An unstated job responsibility of mine is to inspire good ideas. No one puts it that way exactly, but there are plenty of times I’m in a meeting to ask the right question. Often—nearly all the time, in fact—I don’t have the answer. I have NO CLUE what the answer is.
I think of a great little moment in Haruki Murakami’s novel Norwegian Wood:
Better to be a first-class matchbox than a second-class match.
I’m not an architect or designer (no match, in other words), but my hope is to serve as that first-class matchbox. Can I push them to state that differently? Can I encourage them to think down a different avenue? Is that the best strategy for this interview?
Also: the better a matchbox I am, the more people will like working with me. That’s a lesson for anyone out there who collaborates.
Taylor Coe 