In the article Screw Mastery, Hannah Rosin writes about a time in her career were she was in a position of all-knowing and mastery. She was successful and had everything going for her. Then she chose to give it all up and become a novice in an industry that she knew nothing about.
These days this type of shift is not uncommon. Some people are in continuous transition, moving jobs, careers, countries and even relationships. People are more curious, less risk- averse and more resourceful. They also view the world differently. They are more open to new concepts and ideas. Not afraid of constructive feedback or failure.
Here’s the big question. If you are in the position of all-knowing, do you have the same openness to alternative views, constructive feedback and opinions from your fellow colleagues and employees or are you stuck in your “mastery”ways? Are your blinkers too tight causing you to experience tunnel vision?
As a business owner or manager you are often expected, or it is assumed, that you know everything about your business. And you probably do. However, just because you know everything, does that mean you should not consider alternative ways of achieving business goals?
How do you view the opinions of your team or the suggestions they put forward? Are you genuinely open to new ideas, or do you just listen and humour them and then do it your own way anyway?
The lesson here is if you continuously ignore your team’s suggestions, opinions and ideas you will lose them. Good employees don’t want to be “yes-men” or “yes-women”, they want to see that they can add true value into the business. They want to make a difference.
Mastery is a great achievement and anyone who achieves it in their profession should be commended, but remember this, mastery can also be your downfall. Always be open to new ideas and concepts. Remain curious.
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