Ordinary Masterclasses

A conversational forum applying the ASPIRE Mastery Framework

Nov 15, 2023

This announcement is something I’ve been musing about since starting this blog and registering the OrdinaryMastery.com domain. It is a leap of faith in the spirit of the fool.

I intend to launch a programme of online modules for ‘ordinary’ people pursuing a path of mastery in their lives.

The modules are for ordinary musicians, writers, artists, software engineers, athletes, entertainers, mechanics, dancers, sports players, architects, academics, craftspeople, gardeners, builders, public speakers, or practitioners of any other endeavour requiring skills development through dedicated practice.

They will also be for anyone making changes in their lives, life mastery, perhaps for someone intending to break bad habits and adopt a healthy lifestyle, sticking to an exercise routine and losing excess weight.

The masterclasses are for cohorts of up to 12 people spanning 8 weeks. We will be slowly developing a mastery mindset towards our own aspirations and supporting one another on the journey. Our aim will be to develop a more meaningful approach to practising our crafts or skills within the context of our ordinary lives.

Format:

The masterclasses will be online group sessions, informal, experimental, and curious. We will support one another as a learning group. There would be homework between sessions which would take a self-authoring approach to documenting our thoughts, intentions, and commitments based on each module.

When:

I’ll be looking to begin with an initial cohort of participants in early 2024, exact schedule TBC but the sessions will probably take place on Sundays at GMT 7 pm. I expect the sessions will last around 90 minutes.

The role of your host:

I will play the role of a facilitator, a catalyst for exploration and conversation rather than a coach. I will be sharing insights and perspectives from my own research and experiences in mastery but will act as more of an ally, working alongside you as a curious student of mastery, learning from our conversations as part of my own practice.

Cost:

With the first cohort, I will be primarily seeking honest feedback and suggestions around content and approach. I see it as an alpha test group. As I will also be ‘learning in public’ I would probably opt for a donation-based ‘pay what you can afford’ or ‘pay think it is worth’ approach as I work out a pricing module for future groups. People often feel awkward around money, I’m keen to stress that even if you’re struggling with money at the moment, get in touch anyway, I’m not going to make a big deal out of the payments side for this first alpha group.

Eventually, I will be offering the course both on an individual level and at a corporate level where prices may vary according to the audience, the expectations, and group sizes.

Waitlist

If you are interested in participating as part of the first experimental cohort in early 2024 then please either express your interest in the comments section below or drop me a message via my LinkedIn profile.

Thanks, John

The Ordinary Masterclasses Modules:

Module 0: Prerequisites

Before beginning the course, participants will be asked to read George Leonard’s book, Mastery, and/or read through the book summary or video summaries that I will provide. It’s a short book so not too onerous as a request. The key points from the book will be woven into the modules and referred to regularly.

Module 1: Mastery Fundamentals

Pursuing mastery in one’s profession, hobby, or interest is potentially one of the most naturally satisfying and rewarding endeavours. We seem to have a fundamental desire to improve our skills, learn new things, and transform ourselves by overcoming obstacles along the way.

This module is an introduction to the ASPIRE Mastery Framework and how it can be applied to the journey on our chosen path of mastery. The module looks at what we mean by mastery and how despite our best intentions, our efforts often fall short of the levels we aspire to. The module prepares us for the rest of the masterclasses by setting out with the beginner’s mind.

The ASPIRE Framework aims to bring cohesion to our approach to mastery by taking multiple perspectives

Module 2: Reality

We frequently delude ourselves by not facing reality, kidding ourselves that we are following through with our commitments or making excuses to absolve our responsibility. Self-deception may quieten our anxieties and frustrations but derails us from our path of mastery when overindulged.

In this module, we introduce the lens of reality to assess our thinking and progress in all other modules. We will get used to regularly adopting the perspective of reality to explore the relationships between the subsequent modules and expose any tensions that need to be resolved. We will commit to being honest with ourselves and other course participants within the psychologically safe confines of the group.

Module 3: Internals

All mastery is self-mastery. Understanding who we are, our values, our identity, and our characteristics are important in checking that our aspirations and the path we are taking are aligned with who we are.

This is a module of self-exploration, and it is ourselves and our proclivity to self-sabotage, often the great barrier to our progress. We are ignorant of our true selves, our true nature. We delude ourselves and repress unwanted aspects of ourselves. While the focus of this module is introspection and getting to know ourselves better, our mastery journey is not to serve our ego and worry about appearances, but the pursuit of mastery as a virtue in its own right.

Module 4: Externals

No matter how committed we are to dedicating ourselves to a path of mastery, if our external environment is set against us, or if we allow external influences to infect our own values and aspirations, we risk becoming derailed.

This module explores the many distractions and external constraints we are likely to face on a journey of mastery and creates the space to think about how we can better structure our environment and the external influences to which we expose ourselves so that our path becomes the path of least resistance and more likely to unfold towards our aspirations.

Module 5: Aspirations

We all have aspirations of reaching a potential in life which is beyond our current stage of development. In some people, this can be a strong feeling of our life’s calling and a real sense of inner purpose, but often in our ordinary lives, we find ourselves resisting or denying our aspirations as our practical day-to-day obligations take precedence.

In this module we will tease out our own life’s aspirations, checking that they are truly our own internal aspirations, aligned with our inner values, and not derived from external influence. Our aspirations will be committed to paper as a reference to cross-check from the perspective of the other modules.

Module 6: Paths

Our path of mastery is our own path, a path that follows the scent of our aspirations. There are many paths we can take in life and we can never be sure of whether we’re on the right path as journeys of mastery are fraught with setbacks and long periods on the plateau waiting for the next climax.

The purpose of the module is to see the many paths we could take and to make a bet by committing to the first steps on the journey, continually evaluating and course-correcting along the way with the attitude that direction of travel is more important than a clear destination.

Module 7: Systems

We don’t rise to our goals, we fall to our systems1. Establishing a systematic approach to practice is foundational to mastery, persisting with a ritualistic dedication to our sacred practices, even when we don’t feel like it, is a defining characteristic of mastery.

In this module, we will work on creating our own ecology of practices that we can accommodate into our ordinary lives. We will take pleasure in committing to countless repetitions of ordinary systems of practice by creating a special meaning around surrendering ourselves to the practice. We will also define our uber-practices as non-negotiable habitual commitments as our foundational systems.

Module 8: Integration

In this final module we will revisit the lens of reality to reflect on our discoveries and commitments we made to ourselves in all of the modules of the ASPIRE Framework

We will make sustainable commitments that we can hold ourselves responsible for in using the ASPIRE Framework to continually evaluate and modify our progress on our own paths of mastery.

Beyond the Masterclasses

Community:

A broad aim is to build a community of practitioners who are using the ASPIRE Framework to bring insights to their own mastery journey while supporting others on their journeys.

One-to-one reflective conversations:

Ad-hoc or a regular schedule of one-to-ones will be available to support people’s mastery journeys. We will use the ASPIRE Framework to guide our conversations around supporting your mastery journey.

Apps and Tools:

The near-term aspiration is to create a Web App for people to be guided around the ASPIRE Framework, record their self-authoring notes and commitments, and open themselves up to public accountability for their progress if they wish.

Waitlist

If you are interested in participating as part of the first experimental cohort in early 2024 then please either express your interest in the comments section below or drop me a message via my LinkedIn profile.

Thanks, John

James Clear, Atomic Habits.