Greatness
exploring the foundations of quality and the currents that fight against mediocrity
sari and
Greatness
Compulsion. I think about that word a lot. I believe that all of us, carelessly walking about planet earth, are intrinsically compelled to do something . It’s in our nature, in the shape of our soul. To excel, to truly be the best, I think it’s crucial to spend time thinking about what that is. Because if you do something other than that, you’re... See more
Dan Shipper • How David Perell Uses ChatGPT as a Creative Partner
the path to excellence is aligning what you do with who you are. Lean in, or better still, dive in, headfirst. The first step is to look inward and think deeply about who you are and what you’re made to do.
When you make something, when you improve something, when you deliver something, when you add some new thing or service to the lives of strangers, making them happier, or healthier, or safer, or better, and when you do it all crisply and efficiently, smartly, the way everything should be done but so seldom is—you’re participating more fully in the... See more
Phil Knight • Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
Love this definition of art, from Robert Pirsig, author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance:
... See moreArt is anything you can do well, anything you can do with quality, anything where there are options for doing it well or poorly. And there are very few things in this world that don't have options for doing it well or poorly. So you can make an art
“anything where there are options for doing it well or poorly”
a thought-provoking read on energetic aliens - the rare few that can sustain their focus on cognitive tasks for more than the avg 4-6hrs a day without burning out.
A lot of companies talk about quality, but if you want your brand to be timeless, you have to be a fanatic about it. Before we launch a Louis Vuitton suitcase, for example, we put it in a torture machine, where it is opened and closed five times per minute for three weeks. And that is not all—it is thrown, and shaken, and crushed. You would laugh
... See moreSuzy Wetlaufer • The Perfect Paradox of Star Brands: An Interview with Bernard Arnault of LVMH
An underrated way to succeed at anything is simply to be ten times better.
Everyone wants to have a unique idea or be a monopoly but you can just be ten times better instead. In a lot of areas, no one is really trying. The world is coated with a film of inertia.
Simon Sarristwitter.comBe a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an environment where excellence is expected.
-Steve Jobs
From Christopher Alexander foreword to Richard Gabriel's "Patterns Of Software":
In my life as an architect, I find that the single thing which inhibits young professionals, new students most severely, is their acceptance of standards that are too low. If I ask a student whether her design is as good as Chartres, she... See more
