Artful Making: What Managers Need to Know About How Artists Work

with the positions of actors in the Streetcar example of

Chapter 1. Interruption—better thought of as the introduction

of new material—gives the actor more to think about, more

interesting problems to solve.

In doing so, it fuels innova-

tion. Rather than trying to

avoid these and other inter-

ruptions, actors acquire the

ability to shift their focus rap-

idly to important matters. There’s no reason business people

and organizations can’t do the same.

“Keep your eye on the ball” is a mantra for any game where

you hit or catch a ball. In the batter’s box, Pete Rose used to

whip his head around, watching the baseball clear into the

catcher’s mitt. That’s focus: ...