And it will cost you (is it worth it to you? if you truly want to master something you will have to invest in learning, not just with time but with cash). I know someone who paid $5k for a coaching program. The most integral part is a daily call with 3 people you don’t know. These folks keep you on track and check in with you each day to see if you’re doing the things that will lead to success. But they are amateurs in what you want to learn. They help you with the right habits. Help you stick to what the teacher has taught you.

Before that though there is coaching with the right person. I admit that person is tough to find. It took Ira Riklis 20 years to find a ski coach that could teach him skiing. I’m sure he also paid quite a bit for lessons. And this is for leisure, not business! But it shows it’s important to him. Look at the enjoyment he’s gotten from it!

Here are things that you can do to get ready for ski season.

1. PURCHASE YOUR SEASON SKI PASS

Get your season ski pass early (as in October) to save money. Most resorts offer discount season passes right now.

3. BUY SKI GEAR ON SALE

Visit your favorite ski shops now to get the best deals on ski gear. Retailers are getting rid of all last year’s models before they stock up with new gear, and the dream ski gear may be waiting for you up to 75% off the retail price.

4. BUY YOUR GEAR AT SKI SWAPS

October-November is the time for ski swaps. Some ski shops also host ski swaps in their store or local organizations hold them. Ski swaps are skiers gold mines so ask your local ski shops about them. Other great ways to save money on gear is looking for ski equipment on eBay or Craig’s List. Sometimes you can also find deals at ski rental places. Start now.

5. SHOP FOR NEW GEAR

If having the latest and greatest is important to you, Winter 2010 gear has already arrived to stores. Be sure to check out new gear for the latest styles.

6. GET IN SHAPE

Time to exercise so you’ll be ready when the resorts open. Work on cardio and strength building exercises for your legs. Slopes usually open next month so you have some time.

I’ve found the best thing to improve your balance in advance of ski season (which is coming soon) is to practice balance. That means not putting too much weight on the front or back of your ski. I found a guide to improving balance and guess what it had? An ad for the Wii.

Keep your weight centered, your torso facing your direction you’re going, your knees slightly flexed.
If you have a Wii get Wii Fit and it will gauge how you distribute your weight. It’s a good way to get in shape when there’s no snow. They have ski racing, jumping and even snowboarding and you get rated at the end of the excercise.

You see, on each run, you’re competing against yourself. It ranks your performances and there are various levels. This seems an apt comparison to real life, doesn’t it? When it comes to balance it’s all about you and making improvements in your skill.

More about success from Ira Riklis.

How does one get to Carnegie Hall, or do anything great to mastery? Practice, Practice, and Practice.

But without the right teacher or mentor you’re practice will not lead you to mastery.  Ira should understand this because he didn’t get it right the first time. Or the next. In fact it took 20 years to find the right teacher to take him above advanced to EXPERT.

“I had a series of lessons, both group and private, with many different teachers over a period of about 20 years and was stuck in a rut of being an advanced skier. I was never going to be an expert skier. I could more or less handle any slope, but not with a high degree of confidence or elegance.”

Do you have the kind of perseverance to keep looking, keep practicing until you find this kind of coach? Or will you give up after 5 years? or 10?

It sometimes seems like your dream (whatever it may be), is so far off…

“I was gazing longingly at those on the slopes that could gracefully master any terrain, their movements so fluid and beautiful.  How I dreamed and wished that one day I would be able to do the same.  However, I had pretty well resigned myself to the fact of life that, as one of my friends once said after watching me ski, “fat, Jewish, kids from New York don’t ski like that.”

You must fight resignation where you have accepted that you cannot go further. Another businessman who teaches about self mastery is Mark O. Haroldsen. He writes:

Being smart or having a particular talent is certainly helpful, but the most successful people aren’t necessarily, or even usually, the smartest or most talented. They are the ones who put in the time and mastered the skills they needed to succeed.

Ira Riklis found his ski coach Mike Bartasuis and that made all of the difference. He’s now an expert skiier. Can you imagine the self-satisfaction now every time he skis? This is a key to success in anything you want to accomplish.

Ira Riklis talks about how learning to ski and overcome fears is part of becoming an expert skier. It also applies to life. There isn’t a shortcut unfortunately. You have to face the fear of falling (or failing).

“…there is no easy way to learn to make an expert turn. Let me repeat, there is NO EASY WAY to learn to make an expert turn…A non-expert skier is scared of falling. Having broken a leg and an arm, I can understand why. The tendency is to lean into the slope so as to feel confident…”

What’s the difference between the beginner and the expert? faith in your abilities and the courage to go down a steep mountain face first. Yes, the scariest way possible.

“In an expert turn, the skier has to have faith that every move will be executed properly and on time without thought. That means that if anything is off, the effect will be to launch yourself, not unlike a missile, down the mountain, FACE FIRST.”

Ira Riklis says it’s a painful process of learning — and it hurts!

“I named this maneuver a “face plant” because it was like planting your ski pole but using your face instead. In the effort to learn to be an expert skier, I performed many a face plant. To truly understand how difficult this process is, you must realize how painful each face plant is. Not only have you been punched in the face, but some of that snow (often ice) feels like a brick.”

He says the pain is difficult but worth it:

“The pain radiates down your entire body, especially your chest because after the face plant you land with a thud on your chest. Then there is the fact that your face is covered in freezing snow, which as it melts now saturates your clothing.

But after some practice the payoff is there and the pain is a past memory:

“I don’t remember the face plants really anymore; but every time I glide down a slope and experience the exhilaration, I don’t know if I can even find words to explain the joy and thrill that I feel. Mike got me to understand that I had to trust the turn and that I would eventually be rewarded by being able to complete the turn.”

The result of your hard work to master something difficult is joy. This is a microcasm for your life. It’s not easy to face but to be truly great you must go through suffering. Not around it. Not above or below it. But through it.