Photo by pasukaru 76
“And he hath filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship”
One of the very basic aspirations human beings have is that of mastery. To not only be good at what we do, but to actually be great at it. To have that feeling, that moment, where what we do takes over us, consumes us, makes us feel a part of something greater. Like we are filled with the spirit of god.
Some will call it flow. Some will call it joy or happiness. Some will call it Art.
Six months before he was assassinated, on October 26, 1967, Martin Luther King Jr. spoke to a group of students at Barratt Junior High School in Philadelphia, this is part of what he said:
If you are called to be a street sweeper, sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. Sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well’.
When we are masters of our trade, we are much more than that. We have an impact. We connect not only with the most inner parts of ourselves, but also with something greater. That is why I love the quote above from Exodus 35, hidden in a long shopping list Moses demands from the people of Israel. It highlights, that great workmanship is not only about what we actually do, but about what we are – our wisdom, understanding and knowledge.
And you know what? When we see mastery, or at least an attempt at one, we recognize it, we connect with it, we appreciate it. Be it the graceful moves of a supreme athlete, the calmness and kindness of a customer service representative, the breathtaking music of an amazing singer or the well crafted arguments of the lawyer in court. We appreciate it. We value it. We carve for it.
I too sometimes see what I do as just that, something I do. Every time I act like that I am passing on an opportunity to try and master it. Because to be a master of something does not means actually being the best. It is about trying to be best. It is about putting all our effort in it. It is about connecting with ourselves, with what we do and with others.
I don’t know what it is that you do. I hope you are trying to treat it as a master. I wish for you to treat it as a master and to actually be one. I wish for all of us that you will be a master.
Elad
