May 2006 Archives
We Need YOU! (but not TOO much): In the mishmash of the business world, the one thing every creative needs to be is a team player, which I find mildly amusing since they are so certain of so little else. Think of it—the rendition of Scheherazade in The Man With One Red Shoe; the suspected secret agent on the first violin violently losing focus, bowing his own creation instead of playing with the orchestra. The orchestra’s conductor must keep everybody true to form; controlling tempo and guiding the players to fruition--in this instance, staying true to the music composer’s intent and not interjecting personal feelings into the performance. How else will we know it is Scheherazade if it isn’t performed recognizably?
As designers, we are privy to advance information and the inside workings of many major companies simply because we prepare their marketing proposals and annual reports. Back in 1988, when the price of oil bottomed out, almost every small Texas entrepreneur suffered cash flow problems unless they were smart enough to diversify. Business in Houston, especially, depended on some facet of the oil economy for healthy cash flow. One evening after a board meeting at my luxury high rise, I struck up a conversation with a neighbor who worked for a big oil company. I asked him what he did at his forty-story office tower in downtown Houston. "I'm one of the big nasties that sit around all day and decide how much you'll pay at the pump," he chuckled. He was a career marketing man at one of the big four oil companies. The whole country was in an uproar about the recent rise in gas prices and it was a hot topic of conversation.
