Living in More Than One World

Matthew E. May delivers lots of timely and relevant information in The Laws of Subtraction: 6 Simple Rules for Winning in the Age of Excess Everything, his engaging new book about doing better work and living more productively and meaningfully. As the title suggests, Matt stresses the value of thoughtfully and strategically paying attention to what is not essential and can be eliminated; the creative importance of emptiness and negative space; and the power of intelligently working within constraints. This is his fourth book since 2006, on top of leading his own Los Angeles-based “ideas agency,” Edit Innovation, and lots of public speaking and blogging.
He has extensive experience working with Toyota, and one of the aspects I particularly enjoyed was the material on Japanese and Zen-based thought and action. It is helpful as I continue to reflect on my recent first time in Tokyo, where I spent a week making presentations about my book. And I am also honored to be one of the 54 “Silhouettes in Subtraction,” people who were invited to write one page each in his book about how subtraction has been important in our life and work. These include thought-provoking essays from the likes of author/executive Chip Conley, presentations guru Nancy Duarte and Little Bets author Peter Sims.
There are a number of captivating illustrations and pictures; appropriate for a book that is at least partially about design. Matt discusses how ideas become creative expression and how things can be and have been built better. You will also find in-depth looks into the creation of the Lexus brand within Toyota; the iconic FedEx logo; the Exhibition Road “shared space” street in London and the thought process that goes into comics, from an interview with Scott McCloud, author of Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art.
A premium is placed on things that are important yet difficult to achieve; such as reflection, quiet, calm and tranquility. On pages 192-198, he succinctly outlines some portals into these states; including mindfulness meditation, neurofeedback and retreats. These may not always be easy, yet the final one is certainly doable: “long, languid showers.”

October is award season. The first of the Nobel prizes are now being announced. And last week we learned of the new group of MacArthur Foundation fellows, who have been awarded what are popularly known as “Genius Grants”. I especially look forward to the MacArthur awards every year. The stories about the awardees and what they have studied and worked on provides a window into human accomplishment, originality and the art of possibility. They introduce us to highly accomplished people we might not have heard of otherwise, particularly if they are working in fields we don’t normally follow. The winners receive $500,000 payable over five years; no strings attached. The foundation decides who gets the fellowships, and you can’t apply. The announcements invariably come as a surprise to those who are chosen. I particularly like how future-oriented the awards are. The foundation explains that the fellowships are “an investment in a person’s originality, insight, and potential. Indeed, the purpose of the MacArthur Fellows Program is to enable recipients to exercise their own creative instincts for the benefit of human society.”

This year’s group is typically eclectic, with a variety of doctors/scientists, writers, (including the novelist Junot Diaz), filmmakers, musicians, photographers and others. The MacArthur website also has profiles of all 873 Fellows going back to the first awards in 1981. It adds up to a fascinating record of human achievement and potential, though for a slightly different take on the process, read Emma Gilbey Keller’s October 2 post on theguardian.  Most of us are not going to be MacArthur Fellows, let alone winners of Nobel Prizes. Yet reading these profiles makes us realize that we can strive to do the kind of work that would be worthy of such notice, whether we receive it or not. We all read, do research, carry out work each day in our various fields, collaborate, plan for the future and so on. Think of yourself as the potential winner of your own private fellowship. And then live up to it.

In the previous entry in a series of posts about my recent Peter Drucker-related visit to Japan,  I wrote about Atsuo Ueda, Drucker’s longtime editor/translator in that country, who supervised the translation of my book. Even though I can’t read the language, I couldn’t resist buying a copy of Mr. Ueda’s new book, Peter F. Drucker Completed Book Guide. It is published by Diamond, Drucker’s longtime publisher, which also published my book.

Among other features, the guide appears to be a summary of each of Drucker’s books, with a beautiful design and the names of each book also in English. Some were different in their Japanese release (such as the multi-volume The Essential Drucker, which originated from a concept developed by Mr. Ueda) and at least one, My Personal History (2005), was not published in the United States. What makes Completed Book Guide particularly worthwhile to own are the thumbnail pictures of each of the book covers in Japan. This is especially true for Drucker’s two novels, The Last of All Possible Worlds (1982) and The Temptation to Do Good (1984).

The guide begins with a 26 page dialogue between Mr. Ueda and Shigesato Itoi. I have to admit I had not heard of Mr. Itoi before, but I’ve discovered that he is quite well known in Japan and beyond for his creative work in many different worlds; such as writing, television, video games and advertising. Given his wide range of talents, accomplishments and interests, it’s not surprising that he should also be associated with Drucker.  I’d love to see an English translation of this dialogue, not to mention the whole book!

If you are anywhere near Arlington, Virginia from now until the end of May, check out the recently extended “D.C. Punk” exhibit at the Arlington County Public Library (where I did an author event in 2009). The combination of flyers for gigs and album cover posters vividly illuminate the music scene of the early punk era. In 2009, I wrote about part of my connection, including being neighbors in the same Arlington apartment building as Henry Rollins before he moved to California to join Black Flag.  Even before that, I first met Henry and his longtime friend Ian MacKaye, who started the phenomenally popular Dischord Records more than 30 years ago, while launching his own band, Minor Threat. Ian became even more popular with his subsequent band, Fugazi. As part of the exhibit, on April 18th the library screened “Instrument – Ten Years with the Band Fugazi :  A Film by Jem Cohen and the Washington D.C. Band Fugazi.” Individuals and companies can learn a lot about branding from studying the history of Ian and Dischord. Another related event takes place on April 26th, when Jennifer Egan will speak about her 2011 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel A Visit from the Goon Squad, a selection of Arlington Reads 2012.
Many other D.C. area bands of the punk era are featured in the exhibit. Whether you go or not, be sure to have a look at the extensive Flickr pages from DSI Archives. Some of the graphics are terrific, and the DIY, entrepreneurial spirit is strong. Another admirable aspect these graphics demonstrate is the commitment to social justice that some of these bands represented.
It’s only fitting that this exhibit takes place in a library, as evidenced by this column in LAWeekly last September: Henry Rollins: The Column! Henry Speaks On His Consciousness-Expanding Trip to the Library of Congress With Ian MacKaye, about a visit to LOC and the National Archives that Henry called “a day of nonstop awe and inspiration.”  Even if you don’t like listening to the music, you can have your consciousness expanded by your in-person or virtual visit to “D.C. Punk” at the Arlington County Public Library.

In these destabilizing times, we need constant help to think in different, more creative ways. The advertising world has long excelled at delivering concise, catchy information in multiple formats. Paul Arden, the longtime executive creative director of the British agency Saatchi & Saatchi, was a master of the art. I was saddened to discover recently that he died in 2008. I reviewed one of his books, It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want to Be: The world’s best-selling book by Paul Arden, for USA TODAY in 2003. After the review ran, I received a gracious handwritten note in the mail from him, thanking me for what I had written. That book and its 2006 follow-up Whatever You Think, Think the Opposite are both stimulating sources of disruptive thinking that can help us get unstuck inside and outside the workplace. They are especially relevant if you are working in or aspire to work in fields that require daily creativity. Both are small-format paperbacks, beautifully designed and reminiscent both in word and image of some of Marshall McLuhan’s classic work. You really have to see the layout and typography to get the full effect, but here are some Arden-isms to consider…  From It’s Not How Good: “Don’t Look for the Next Opportunity. The One You Have in Hand is the Opportunity.” “If You Get Stuck, Draw With a Different Pen.” “When It Can’t Be Done, Do It. If You Don’t Do It, It Doesn’t Exist.” From Whatever You Think: “It’s Not Always Good to Have Ideas.” “Mum! I’ve Failed My Exams. Disaster? It’s An Achievement.” A particularly relevant example of opposite thinking appears on pages 10-11. People told Allen Lane, who founded Penguin Books (the publisher of Whatever You Think) in the mid-1930s, that a high-quality, low-priced paperback publishing venture would not work. Arden says that practically the whole world of publishing and retailing was against Lane and his idea, yet he prevailed and Penguin became a huge, trendsetting success. In that spirit, carve out some time this weekend for opposite thinking, and follow where it leads.

Seemingly random discoveries are part of the pleasure of reading the work of Jorge Luis Borges, and of reading about him. The latest is my discovery of a feature in today’s independent.co.uk, Jonathan Romney’s On cloud nine: Turner Prize-winner Keith Tyson reveals the surprising ideas behind Turner’s mind-bending work. I had never heard of Tyson, a celebrated British artist, before this article. What drew me to it was the notion that Borges’ short story “The Library of Babel” was an influence on Tyson’s wide-ranging art. Tyson was awarded the coveted Turner Prize in 2002. Perusing his website shows him to be a visual artist of startling originality and variety, much like Borges was with the written word.  The interview reveals Tyson’s varied and colorful life history, which indeed sounds like it could be fictional; if not written by Borges at least by a particularly imaginative author. Turner’s assertion that “My whole approach to life and everything comes from a series of existential traumas I experienced when I was about six” certainly makes you want to read on. Apparently the road to art fame — as well as his life now as a family man — was also paved with nervous breakdowns, a gambling addiction and working as a shipyard apprentice on nuclear submarines. He has an upcoming exhibition beginning September 16 at Parasol unit foundation for contemporary art London, Keith Tyson: Cloud Choreography and Other Emergent Systems. (Further searching for today’s post led me to an Alberto Manguel September 24, 2008 piece in The New York Sun, A Universe of Books: Borges’s ‘Library of Babel.’ Manguel is a wonderful writer who has written eloquently on Borges in the past. I have a feeling that Borges — were he still alive — Manguel and Tyson would all take pleasure in the nature of that discovery.)

Gordon Pitts of The Globe and Mail in Toronto has a fascinating Q&A today, Why Joseph Rotman hates the ‘do-gooder’ label,  with businessman/philanthropist/volunteer/educator Joseph Rotman, who seems to embody the idea of living in more than one world. The Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto is named after him. He is highly educated himself and recognizes the value of education not just to individuals, but to all of society. One theme I took away from the interview was that working with and strengthening nonprofit organizations and the arts was in everyone’s interest. They are part of the pillars of making a better life for everyone in a community, or an entire country. Rather than focus so much on shareholder value in business education and running corporations, he says we should use a broader view that takes into account a wider set of stakeholders. “You are part of a total system,” Rotman says, “and, as a corporation and business leader, you have a responsibility to participate in all aspects, which is why I do my community work, why I do my public policy work. I am lucky enough to afford to do it and love doing it.” He sees the arts and the creativity that underpins it as a crucial part of life that should be appreciated on the same level as business, science and technology and other endeavors. The interview is relatively brief, but gives a nice overview of his life, the decisions he’s made about his career and education and how he’s gotten to where he is at age 74. Although he’s well past traditional retirement age, he is doing work and putting his personal fortune to use to benefit as many people as possible. I think it’s significant that the tagline for the Rotman School is “a new way to think.”

If, like me, you are reluctant to show your sketches to other people, be sure to read Art Markman’s new Psychology Today blog post, Tools for Innovation III: Sketches and your brain. Art is a friend and a cognitive scientist at the University of Texas at Austin. The post is one of three recent ones based on ideas (in this case from a chapter by Barbara Tversky and Masaki Suwa) from an Oxford University Press book he and UT engineering professor Kristin Wood co-edited, Tools for Innovation. When you have ideas for innovation, sometimes the best ways to think about, formulate and communicate them are by making some sort of visual representation, even if it is crude, dashed off and open to interpretation. But Art correctly points out that many of us are concerned about what people will think of our less-than-stellar artistic talents, so we either don’t make the sketch, or don’t show it to others. “But it is these very limitations in our ability to sketch perfect what we are thinking,” he writes, “that leaves room for those drawings to be reinterpreted.” If we can get over this limitation, there is a potential for a real breakthrough, because other people may have interpretations we wouldn’t have considered, and that can sharpen our thinking. Another concept he points out is that since so much of the brain is visually-oriented, limiting your ideas to either spoken words, or words on paper, can act as a damper on your creativity. In a similar vein, see Dan Roam’s bestselling book The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures.

A nice place to be this week, starting two days ago and running through July 5, is the Aspen Ideas Festival. A large and diverse group of big thinkers from academia, business, law, science, government, nonprofits, the arts, architecture, media and more have converged in Colorado for what looks to be a highly stimulating event. Since most of us can’t be there, the next best thing is following it online at the festival’s website and on the blogs from Atlantic Online. The Atlantic is a co-sponsor of the event, along with the Aspen Institute. Just a handful of the more recognized names from the 200 speakers and moderators: Madeleine Albright, James A. Baker III, Stephen Breyer, David Brooks, Marian Wright Edelman, Thomas L. Friedman, Howard Gardner, Frank Gehry, Alan Greenspan, Sandra Day O’Connor, Tim O’Reilly, Susan Rice, Charlie Rose and Eric Schmidt. You can see the entire list of the speakers and moderators, with photos and thumbnail descriptions, on the festival site. The Aspen Daily News has an interesting piece reflecting on the first day of the festival, and looking to possible highlights from the upcoming speakers. You can view videos from the festival on the Audio Video Library portion of the festival site. One of the several that are available now is Google Looks at the Economy: In Conversation With Eric Schmidt, in which Google’s Chairman of the Board and CEO is interviewed by Kai Ryssdal, host of “Marketplace,” on American Public Media. We are fortunate to live in an age where we can have a virtual experience of these major events (including music and literary festivals, and to some extent, professional conferences) that we can’t attend in person.

The science of creativity in The Globe and Mail provided a reminder to me about Jacob Bronowski, the scientist/author who achieved a degree of fame in the early 1970s with his BBC documentary The Ascent of Man. It also introduced me to the writer of this compelling essay, the Canadian poet/essayist/short story writer Robyn Sarah. In the space of her short piece, she weaves together background on Bronowski, whom she describes as “mathematician, physicist, biologist, humanist, lover of the arts, incomparable teacher, passionate believer in progress;” a brief anecdote about her daughter’s reaction to a Leonardo da Vinci painting in a picture book and a thoughtful review of Bronowski’s collection of essays Science and Human Values. Originally delivered as lectures at M.I.T. in 1953, they explore, among other things, the nature of, and similarity between, creativity in science and the arts. Sarah describes Bronowski’s work in Science and Human Values as “dense with thought and information, but lucid in style and beautifully written.” The same might be said about her own essay. The science of creativity is part of the “Buried Treasures” series in The Globe and Mail’s excellent book section. Among other reviews, essays, lists and special features in this section is a new one, Summer is short…, in which a short story appears every week until Labor Day weekend. It’s being done in partnership with HarperCollins, and intersperses contemporary and classic writers. The most recent story is from Joyce Carol Oates, and next week’s will be by Herman Melville. A nice bonus in the book section from June 27 is the cleverly-titled Alain de Botton is packing your suitcase, as the ubiquitous de Botton lets us in on his summer travel reading.