How Creativity Rules the World
You have to be able to harness your tried-and-true methods and structures, the steps that you mapped out to get to your goal, and the knowledge you already have about your business to embrace the contingencies that will arise. You must take care of them quickly, sometimes in ways you hadn’t considered. This is improvisation.
Bob Kulhan is an adjunct professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. He teaches improvisation to students and executives. He asserts that in business, improvisation is “about reacting, being focused and present in the moment at a very high level”. In 2011, two years after I had opened my business, improvisation served me well. An important client who lived in London called and said: “I want to buy a piece by Banksy. And I want to buy it directly from his studio. It is a gift for my husband’s birthday.” I got chills all over. I wanted to please the client, but her request seemed impossible. Banksy, the British street artist, prankster, and provocateur, always operated anonymously. I had no connection to him.