NotitiesCreativity Inc
Ed Catmull
In "Creativity Inc," Ed Catmull reflects on the uncertainties he faced despite achieving success at Pixar, questioning his purpose and the direction of his career. He recalls the confidence of industry leaders and seeks to understand why intelligent people sometimes make poor decisions that jeopardize their companies. The narrative explores the tension between accomplishment and the search for new challenges.
There was a time, however, when my purpose here felt a lot less clear to me. And it might surprise you when I tell you when. (Page 7)
Note: Mooie cliffhanger
Despite being novice filmmakers at a fledgling studio in dire financial straits, we had put our faith in a simple idea: If we made something that we wanted to see, others would want to see it, too. (Page 8)
In fulfilling a goal, I had lost some essential framework. Is this really what I want to do? I began asking myself. The doubts surprised and confused me, and I kept them to myself. I had served as Pixar’s president for most of the company’s existence. I loved the place and everything that it stood for. Still, I couldn’t deny that achieving the goal that had defined my professional life had left me without one. Is this all there is? I wondered. Is it time for a new challenge? (Page 9)
I’d spent two decades building a train and laying its track. Now, the thought of merely driving it struck me as a far less interesting task. (Page 9)
What would be my organizing principle now? (Page 10)
Note: Herkkenbaar
I especially remember the confidence. The leaders of these companies radiated supreme confidence. Surely, they could only have reached this apex by being very, very good. But then those companies did something stupid—not just stupid-in-retrospect, but obvious-at-the-time stupid. I wanted to understand why. What was causing smart people to make decisions that sent their companies off the rails? I didn’t doubt that they believed they were doing the right thing, but something was blinding them—and keeping them from seeing the problems that threatened to upend them. (Page 11)
Note: Something was blinding them