As I get older, I’m constantly troubled by the thought that it may be too late for me to achieve greatness. Granted, this is the fate of most people (if everyone is great, then no one is), but for some reason this is a subject my mind tends to dwell on in idle moments, and trouble me with when I least desire it.

Great musicians have usually been playing music from an early age. Great writers have been writing all their lives, and write all the time. Great athletes play constantly, and have for years. Great filmmakers began making movies early on, and never stopped.

I guess maybe I’m a great gamer, since I started playing games back when Pong first game out, but that won’t pay the bills.

Some people don’t hit their stride and achieve greatness until later in life, so there’s no reason to rule it out. With that exception dismissed, I’m still left with this question:

How does true mastery occur, and at what point does skill become mastery? Is it possible for a person of ordinary capabilities and habits to achieve mastery after a lifetime of mediocrity?

I would truly love to master something, but I can’t seem to stay in one place long enough to achieve it.