Anyone Can Be a Master

In 2003, I attended a performance by Geoff Muldaur, a noted blues and roots musician for more than forty years. Sitting just thirty feet away in the small performance space, I was mesmerized by the effortless genius of his guitar playing. He seemed utterly relaxed, almost unconscious, yet his fingers worked the strings with a subtlety I’d never seen to produce sounds of an expressiveness I’d never heard.

Between songs, while telling stories, he never stopped producing beautiful sounds, often with just one hand, all with an amazing casualness. I remarked to my wife, Alice, “I get the feeling we’re watching an artist who is never far from his instrument.” During a midshow break, while on an outdoor deck, I could see through blinds into the room where he was relaxing … which he did by continuing to play as he paced around the room. I knew I was enjoying the privilege of watching a true Master at work.

Whenever we witness some form of memorably high-level performance—whether Geoff Muldaur making music or an Olympian in the pool—it’s natural to assume that what we’re seeing must require some kind of inborn genius. In fact, anyone who pursues a personally meaningful challenge—no matter how modest their starting point—can experience the rewards of Mastery.

Mastery is the intriguing process through which something that is initially difficult and frustrating becomes progressively easier and more pleasurable through practice. There may be no better medium than swimming for learning about Mastery because it is the antithesis of a genetically programmed activity. Yet, while human DNA may be poorly wired for swimming, it is encoded to learn prodigiously from birth to death.

Mastery in swimming is not about swimming 100 meters in less than a minute nor even solely about achieving stroke efficiency. Like my training for the Manhattan swim, it’s about uniting mind and body, without distraction and boredom, in patient, focused, almost loving practice. Practice of this sort can teach you how to perform well in many other ways.

The fundamental creed of the Master is dedication to the value of patience and persistence over the desire for quick and easy results. Cultivate modest expectations along the way and every time you reach a benchmark or breakthrough, enjoy it, then keep practicing, confident you will always have some further plateau to aim for.