One Apple A Day #496 - create your way
"Outcomes are about what you get. Processes are about what you do. Identity is about what you believe." — James Clear
I love lean and sleek systems to help me work better. There are many of them out there created by successful people who've decided to share their strategies with all of us. The problem is that most of the time, despite my efforts in applying their strategies, I didn't get their results.
It took me a while to realise that all these great strategies, tools and methods were the results of the unique journeys of their creators. Yes, they are about how they do things, but they are rooted in their identity. In who they are. A winning strategy is one that is rooted in your identity. It is only when your WHO and your HOW are aligned that your results, the WHAT, really improve.
This reminded me of the Japanese word Shuhari, that represents the three stages of learning to mastery in martial arts. In short, the three steps of becoming a master are; to repeat, to detach and to transcend.
Studying and applying existing models is the starting point. But we must continuously check what is working and what not, what comes natural and where the resistance is. After a while, we can learn what is aligned with our identity, keep and leave the rest. In the end, we will learn to combine pieces from all the different sources and make our own way.