If you are looking to do your most
exceptional work for the glory of God
and the good of others, here’s how.
Key #1: Apprenticeships
Apprenticeship isn’t a word you hear
a lot these days, but the practice is
something you see time and time
again in the world’s most masterful
people.
There are two types of apprentice-
ships: direct apprenticeships and
indirect apprenticeships.
A direct apprenticeship is what you
likely have in mind when you first
hear the word apprentice, defined as
“a person who works for another in
order to learn a trade.” This concept
may sound foreign, like something
only fifteenth-century artists and
carpenters did when access to
information and social networks was
severely limited. But the practice of
direct apprenticeships is very much
alive today.
The second form of apprenticeship is
the indirect apprenticeship in which
you humbly submit yourself to the
wisdom of masters but do so without
personal relationships with or direct
feedback from them.
Whether you choose a direct or
indirect apprenticeship, the key is to
humbly submit to the teachings of
masters with far more experience and
expertise in your chosen vocation.
Key #2: Purposeful Practice
If you’ve read any business book in the
past ten years, you are likely familiar
with The Ten-Thousand-Hour Rule, as
it is likely the best-known insight on
the science of mastery, etched into
business folklore by Malcolm Gladwell
in his bestseller Outliers.
In the book, Gladwell cites an
academic paper published by Dr.
Anders Ericsson, who has been called
“the world’s leading expert on experts,”
in which Ericsson and his team of
“...the key is to humbly submit to
the teachings of masters with far
more experience and expertise.”
24 • Solutions