straight line. (Location 674)
“Become who you are by learning who you are.” (Location 702)
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What he meant is the following: You are born with a particular makeup and tendencies that mark you as a piece of fate. It is who you are to the core. Some people never become who they are; they stop trusting in themselves; they conform to the tastes of others, and they end up wearing a mask that hides their true nature. If you allow yourself to learn who you really are by paying attention to that voice and force within you, then you can become what you were fated to become—an individual, a Master. (Location 702)
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You must understand the following: In order to master a field, you must love the subject and feel a profound connection to it. Your interest must transcend the field itself and border on the religious. (Location 749)
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