The pursuit of mastery is riddled with challenges. Finding the root knowledge, being able to repeatedly show up over long-periods of time and being courageous enough to break with convention are all examples of this. But one problem we’re facing in the modern world is avoiding superficial interests. These distractions take people off the path unless they’re burnt away.
Awareness of your craft isn’t enough
Being aware of your craft isn’t enough. Pursuing it every now and then isn’t enough. Only devoting yourself to it will allow you to reach the pinnacle. Devotion has this ability to keep you anchored to the correct direction. Without devotion anything can come your way and vie for your attention.
Observe the world around you and notice that people are watching social media in the same way that the people sitting at slot machines are watching the icons on the screen. Without a solid anchor point you may end up watching a 3 hour podcast about politics when your path has nothing to do with it. This is why you need to be devoted. Rather than lose yourself in the noise you’ll start to penetrate into the emotional core of your work. An area you’ve likely been avoiding.
Always question the ‘shiny new interest’
Have you noticed that when you get close to the real thing - the path that you truly want to walk - that your brain pings you into another interest? A hidden part of you rebels and frames it as the safer option. Fearing pain, it shields you from the emotional truth that if you commit to this path and don't succeed it might destroy you. But here's the irony: if you totally devote yourself to it with all your being you won't fail.
Superficial interests can be a smokescreen
Many people are distracted by superficial interests because they’re avoiding a hard emotional truth. There’s an inner confrontation waiting for them. By devoting themselves to their craft they will discover the source of this tension. But this requires a conscious pursuit in spite of any pain that may arise. For example, perhaps they didn’t pursue this path because if they failed then the possibility of it ever happening will die. So connected with the fantasy, they would prefer to have it alive in their mind than to see it killed. Protecting this fantasy with superficial interests everytime they get close.
Devotion is key
There is a burning off of superficial interests that occurs when someone truly devotes themselves to their craft. The brain will still ping and ask you to Google the latest development in some celebrity saga or quickly look up that YouTuber to see if they’ve dropped their latest video. Yet through devotion you hear the ping but instead of immediately reacting and following it you say, “No today.” Going back to focusing on your craft and addicting yourself to long-term gratification instead of impulsive pleasure.
Overtime, superficial interests lose control. They’ll be fed less and less and like a fire that’s beginning to turn into coals, the only way it rekindles is if you feed the fire with fuel. Devotion feeds another fire, one of mastery, fulfilment and turning the fantasy into something real.
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