The Spirit of the Craftsman: How Expertise Inspires

In Japan, there is a concept known as Shokunin kishitsu – the “spirit of the craftsman.” It embodies a pursuit of perfection through repetition, discipline, and self-improvement, driven by respect for the craft and the process of crafting itself. At its heart lies simplicity and the belief that true mastery is achieved through humble repetition and dedication to serving the community with quality and beauty.

Inspiration in the ordinary

Aside from Johan Cruyff, I do not have many idols. My inspiration comes from more ordinary people and everyday things – those who demonstrate mastery in their craft. I admire the sight of a Japanese metal craftsman welding iron clubheads on superior golf clubs, a result of generations perfecting the art of metalworking. From samurai sword to 7-iron! I become truly enthusiastic when I see an old building where traditional carpenters employed traditional woodworking techniques to create peg-and-hole joints by hand in heavy roof constructions.

Mastery is crystallized experience

Speed is not in the action itself, but in the crystallized experience of having done it thousands of times. It’s the effortless flow that comes from mastery – achieving the intended result with seemingly no setbacks. Sometimes we call it intuition, but in my view, that does not account for the solidified, frozen experience behind it. Intuition without experience is merely another opinion.

Overcoming thresholds

I derive significant inspiration from sports. Individuals who strive for self-improvement do so at various levels, each presenting its own challenges. Currently, I am experiencing a threshold in biking. In golf, I face a similar, albeit more persistent, threshold. Determining how to overcome these barriers is a fulfilling endeavor for me.

The purity of small sports

As I said, I am not inspired by top athletes or artists, mainly because I no longer see the modesty in what they are trying to achieve. I do appreciate small sports such as short track because of its purity and the fact that short trackers never complain about the circumstances. If they fall, they lose and move on. They have to accept that there are factors in short track that they cannot influence. As one world champion once said, “Either you win or you learn. And this was a weekend of learning!” Simple in wording, brilliant in mindset.