Today I had a call with a company from Japan that is interested in creating a product line with me. We talked about the Japanese idea of Takumi, which refers to artistry and mastery. They talked about how many products are mass produced, cheap and fast, and they’re interested in creating higher quality products that promote Japan’s interest in craftsmanship and mastery.
I shared with them the story of a man I met in Japan whose name I don’t remember anymore. He was a salaryman in Tokyo, and one day for a lunch meeting he had Parma Ham for the first time. The story goes, the next day he bought a ticket to Italy, and ripped up his return ticket. He then went from factory to factory to learn the best way to make Parma Ham. After 10 years in Italy, he came back to Japan, not to Tokyo, but to the mountains of Nagoya, where they have the perfect humidity and atmospheric pressure to make ideal Parma Ham. And now he has his own factory there, where he runs it by himself. When I met him, I saw two lines of restaurant owners, begging him to sell his ham to them. He has a limited supply, and only gives it to people he trusts. His ham is so good that Italian masters come visit him to learn some of his techniques.
I’ve been thinking about mastery lately as an antidote to perfectionism. This nameless man didn’t start off with making great ham. He just made the commitment to show up and try, and everyday to learn. That’s the approach I’m taking with this writing practice. I show up everyday at the same time, write my pages, make my video, and share it with the world. Every day, I’m hoping that I’m getting better, if not noticeably at least marginally.
A journal, for me, isn’t about what I should write or what questions I should answer. It’s just about showing up, every day, and trying to figure things out. I have no clue how far I can go with this, and I’m happy to see where I’ll be one year from now.
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