0:03

We seem to have less motivation and more distraction, yet our destiny is driven

0:09

by the same universal engine. Extraordinary people are not a different category. The workings of this engine

0:17

in them are simply more transparent.

0:22

That's a quote by psychologist James Hillman, who, by the way,

0:25

wrote that decades ago, and And it's included in Robert Greene's best-selling

0:31

book, Mastery. And that's what we are doing.

0:34

We are mastering a craft together.

0:38

But how do you find your life's calling? How do you know what you're destined to do?

0:46

Well, let's take a look. Here's what Robert has to say.

0:50

Discover your calling, the life's task. You possess a kind of inner force that

0:56

seeks to guide you towards your life tasks, what you are meant to accomplish

1:01

in the time that you have to live.

1:03

In childhood, this force was clear to you.

1:06

It directed you toward activities and subjects that fit your natural inclinations,

1:12

that spark a curiosity that was deep and primal.

1:16

In the intervening years

1:19

the force tends to fade in and out as

1:22

you listen more to parents and peers to the

1:25

daily anxieties that wear away at you

1:28

this can be the source of your unhappiness your life's connection to who you

1:33

are and what makes you unique the first move toward mastery is always inward

1:39

learning who you really are and reconnecting with that innate force knowing it with clarity,

1:47

you will find your way to the proper career path and everything else will fall into place.

1:52

It is never too late to start this process.

1:58

How inspirational is that? It's never too late.

2:03

And maybe you've just been practicing for a long time, and it's time to put things in motion.

2:10

There's that saying, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

2:14

That quote I opened the chapter with, life of distractions, decades ago,

2:20

well, what do you think about that now? This is where it's important to really decide side to hold on your craft and

2:30

become the person you're destined to be.

2:33

Robert Greene opens the chapter with Leonardo da Vinci, James Pauline Mac,

2:38

and a man who, born out of wedlock, chose his own destiny.

2:43

He wasn't allowed to go to university.

2:47

He wasn't allowed to become a noble profession back in the day.

2:52

So he took his time and

2:56

he mastered so many crafts that

3:00

is a luxury in life and perhaps it

3:03

was his destiny that he was born out of wedlock

3:06

and that's why he became so complete

3:10

of a person he continues with

3:13

a quote in the book from jose ortega

3:16

gasset keys to master

3:19

among his various possible beings each

3:22

man always finds one which is his

3:26

genuine and authentic being the voice

3:29

which calls him to that authentic being is

3:32

what we call vocation but the

3:35

majority of men devote themselves to silencing that

3:38

voice of the vocation and refusing to hear it they manage to make a noise within

3:43

themselves to distract their own attention in order not to hear it and they

3:49

They defraud themselves by substituting for their genuine selves a false force of life.

3:56

So perhaps you're thinking, well, what is my destiny?

4:00

Do I really need to work in this factory, this grocery store,

4:03

this restaurant for the rest of my life?

4:06

There must be more meaning to life.

4:10

And that's why mastery is brilliant. Because on the side, you can begin your quest.

4:18

Just take a moment for yourself. Sit down with yourself, by yourself,

4:23

and really explore. Or what were you drawn to as a child?

4:28

What were you good at that teachers maybe tried to change your mind about?

4:35

It's something to think about. He says, many of the greatest masters in history

4:40

have confessed to experiencing some kind of force or voice or sense of destiny

4:45

that has guided them forward. word.

4:48

For Goethe, he called it a daemon, a kind of spirit that dwelled within him

4:54

and compelled him to film his destiny.

4:57

In more modern times, Albert Einstein taught them an inner voice that shaped

5:01

the direction of his speculations. Such feelings can be seen as purely mystical, beyond explanation,

5:08

or as hallucinations and delusions. But there is another way to see them, is eminently real, practical, and explicable.

5:16

It can be explained, he says, in the following ways.

5:20

All of us are born unique. This uniqueness is marked genetically in our DNA.

5:25

We are a one-time phenomenon in the universe.

5:29

Our exact genetic makeup has never occurred before, nor will it ever be repeated.

5:34

For all of us, this uniqueness first expresses itself in childhood through certain final explanations.

5:42

And he goes on to say, it might seem that connecting to something as personal

5:46

as your inclinations and life's tasks would be relatively simple and neutral

5:50

once you've recognized their importance.

5:53

But in fact, it is the opposite. It requires a good deal of planning and strategy.

5:58

Music.

6:04

Five strategies are designed to deal with the main obstacles in your path over time.

6:09

The voices of others affecting you, fighting over limited resources,

6:13

choosing false paths, getting stuck in the past and losing your way.

6:17

Pay attention to all of them because you will most inevitably encounter each one in some part.

6:26

So number one is return to your origin, your primal, primal inclination strategy. strategy.

6:33

And this can be done from a simple object.

6:37

He gives the example of Einstein in his book, when his father gave him a compass.

6:42

It triggered something. There's these little clues. Life leaves clues and it leaves triggers.

6:49

So understand, by making this exploration, it's not just thinking,

6:54

well, what did I get good grades at in high school?

6:58

Success leaves clues in really interesting ways

7:01

and he says you must understand the following in order

7:04

to master a field you must love the subject and feel

7:07

a profound connection to it your interest must

7:10

transcend the field itself and border on the religious and he says for Einstein

7:16

it was not physics but a fascination with invisible forces that governed the

7:22

universe these childhood Worldhood attractions are hurled to put into words

7:27

in a more like sensations, out of a deep wonder, sensual pleasure, power, and heightened awareness.

7:32

The importance of recognizing these proverbial inclinations is that they are

7:38

clear indications of an attraction that is not infected by your desires of other people.

7:44

They are not something embedded in you by your parents, which come with a more

7:49

superficial connection, something more verbal and conscious.

7:53

Coming instead from somewhere deeper.

7:56

It can only be your own reflections of your unique chemistry.

8:03

Now, that couldn't be more than the truth.

8:07

So if you are a parent or a mentor of someone, help them to discover their life's task.

8:15

How do you do that? You explore different things. things, you try something

8:21

new, you think your child's meant to be an athlete, well, what sport?

8:28

Try them out, see what connects.

8:31

Maybe they're not meant to be an athlete at all, maybe they're meant to be a

8:34

scientist, maybe you need to go out to nature.

8:37

It's through this exploration, through this quiet time of thought that you're going to,

8:45

balloons are rising to the surface.

8:49

He goes on to say it's already there within you. You have nothing to create.

8:56

You only need to dig and re-find what has been buried inside of you all alone.

9:02

If you reconnect with this core at any age, some element of that feminine attraction

9:07

will spark Bark back to life, indicating a path that can ultimately become your life's task.

9:16

How awesome is that? Two, occupy the perfect niche.

9:21

Now, I think this actually sounds so much harder. Really niche down specialty.

9:28

And by niche, that means nobody else is necessarily doing it,

9:34

or they're not doing it as well as maybe could be done. So how do you find your niche?

9:40

Well, you explore what you enjoy and you build upon it.

9:44

And it gives the example in the book where you can do this one of two ways.

9:49

You can decide on your chosen field and you can master that chosen field.

9:55

And then from there, you can niche it down even further, really become a specialist.

10:04

The second way is to, once you've

10:07

mastered your specialty rather than

10:10

staying on that same path you

10:14

master something else and then you find out

10:17

how that can combine together how you can

10:21

use both those skills in order

10:25

to have a niche well that's unique to

10:28

anyone else it goes on to say in either

10:32

direction you have found a niche that is not

10:35

crowded with competitors you have freedom to roam

10:38

to pursue particular questions that interest you you set your own agenda and

10:43

command the resources available to this niche unburdened by overwhelming competition

10:47

and politicking you have time and space to bring to flower your life's task

10:52

i love that that's truly commitment commitment.

10:57

Three, avoid the false path.

11:01

A false path in life is generally something we are attracted to for the wrong

11:06

reasons, money, fame, attention, and so on.

11:10

If it is attention we need, we often experience a

11:13

kind of net gas inside that we are hoping to fill

11:16

with the false love of public approval

11:20

because the field we choose does not correspond with our deepest inclinations

11:27

we rarely find fulfillment that we crave the work suffers for this and the attention

11:33

we may have gotten in the beginning starts to fade a painful process.

11:41

If it is money and comfort that dominate our decisions, we are most often acting

11:45

out of anxiety and the need to please our parents.

11:51

They may steer us towards something lucrative out of care and concern,

11:55

but lurking underneath this can be something else, perhaps a bit of envy that

12:01

we have more freedom than they had when they were young.

12:04

Your strategy must be twofold. first to

12:08

realize as early as possible you have chosen

12:10

your career for the wrong reason before your confidence

12:14

takes a hit oh that hits home doesn't

12:17

it and second to actively rebel against those forces that have pushed you away

12:22

from your true path scoff at the need for attention and approval they will lead

12:28

you astray feel some anger and resentment that the parental forces want to foist

12:33

upon you an alien vocation. It is a healthy part of your development to follow a path independent of your

12:40

parents and to establish your own identity.

12:43

Let your sense of rebellion fill you with energy and purpose.

12:47

So what's blocking your path? What's standing in your way?

12:52

What strategies can you come up with? Number four, let go of the past.

12:57

Oh, that's a toughie, right? right he says

13:00

in dealing with your career and its inevitable changes you

13:04

must think in the following ways you are not tied to a particular position your

13:09

loyalty is not to a career or company you are committed to your life's task

13:14

to giving it full expression it is up to you to find it and guide it correctly

13:19

it is not up to others to protect or help you.

13:25

You are on your own. Change is inevitable, particularly in such a revolutionary moment as ours.

13:34

Since you are on your own, it is up to you to foresee the changes going on right now in your profession.

13:42

You must adapt your life's tasks to these circumstances.

13:46

You do not hold on to the past ways of doing things because that will ensure

13:50

you will fall behind and suffer for it. You are flexible and always looking to adapt.

13:58

And in this day and age, AI now replacing jobs in computing.

14:10

People who have dedicated their lives to coding and computer science.

14:17

Did you not feel safe? was, did that not feel like a safe, good career choice?

14:24

Of course it did. This is a great modern day example of how you're going to have to pivot.

14:30

You're going to have to figure out what you loved about it and how you can reapply

14:35

it, regroup, retool, and go on that journey.

14:40

And that's just, I'm just giving you one example, but there's many,

14:43

many examples where this happens.

14:45

And like he He says, you have to be ready because nobody's coming to help you. I'm sorry.

14:51

This is not easy.

14:55

If change is forced upon you, you must resist the temptation to overreact,

15:00

feel sorry for yourself. Yeah. Thinking in this way, you can adapt to a new direction within.

15:08

Within, you don't need to abandon your skills and experience you've gained,

15:13

but to find a new way to apply them.

15:17

Your eyes on the future, not the past.

15:20

Often, such creative readjustments lead to a superior path for us.

15:25

We are shaken out of complacency and forced to reassess where we are headed.

15:30

Remember, your life's task is a living, breathing organism.

15:35

The moment you rigidly follow a plan set in your youth, you lock yourself into

15:41

position, and the times will ruthlessly pass you by. eye.

15:47

That is a harsh one. Okay, Robert, what's next?

15:52

Number five, find your way back. No good can ever come from deviating from the

15:58

path that you were destined to follow. You will be assailed by varieties of hidden pain.

16:04

Most often, you're keeping it because of the lure of money, of more immediate

16:09

prospects for prosperity. Because this does not comply with something deep within you,

16:15

Your interests will lag and eventually the money will not come so easily.

16:19

You will search for other easy sources of money, moving further and further away from your path.

16:24

Not seeing clearly ahead of you, you will end up in a dead-end career.

16:30

Yikes. Even if your material needs are met, you will feel an emptiness inside

16:36

you that you will need to fill with any kind of belief system, drugs, or diversions.

16:41

There is no compromise here, no way of escaping the dynamic.

16:45

You will recognize how far you have deviated from the depth of your pain and frustration.

16:50

You must listen to this message of frustration, this pain, and let it guide you.

16:54

It is a matter of life and death. The way back requires a sacrifice.

17:00

You cannot have everything in the present. The road to mastery requires patience.

17:06

You will have to keep your focus on five or ten years down the road when you

17:11

will reap the rewards of your efforts.

17:13

The process of getting there, however, is full of challenges and pleasures.

17:18

Make your return to the path a resolution you set for yourself and then tell others about it.

17:25

It becomes a matter of shame and embarrassment to deviate from this path.

17:29

In the end, the money and success that truly lasts come not to those who focus

17:33

on such things as goals, but rather to those who focus on mastery and fulfilling their life's tasks.

17:40

And he says, in reversal, maybe your life task isn't buried in your childhood.

17:46

Maybe your childhood was just, you know, you were destined for nothing.

17:51

That's how you felt about it anyways. things. Get out there and explore.

17:56

Something is going to pique your interest. Something is going to give you that aha moment.

18:03

He goes on to say, when we are faced with deficiencies instead of strength and

18:08

inclination, this is a strategy you must assume.

18:12

Ignore your weaknesses and resist the temptation to be more like others.

18:17

Direct yourself towards the small things you are good at.

18:21

Do not dream or make grand plans for the

18:23

future but instead concentrate on becoming proficient at

18:27

the simple and immediate skills this will.

18:28

Music.

18:31

Bring you confidence and become a base for which you can expand to other pursuits

18:35

proceeding in this way step by step you will hit upon your life's tasks so he

18:42

says understand your life's tasks does not always appear to you through some

18:47

on grand or promising inclination. It can appear in the guise of your deficiency, making you focus on the one or

18:54

two things that you are inevitably good at.

18:56

Working at these skills, you learn the value of discipline and see the rewards

19:01

you get from your efforts. Like a lotus flower, your skills will expand outward from the center of strength and confidence.

19:09

Do not envy those who seem to be naturally gifted.

19:13

It is often a curse, as such types rarely learn the values of diligence and

19:19

fitness, and they hate that it's later in life.

19:22

This strategy applies as well to.

19:25

Music.

19:31

Things we know and do well, and to re-establish our confidence.

19:38

So if you're not feeling the confidence, start with something little and build upon it.

19:45

You need to build a strong belief system in yourself.

19:50

Look for all those hidden clues. This power is accessible to everyone.

19:57

It's within you. you have to

20:00

take a moment dive deep go through

20:04

those five different ideas and he said pay attention to them

20:07

all by doing so and finding

20:10

your life's tasks and pivoting you will

20:13

live a more inspired life well i am jazzed to be sharing this book with you

20:19

do us a favor give us a thumbs up subscribe to the channel it helps people find

20:25

the show i want as many people to find out about the power of mastery,

20:31

of the power of finding your life's task, of the power of reaching who you were meant to be.

20:38

So take the next week, think about, digest, listen to the show,

20:43

watch it on YouTube over and over and over again, and really start to dive deep.

20:48

Because next week, we're going to talk about the apprenticeship. I'll see you then.