A few years ago I developed an interest in learning about modern art. I downloaded a book titled “What Are You Looking At?” It was a look at the 150 year history of modern artists, their paintings, and the place each piece holds in the story of modern art. It had a profound impact on me when looking at modern art, and has taught me valuable lessons in more parts of my life than just art.
What Makes Modern Artists Great?
Pablo Picasso, Monet, and other great artists didn’t become sensations overnight. Actually, if they were alive today they might be surprised at their place in modern art history. The path of modern art is winding.
The great artists spent years perfecting their craft, but as non-mercantilists know, value isn’t created by how much time you spend on something. Great art is no different. Great art also needs to find it’s place within the story. A painting needs to fit the timeline or, if it doesn’t fit the timeline, have a large enough following to pivot the path of modern art.
Modern art history is like a serpent, slithering back and forth and constantly moving forward. Great modern artists of today don’t know their place on the serpentine path until it’s been written. They can guess by trying to fit the political, social, and directional climate of the art world, but there is no way of truly knowing where the snake-like path will slither next. There’s no bypassing this fact.
For every Picasso there were hundreds of great artists who failed to find their place in the archives of modern history. Were they less talented? Maybe, but probably not much less talented. They failed to solidify their spot because the path didn’t slither close enough to their work. They missed the boat. That’s not to say their work was all-for-not, actually quite the opposite.
Finding Your Place
Pretend for a minute you want to be the Picasso of whatever industry you’re interested in. What would you do? You’d probably spend everyday working on your craft. Your craft probably isn’t painting but it might be teaching, accounting, marketing, or some other skill. Everyday you’re going to do tasks related to those skills and one day your skills will be Picasso-level in that field.
But wait, you thought you were trying to find your path, and perfecting a skill isn’t finding your path. Exactly! Remember, for every Picasso there were hundreds of artists with painting mastery. They failed to fit into modern art history because the path never slithered close enough to them. However, the skills the non-Picasso painters developed allowed them other opportunities, to live a fair lifestyle, and be equipped with tools to find happiness.
Lesson For You
This same methodology can be applied to CEOs of companies. Not everyone is going to be Mark Zuckerberg, but that doesn’t mean not trying. There are thousands of other companies needing CEOs who have mastered their craft. Although the path didn’t turn every CEO, who worked hard daily, into Zuckerberg, that doesn’t mean an unhappy life for them.
Finding your path isn’t something you should strive for. Your path will find itself in time. Instead, your focus should be on daily improvements, and hard work, which leads you to a place you want to be. This will equip you with the tools to succeed in whatever role you end up in. Maybe your industry’s path will scoop you up and fast track you to Picasso or Zuckerberg successes. But if it doesn’t, you have the ability to achieve personal success because you focused your time on yourself, not your place in the path.