A good friend of mine recently recommended a wonderful film to me: Jiro Dreams of Sushi. I now recommend it to you. It’s a phenomenal and fascinating study of a man who embodies the disciplined pursuit of perfection. 85-year-old Jiro Ono owns Sukiyabashi Jiro, a 10-seat, $300-per-meal, sushi restaurant located in a Tokyo subway station. (Yes, you read that right…10 seats, subway, $300!) He is considered by many to be the world’s greatest sushi chef. …
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George Bernard Shaw once wrote, “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends upon the unreasonable man.” New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has it write when he adds to this thought by writing, “We have all met unreasonable people in our lives. Some of us have even been called unreasonable—or worse. But if ever there’s been someone qualified …
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Thousands of people have talent. I might as well congratulate you for having eyes in your head. The one and only thing that counts is: do you have staying power? –Noel Coward Eventually, a storm will hit even our best-laid plans. We must welcome these tests, for they often force us in directions we might not have discovered on our own. Some of us will hunker down and wage war on anything that might undermine …
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“An artist revolves in a cycle of masterpieces, the first of which is no less perfect than the last.” Oscar Wilde Last week’s post (Reaching for Greatness) concerned the first half of the creative achievement cycle. The second half of the cycle concerns translating those goals into key projects that contribute to our overall ambition and strategically build our portfolio of work. Completing well-aligned projects generates the creative energy required to drive one’s ambition toward the envisioned …
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“I passionately hate the idea of being with it, I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.” – Orson Welles So you’ve got a vision, a s.u.p.e.r. one. Even the most compelling vision may get sidetracked without some means to keep us on track. Marking our mission with stretch goals provides the impetus needed to catalyze movement, while meeting and re-setting them keeps us advancing confidently. Goals comprise the first …
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“The marble not yet carved can hold the form of every thought the greatest artist has.”–Michelangelo The challenge facing every business artist is to commit to a representative body of masterful work that will stand forever as a testament to their individual artistry. We do not have the luxury, or the human capacity, to chase down every random dream we conjure up. We need a focused image of the future, an artistic vision that vividly …
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All ambitions are lawful except those which climb upward on the miseries or credulities of mankind. All intellectual and artistic ambitions are permissible, up to and even beyond the limit of prudent sanity. – Joseph Conrad The last five installments of Artistry at Work series cover the topic of Authenticity: calling forth our very best. The second five covered the topic of Audience: connecting with with others. The question remains: to what end? This is our …
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“A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and along those fibers as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects.” Herman Melville Trust is the great multiplier in life; it is the oxygen of working artistry. Without it, we cannot perform our best work. Without it, creativity is rendered irrelevant. Without it, there can be no collaboration, an undeniable necessity for every business artist. Recent research …
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“An artist needn’t be a clergyman or a churchwarden, but he certainly must have a warm heart for his fellow men.” Vincent van Gogh In business art, the ability to successfully connect with others is determined by our behavior toward them. We all wish our artistry to be appreciated, and we must appreciate the unique excellence of others, respecting them as fellow business artists. Just as failure to be appreciated can choke our creative engine, …
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