You may also enjoy THE ART OF LEARNING (Josh Waitzkin), which I discovered by listening to Chris Cerronne of Akre Capital Management in a podcast. The book is great.
I love that book--one of my favorites. A quote I think of often, and that applies to a lot of disciplines, is this:
"In every discipline, the ability to be clearheaded, present, cool under fire is much of what separates the best from the mediocre. In competition, the dynamic is often painfully transparent. If one player is serenely present while the other is being ripped apart by internal issues, the outcome is already clear. The prey is no longer objective, makes compounding mistakes, and the predator moves in for the kill. While more subtle, this issue is perhaps even more critical in solitary pursuits such as writing, painting, scholarly thinking, or learning. In the absence of continual external reinforcement, we must be our own monitor, and quality of presence is the best gauge. We cannot expect to touch excellence if "going though the motions" is the norm of our lives. On the other hand, if deep, fluid presence becomes second nature, then life, art, and learning take on a richness that will continually surprise and delight. Those who excel are those who maximize each moment's creative potential--for these masters of living, presence to the day-to-day learning process is akin to that purity of focus others dream of achieving in rare climactic moments when everything is on the line.
The secret is that everything is always on the line. The more present we are at practice, the more present we will be in competition, in the boardroom, at the exam, the operating table, the big stage. If we have any hope of attaining excellence, let alone of showing what we've got under pressure, we have to be prepared by a lifestyle of reinforcement. Presence must be like breathing. (Waitzkin 172)"
Sweet. I can hear it. Great post, Grant.
Atomic Habits by James Clear; have I mentioned it? You might appreciate it.
~Mark
Thanks Mark! Atomic Habits is a great book. I should revisit the ideas from it more often.
You may also enjoy THE ART OF LEARNING (Josh Waitzkin), which I discovered by listening to Chris Cerronne of Akre Capital Management in a podcast. The book is great.
I love that book--one of my favorites. A quote I think of often, and that applies to a lot of disciplines, is this:
"In every discipline, the ability to be clearheaded, present, cool under fire is much of what separates the best from the mediocre. In competition, the dynamic is often painfully transparent. If one player is serenely present while the other is being ripped apart by internal issues, the outcome is already clear. The prey is no longer objective, makes compounding mistakes, and the predator moves in for the kill. While more subtle, this issue is perhaps even more critical in solitary pursuits such as writing, painting, scholarly thinking, or learning. In the absence of continual external reinforcement, we must be our own monitor, and quality of presence is the best gauge. We cannot expect to touch excellence if "going though the motions" is the norm of our lives. On the other hand, if deep, fluid presence becomes second nature, then life, art, and learning take on a richness that will continually surprise and delight. Those who excel are those who maximize each moment's creative potential--for these masters of living, presence to the day-to-day learning process is akin to that purity of focus others dream of achieving in rare climactic moments when everything is on the line.
The secret is that everything is always on the line. The more present we are at practice, the more present we will be in competition, in the boardroom, at the exam, the operating table, the big stage. If we have any hope of attaining excellence, let alone of showing what we've got under pressure, we have to be prepared by a lifestyle of reinforcement. Presence must be like breathing. (Waitzkin 172)"
Perhaps you'll enjoy this: https://www.amazon.com/Living-Yes-Handbook-Being-Human/dp/0692340262
Ordered--thanks!
Brilliant.