The Art & Science of Skillful Living ®

LIFECRAFT ®

Companion User's Guide

PART ONE
Life As A Craft

To practice the whole of life as a craft the way a craftsperson might practice a trade like "textile weaving" or "woodworking," requires that the myriad activities of life be systematically organized, managed and taught in a manner similar to the ways in which we organize, manage and teach our trades, occupations and professions. So we asked; "how do we organize, manage and teach our trades and professions?"

For thousands of years humankind has practiced countless trades and occupations from carpentry and stone masonry to the bakers art and computer programming. Each successive generation of practitioners from the young apprentice, to the skilled journeyman to master craftsman, has grown and nurtured their crafts from simple beginnings into highly refined arts, and sciences.

Over time, as each craft becomes more widely known and practiced, an individual or group of persons arises to record, catalogue and preserve the "body of knowledge" developed by practitioners of the craft. They labor to describe the features and compare the diverse techniques, methods, procedures, and tools, (not to mention jealously guarded secrets) of the craft as it is practiced and evolves from place to place and over time.

From this experience come the teachers. Individuals dedicated to the preservation of the knowledge and development of the craft. Schools arise wherein the systematically recorded practices are carefully taught, and the knowledge and the skills of each apprentice are carefully measured and tested for proficiency in each area of the craft.

At the appointed time, after years of hard work and study comes the craftsperson's "journeywork": the time to go into the world armed with the knowledge and the skill to use the tools of the trade and to distinguish oneself as a journeyman or journeywoman in the applied practice of craftsmanship.

Thus, the answer we found is; there are certain basic elements in common use among the wide range of crafts practiced by humankind.

1. There is a distinguishing "body of knowledge" which defines and differentiates each craft as a whole making it distinct from all others.

2. Often, we find the "body of knowledge" segmented into different portions, sections or elements. The sum of the parts making up the whole. These may be different historical time periods in the growth and development of the craft, or sometimes a particular approach to the craft by an individual or group composing "schools of practitioners" within the craft.

3. There is a hierarchy to the "body of knowledge" from the simple principles to the more complex usually dictating which portions of the knowledge are appropriate for learning at each stage of development starting with the apprentice (beginner), and moving onward to journeyman & journeywoman (skilled practitioner), to master craftsperson (advanced practitioner), to mentor (respected teacher).

4. There is a system of principles and methods employed in the preparation and use of the materials of the craft, the performance of the activities which make up the craft, and the equipment, instruments or tools used in the practice of the craft.

5. There is a body of standards for measuring "craftsmanship" - the skillful practice of the craft according to principles often established and regulated by a collective of practitioners called guilds, societies and associations.

Go Forward to Part II

User's Guide - Companion to the Life Planner

Life Planner® - The LifeCraft Organizer

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