Dear Steve,
For me Personal Mastery is the leading edge, quickly followed by Systems
Thinking, of the issue of creating an environment along with the skills
and attitudes in which learning is maximized. I like Senge's image of
Personal Mastery (or at least what I remember of it). He seems to be
saying that Personal Mastery is having the courage to maintain one's own
vision of the future. I believe this is a vision of one's own life - to
use old language to have a vocation, a life work. This is also for me a
vision of the organization that I work within. It is also a vision of the
world. The second aspect of Personal Mastery is to have the courage to
look honestly and clearly at the present situation. Looking honestly at
the present requires a great deal of effort, because of our unbelievable
capacity for self deception. The third aspect is to deal with our own
doubts, not eleminate them but to cope with them.
For me, these three are related to the classic vows of Chastity, to will
one thing according to Kirkegaard, Poverty, to be detached from goods,
work, relations, and one's self, and Obedience to be engaged.
It may be that the spiritual / religious implications of Personal Mastery
is the reason we don't talk about it.
Jon C. Jenkins
Imaginal Training
Groningen, The Netherlands
www.noord.bart.nl/~imaginal
--jon <jon_jenkins_imaginal_training@pi.net>
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