THAT I WASN'T INTERESTED IN. AND EACH CLASS ONLY LASTED

ABOUT 53 MINUTES. AND I WOULD LOOK AT THE CLOCK

EVERY TWO MINUTES, I COULDN'T FOCUS ON ANYTHING,

AND I COULDN'T WAIT FOR THE CLASS TO BE OVER.

WELL, MAYBE I SHOULD'VE GOTTEN A PRESCRIPTION FOR SOME ADDERALL.

OR MAYBE NOT, BECAUSE I CAN NOW WORK ON PROJECTS

THAT I'M INTERESTED IN FOR 20 HOURS STRAIGHT.

AND THIS IS WHY EVERYONE'S BASICALLY MEDIOCRE AT WHAT THEY DO.

AS SOON AS YOU'RE A LITTLE KID, YOUR PARENTS START PRESSURING YOU

TO BECOME SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T INTEREST YOU.

I MEAN, YOU WANT TO BE A COMPOSER? ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?

AND NOT ONLY ARE PEOPLE AROUND YOU CONSTANTLY PRESSURING YOU,

BUT THEN YOU START TO PRESSURE YOURSELF... "WELL, YOU KNOW, MAYBE I CAN MAKE MORE MONEY

BEING A DOCTOR. I KNOW I CAN'T STOP PLAYING THE PIANO

DAY AND NIGHT, BUT MAYBE BEING A DOCTOR

IS A SAFER CHOICE." AND THEN YOU END UP

IN A CLASS LEARNING ABOUT THE KREBS CYCLE AND LOOKING AT THE CLOCK EVERY TWO MINUTES.

AND THAT'S OUR PROBLEM. WE HAVE TOO MANY MOZARTS

WHO WERE FORCED TO BECOME A DOCTOR. AND THEN YOU GO VISIT

THAT MOZART DOCTOR WHEN YOU'RE SICK, AND YOU CAN JUST TELL THAT HE DOESN'T GIVE

A SHIT. HE HANDS YOU THE PRESCRIPTION AND THEN YOU

LEAVE.

NOW, I'VE HAD TO DEAL WITH QUITE A FEW DOCTORS, AND IT ALWAYS AMAZES ME WHEN I WALK IN THERE

KNOWING MORE ABOUT MY CONDITION THAN HE DOES. AND I DON'T EVEN BLAME HIM!

HE DIDN'T WANT TO BE A DOCTOR, HE WANTED TO BE A COMPOSER.

NOW HE GOES HOME, AND INSTEAD OF BEING EXCITED ABOUT

FINDING A SOLUTION TO MY CONDITION, HE WATCHES TV.

HE'S NOT MISSING OUT ON SLEEP BECAUSE HE'S RESEARCHING TOO MUCH,

HE CAN'T EVEN WAIT TO LEAVE WORK.

DON'T GIVE INTO THAT PRESSURE! YEAH, YOU MIGHT END UP WITH A GOOD JOB,

A NICE CAR, A NICE HOUSE, I'LL GIVE YOU ALL THAT.

BUT I WILL GUARANTEE YOU ONE THING. YOU WILL NEVER HAVE A CHANCE AT MASTERY.

BECAUSE YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO DEDICATE THE REQUIRED THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS

OF HOURS TO IT. BECAUSE YOU WON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE

TO WAKE UP AND WORK ON SOMETHING UNTIL YOU FALL ASLEEP.

THEN DREAM ABOUT IT, AND WAKE UP AND START DOING IT AGAIN.

YOU WON'T KNOW WHAT THAT'S LIKE!

AND HERE'S THE THING... I'M NOT EVEN COMING FROM SOME ROMANTIC PLACE

OF YOU SHOULD PROBABLY DO WHAT YOU ENJOY IN LIFE,

WHICH IS PROBABLY THE BEST ADVICE I COULD GIVE.

BUT FORGER THAT, I'M COMING FROM A PURELY MASTERY PERSPECTIVE.

YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO PUT IN THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF HOURS

INTO YOUR CRAFT TO BECOME A MASTER. THERE'S NO OTHER OPTION!

AND YOU'RE SIMPLY, PHYSICALLY NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT

IF YOU DON'T FOLLOW YOUR INCLINATION AND DO WHAT YOU'RE DEEPLY INTERESTED IN.

THE WHOLE IDEA HERE IS THAT YOU HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT OF TIME.

YOU CAN'T BE SPENDING DAYS AND WEEKS FIGURING THINGS OUT ON YOUR OWN

WHEN YOU CAN BE TAUGHT IN A COUPLE OF HOURS.

SO HERE ARE THE THREE STEPS THAT YOU HAVE TO FOLLOW

WITH YOUR APPRENTICESHIP.

FIRST: DEEP OBSERVATION. YOU WALK IN THERE.

YOU'RE NOT MAKING THE MISTAKE OF ASSERTING YOURSELF LIKE EVERYONE ELSE.

YOU DON'T TRY TO SHOW EVERYONE HOW TALENTED YOU ARE.

YOU DON'T TRY TO INVENT THINGS.

THIS IS A TIME TO OBSERVE EVERYTHING. HOW DOES THE SYSTEM WORK?

WHAT ARE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SUCCESSFUL IN MY NICHE DOING?

NOW, NOT A 100% OF WHAT YOU OBSERVE AND LEARN IS GOING TO BE RIGHT OR OPTIMAL

IN ANY APPRENTICESHIP OR FROM ANY MENTOR. BUT THAT DOESN'T MATTER.

THIS IS NOT YOUR TIME TO TELL PEOPLE HOW YOU'VE RESEARCHED THINGS ON YOUR OWN

AND HAVE FOUND MORE EFFECTIVE WAYS OF DOING THINGS.

SECOND: SKILLS ACQUISITION THIS IS WHERE YOU START PUTTING IN YOUR 10,000

HOURS THAT EVERYONE TALKS ABOUT.

IF YOU'RE A WRITER, YOU'RE WRITING ALL DAY,

YOU'RE RACKING UP THOSE HOURS.

AND FINALLY, ONCE YOU HAVE COMPLETED THAT AND YOU'RE READY,

YOU TAKE EVERYTHING YOU'VE LEARNED, YOU TAKE THAT FOUNDATION AND SKILL,

AND PUT YOUR OWN UNIQUENESS ON IT AND CREATE SOMETHING GREAT.

THIS WOULD BE A GOOD TIME TO START IMPLEMENTING THAT THING THAT YOU RESEARCHED

THAT MIGHT MAKE YOU MORE EFFICIENT.

SO THAT'S THE MODEL, AND I SEE PEOPLE IGNORING IT ALL THE TIME,

DON'T IGNORE IT. THE FOUNDATION IS VERY SIMILAR FOR EVERYTHING.

YOU DON'T WANT TO BE THE PERSON LEARNING HOW TO DO THE FOUNDATION ALL ON HIS OWN.

PEOPLE ASK ME ALL THE TIME, "HOW DO I START A BUSINESS?"

WELL, LET'S SAY IT'S AN ONLINE BUSINESS, FOLLOW THE THREE STEPS.

TAKE THE SUCCESSFUL ONES YOU WANT TO BE LIKE. WHAT ARE THEY DOING?

"OH LOOK AT THAT, THEIR WEBSITE LOOKS LIKE THIS."

"THEY GIVE A LOT OF VALUE FOR FREE, I WONDER WHY A BUNCH OF CAPITALIST PIGS WOULD

DO THAT." "WELL, BUT LOOK AT THAT,

THEY ALSO HAVE A PRODUCT. LET ME TAKE A LOOK AT HOW THEY TRY TO SELL

IT TO YOU." YOU DO YOUR DEEP OBSERVATION.

NOW YOU'VE LEARNED HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS, IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO PUT IN YOUR HOURS

TO CREATE YOUR WEBSITE, CREATE YOUR PRODUCT,

START DOING YOUR MARKETING.

NOW AGAIN, LET'S SAY YOU'RE DOING EVERYTHING ON A PLATFORM

LIKE WORDPRESS, YOU CAN EITHER WATCH A GUY EXPLAIN THE FOUNDATION

OF WORDPRESS TO YOU IN A COUPLE OF HOURS,

OR YOU CAN LEARN ON YOUR OWN FOR WEEKS. BY THE WAY,

THIS IS THE BEAUTIFUL THING ABOUT THE TIME THAT WE LIVE IN AS WELL,

YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO KNOW PEOPLE FOR THEM TO BE YOUR MENTOR.

NOW FINALLY, YOU'RE NOT JUST CREATING A COPY OF SOMEONE

ELSE'S BUSINESS, THAT WAS JUST THE FOUNDATION.

NOW YOU PUT YOUR OWN UNIQUENESS ON THE WEBSITE, YOU CREATE A PRODUCT THAT'S BETTER,

YOU TAKE THE GENERAL IDEAS OF MARKETING BUT DO IT BETTER.

AND THAT IS HOW YOU END UP WITH A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS.

I LOVE THE FACT THAT THIS IS INCLUDED AS ONE OF THE KEYS.

EVERY MASTERY BOOK TALKS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THINGS LIKE PRACTICE,

WHICH IS CRUCIAL BUT SO IS SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE.

YOU'LL BE MESSING UP ALL THE OTHER KEYS WITHOUT IT.

LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT THEM... FOLLOWING YOUR INCLINATION.

YOU HAVE CONTROLLING PARENTS AND INSTEAD OF APPEASING THEM,

AND MAKING THEM FEEL IMPORTANT, AND TELLING THEM HOW YOU CAN'T WAIT TO BE

WHATEVER THEY'RE FORCING YOU TO BE, YOU START CONFLICT.

THEY KICK YOU OUT OF THE HOUSE, YOU HAVEN'T DEVELOPED YOUR SKILLS YET,

SO NOW YOU'RE WORKING AT MCDONALDS, INSTEAD OF BEING FED BY MOMMY AT HOME

WHILE YOU DEVELOP YOUR SKILLS.

SAME THING WITH APPRENTICESHIP. TRYING TO WALK IN THERE

AND SHOW PEOPLE HOW HARD WORKING AND TALENTED YOU ARE.

YOU THINK IT'S GREAT. THEY'RE REALLY GOING TO APPRECIATE YOU NOW.

EXCEPT FOR, THAT'S NOT WHAT THEY'RE THINKING AT ALL.

YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT YOU SHOULD NEVER APPEAR TOO PERFECT,

AND EVENTUALLY THEY'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU AND GET RID OF YOU.

SAME THING WITH MENTORS. FIRST OF ALL,

GOOD LUCK GETTING A GOOD MENTOR WITHOUT SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE,

BUT LET'S ASSUME THAT YOU SOMEHOW DID. YOU START TO SHARE WITH HIM ALL THE GREAT

IDEAS YOU HAVE. YOU WANT HIM TO BE REALLY IMPRESSED BY YOU,

BUT YOU DON'T KNOW THAT YOU SHOULD NEVER OUTSHINE YOUR MASTER.

SO YOU GET HIM INSECURE AND HE GETS RID OF YOU.

I SEE THIS ALL THE TIME. OTHERWISE INTELLIGENT PEOPLE WHO ARE ALSO

WILLING TO PUT IN ALL THE HARD WORK

GETTING THROWN OFF THE PATH TO MASTERY, AND ALL BECAUSE THEY DON'T CULTIVATE ANY SOCIAL

INTELLIGENCE.

IF YOU HAD READ CARNEGIE'S HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE

PEOPLE AND GREENE'S THE 48 LAWS OF POWER,

YOU WOULDN'T HAVE MADE ANY OF THESE MISTAKES.

BY THE WAY, THESE ARE TWO BOOKS THAT EVERYONE MUST READ,

EVEN THOUGH I USUALLY DON'T LIKE TO SAY THAT ANYONE HAS TO READ ANYTHING.

SO LET'S TALK ABOUT THREE TYPES OF MINDS: THE ORIGINAL MIND,

THE CONVENTIONAL MIND, AND THE DIMENSIONAL MIND.

HERE'S THE ORIGINAL MIND. LET'S SAY YOU HAVE A LITTLE KID WHO WANTS

TO BE A TEACHER WHEN HE GROWS UP.

AND YOU ASK HIM, "HEY KID, WHAT SCHOOL DO YOU WANT TO TEACH

AT?" YOU MIGHT GET A CRAZY ANSWER LIKE,

"I'M GOING TO TEACH THE ENTIRE WORLD." AND YOU'RE LIKE,

"OH, THAT'S REALLY SWEET." THAT'S THE ORIGINAL MIND.

IT'S CRAZY. IT'S CREATIVE.

THEN YOU HAVE THE CONVENTIONAL MIND. AND THIS WOULD BE ONE OF MY OLD PHD PROFESSORS

AT COLLEGE. IF YOU ASKED ONE OF THEM,

"HEY, WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO TEACH?" YOU MIGHT GET AN ANSWER LIKE,

"WELL, OF COURSE, IT WOULD HAVE TO BE HARVARD!" THAT'S THE BEST THING HIS MIND CAN COME UP

WITH. A CLASS OF 15 STUDENTS AT HARVARD.

NOW, THIS PROFESSOR MIGHT HAVE PUT IN THOUSANDS OF HOURS INTO ECONOMICS,

MIGHT KNOW ALL THE FACTS ABOUT EVERYTHING, BUT HIS MIND HAS LOST ALL OF ITS ELASTICITY.

HE CAN'T THINK OF ANYTHING CRAZY ANYMORE. HE CAN'T THINK OF ANYTHING CREATIVE ANYMORE.

FINALLY, YOU HAVE THE DIMENSIONAL MIND. AND THE DIMENSIONAL MIND COMBINES

THE CRAZINESS AND THE CREATIVITY OF THE ORIGINAL MIND,

WITH THE MASTERY OF THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF HOURS OF EXPERTISE.

AND WHEN YOU COMBINE THESE TWO, THAT'S WHEN YOU END UP WITH TRUE MASTERY.

THE CHILD HAS THE ORIGINAL MIND WHICH IS GREAT, BUT HE HASN'T CULTIVATED THE SKILL TO DO ANYTHING

GREAT WITH IT. THE OLD PROFESSOR HAS CULTIVATED THE SKILL,

BUT HAS SUPPRESSED HIS ORIGINAL MIND COMPLETELY IN THE PROCESS.

SO HE WON'T BE ABLE TO DO ANYTHING GREAT EITHER.

NOW LET'S GO BACK TO TEACHING THE ENTIRE WORLD. SOUNDS PRETTY CRAZY RIGHT?

ACTUALLY, IT'S NOT THAT CRAZY. IT'S CALLED YOUTUBE.

IT'S CALLED THE INTERNET. IF THE OLD PROFESSOR HAD MAINTAINED THE ORIGINAL

MIND, HE WOULDN'T SAY SOMETHING STUPID LIKE,

"YOUTUBE? ISN'T THAT THE PLACE FOR CAT VIDEOS?" "UHH, NO THANKS, KID. I HAVE A PHD.

I HAVE TO GET UP AT 6 TOMORROW TO GO TO MY MEDIOCRE COLLEGE AND ACTUALLY

TEACH." ALRIGHT PROFESSOR,

GOOD LUCK TEACHING IN YOUR LITTLE CLASSROOM UNTIL YOU DIE.

HERE'S ANOTHER EXAMPLE... WHAT IF I GO UP TO HIM AND SAY,

"HEY, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE SO DRY WHEN YOU TEACH."

"I HAVE FOUND A LOT OF SUCCESS TELLING STORIES SO PEOPLE CAN RESONATE WITH

IT AND DRAWING STUPID LITTLE CARTOONS

SO PEOPLE CAN ACTUALLY FOLLOW ALONG." DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS IN HIS MIND AT THAT

POINT? "STORIES? DRAWING? I HAVE A PHD!

I CAN'T ENGAGE IN SUCH FRIVOLOUS MATTERS!" AND I'M LIKE,

"UH, WELL, BUT, BEING LIGHTHEARTED AND LEARNING SOMETHING

NEW DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO BE MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE,

RIGHT?" AND HE'S LIKE, "I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN

KID, IF IT'S NOT DRY, IT'S FRIVOLOUS."

OH AND HE HAS A PHD. YOU GET THE POINT...

YOU HAVE TO MAINTAIN YOUR ORIGINAL MIND. COMBINE THAT WITH THE THOUSANDS OF HOURS OF

PRACTICING YOUR SKILL, AND THEN YOU HAVE A CHANCE AT DOING GREAT,

AMAZING THINGS.

THAT COMBINATION IS THE POWER OF THE DIMENSIONAL MIND.

AGAIN, WE HAVE DIFFERENT TYPES OF MINDS. THE INTUITIVE MIND,

AND THE RATIONAL MIND.

BOTH ARE EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. BUT WE TEND TO VALUE THE RATIONAL MIND AND

IGNORE THE INTUITIVE MIND.

LET ME GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE. LET'S SAY

YOU'VE SPENT THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF HOURS INVESTING IN COMPANIES AND PRODUCTS.

NOW SOMEONE PRESENTS TO YOU THEIR COMPANY OR PRODUCT,

AND YOU CAN JUST SENSE THAT THIS IS GOING TO BE HUGE.

NOW YOU MIGHT HAVE OTHER FRIEND INVESTORS TELL YOU

"YOU'RE CRAZY! YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH BECAUSE OF THIS METHOD

OF VALUATION, AND THIS EQUATION AND THAT EQUATION."

BUT IF YOU'VE DONE THIS FOR A VERY LONG TIME, YOU MIGHT BE SEEING SOMETHING THAT OTHER PEOPLE

CAN'T SEE. IT'S ALMOST HARD TO EXPLAIN,

BUT AFTER ALL THOSE HOURS, EVERYTHING STARTS TO COME TOGETHER.

YOU START TO SEE THE WHOLE PICTURE.

NOW, I'VE BEEN PLAYING THE PIANO FOR OVER A DECADE.

WHEN I FIRST STARTED, I HAD TO BE VERY RATIONAL ABOUT EVERYTHING.

IT WAS LIKE, I'M GOING TO PLAY C NOW.

NOW I'M GOING TO PLAY D.

BUT AFTER ALL THESE YEARS, SOMETIMES I LIKE TO SIT DOWN AND JUST PLAY

AROUND AND COMPOSE, AND MY FINGERS JUST KIND OF RUN AROUND ON

THEIR OWN. IT'S WEIRD.

THERE'S ALMOST NO RATIONALITY INVOLVED, BUT SOMEHOW MY FINGERS KNOW WHERE TO GO.

AND KEEP IN MIND, THIS HAS ALWAYS BEEN JUST A HOBBY FOR ME.

TO THINK ABOUT WHAT GOES ON IN A PERSON'S HEAD

WHO'S PLAYED FOR YEARS AND YEARS FOCUSING ON BECOMING A MASTER

IS KIND OF SCARY FOR ME TO EVEN THINK ABOUT.

NOW, THERE'S NOTHING SUPERNATURAL HERE. IN FACT, YOU CAN USE THE RATIONAL MIND TO

EXPLAIN IN RETROSPECT WHY FACEBOOK MIGHT HAVE BEEN A GREAT INVESTMENT,

OR WHY SOME CHORD GOES WELL WITH SOME KEY. BUT THE INTUITIVE MIND HAS A HUGE ADVANTAGE

OVER THE RATIONAL MIND IN CIRCUMSTANCES LIKE THIS.

MASTERS ACCOMPLISH GREAT THINGS BECAUSE THEY CAN COMBINE THE INTUITIVE WITH