Personal Mastery Case Study

In Part III, Senge discussed in detail the four core disciplines for building the learning organization: personal mastery, mental models, shared vision and team learning. As to personal mastery, Senge emphasized that the primary asset of organizations is people and that their potential needs can be tapped to the advantage of the organization. Personal mastery is about continuously learning to live creatively rather than reactively and recognizing where one is going and why. Thus, people with personal mastery have an underlying sense of purpose, they know how to work with forces of change rather than resist change, they are inquisitive and though they are individuals, they feel more connected to other people and processes. As such, people may see work as sacred (i.e., of value in itself for enhancing lives) rather than instrumental (i.e., to earn the money to live a full life outside work). …show more content…
However, there is usually resistance to the personal mastery strategy of the organization because its benefits are hard to measure compared to financial success. In addition, personal mastery is empowerment and there is a valid fear that chaos will result if people are empowered in an organization without a shared vision. On the other hand, preventing people from achieving personal mastery gives them a feeling of powerlessness unworthiness to achieve goals. Personal mastery is fostered in the organization by building a climate where people feel free to create visions, be inquisitive, speak the truth and challenge the norm not just making everyone go on mandatory or required training