Good Quote Archive
Posted: July 21, 2010
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest of men.” -- Roald Dahl (1916-1990)
My Take:
For sure, these are serious times, a point not lost in the workplace. Efficiency, cost cutting and competition affect all of us in many ways, some direct, some far more subtle.
Often lost, however, is the realization that none of us can keep up a fast pace without some relief, and not necessarily the kind measureable in hours and dollars. But there should always be time for the kind that although makes no sense, has the desired effect of making people feel good.
As Dahl so simply states, the smart folks are aware of this. They know you simply can't take pressure and meet a constant stream of deadlines unless there are a few enjoyable pauses along the way.
Being nonsensical is of particular benefit to creative types who when given a chance, can create their own kind of diversion.
During my orientation as a new employee, I was to visit the copy chief of the company's advertising department. He was an Ed Asner type, somewhat stocky, balding and often with a disposition best described as gruff.
A couple of people told me with a grin that during my visit to be sure and ask "the chief" about his special copy of the corporate magazine. It had been presented to him during a boys' night out party a couple of years before to celebrate his 25th anniversary with the company
So after he and I had gone through the usual chit chat, I asked him about the magazine. With an impish smile, he fished a key from his desk drawer, turned around in his chair, unlocked a trunk on the floor behind him and soon found what he was looking for.
What he handed me was a raunchy version of the magazine that had been created by everyone in the advertising department -- copy writers, graphic designers, photographers and anyone else who had ideas.
To say it was a hoot is a gross understatement. Clearly, though, it was a product of collective genius.
The chief's eyes danced as I eased through the magazine page by page.
As I reached the back cover, he explained it took a couple of weeks afterward to get everyone settled back down to the work at hand. But he went on to say the challenge and opportunity to create a nonsensical one of a kind had left a more energized staff in its wake. I remember his saying "it took a week to get everybody calmed down."
You may remember the old saying, "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." Well, that still applies, even in the workplace. So much the better if that play is nothing but pure nonsense.
About Dhal:
He was born in Wales of Norwegian parents and rose to the rank of Wing Commander in the Royal Air Force during WWII.
In 1953, he married Hollywood actress Patricia Neal.
Soon afterward, he wrote a story for The Saturday Evening Post about his wartime experiences. That was followed by the first of several children's books. About the same time, he began writing adult short stories with dark foreboding plots. He was so successful that even now, his books are ranked among the world's bestselling fiction.
He also wrote screenplays, the most notable of which were for two films, "You Only Live Twice" and "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang."
Much of his literary influences originated during his childhood when he was an avid reader. He also credited much of his abiity to write to his mother who was always telling him stories about her life as a girl back in Norway.
He died in 1990 of a rare blood disease.
Posted: May 28, 2010
"Imagine a world without photography, one could only imagine.” -- Berenice Abbott (1898-1991)
My Take:
Photography was unknown when the very earliest farm publications were founded. Publishers had to rely on artwork or highly descriptive narrative to portray reality.
That wasn't easy. Even worse, using graphics and words opened the door for a lot of exaggeration and misrepresentation. Artists drew either from their or someone else's memory or how someone had described the object or scene.
Someof the most classic examples were the first art renderings of Niagara Falls. Almost every graphic interpretation showed the falls as being much higher than they actually were.
Yet, without photography, people were free to imagine. They weren't restricted in how they interpreted what they couldn't see. In a way, that could also be considered an advantage. That's because there was no way they could be repudiated or corrected short of comparing what was imagined with the real thing. And in those days, that would have involved considerable time and expense.
Agriculture benefited tremendously with the invention of photography. Photographs were invaluable in how-to-do-it features, an important part of ag publications. As the saying goes, they were, indeed, worth a thousand words. Practical issues aside, photography allowed people to fully appreciate the beauty of the rural countryside.
It would be interesting to know what Abbott's reaction would be to today's digital technology that provides many ways to combine imagination with photography. As a purist, she most likely would be distressed. At the same time, however, she would also be excited by how many photographs are being infused with the imagination of those skilled enough to wed the two.
About Abbott:
She was born in Springfield, Ohio, and attended Ohio State University for a short time before moving to New York's Greenwich Village.
Although her first interest was journalism she turned to sculpture and eventually to photography when Man Ray hired her as his assistant at his portrait studio. She began using his studio to take her own photographs and then started a studio of her own. Most of her subjects were people, especially those in art and literary circles.
In 1925, Man Ray introduced her to Eugene Atget whose work she greatly admired. After Atget's death, she was able to buy many of his photographs. Some were included in a book of his work she published in 1930.
Abbott returned to New York in 1929 with the idea of only visiting. But realizing the city's photographic potential, she sold her studio in France and began an intense project of photographing New York. Many of her pictures of buildings since destroyed, have become historically significant.
Abbott was very concerned about the city environment and attempted to show through photography that it was the consequence of man's collective actions. She did several important photographic projects including one with Elizabeth McCausland, an art critic, involving photographing small towns between Maine and Florida. She was also inventive and started a business called the "House of Photography" in which photographic devices she invented could be sold. Later, she moved to Maine where she died in 1991.
Throughout her long career, Abbott was most known for her straight photography, photographs not manipulated in any way either at the time of exposure or in the darkroom. That belief was clearly evident in the three books she published as well as in the major contributions she made to 10 other books.
Posted: April 30, 2010
"Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.” -- Albert Szent-Gyorgyi (1893-1986)
My Take:
During my 17 years of teaching community photography courses, I always suggested an exercise to show what a big difference there is between looking and seeing.
I told the students all they had to do was walk the equivalent of at least six blocks of a route they drive every day on their way to school or work. Although not a requirement, I suggested they do that and report their results. At least two or three in each class would take my suggestion seriously.
The results were predictable. All of them said when walking they saw things they had never noticed in the literally hundreds of times they had driven that same street.
Then I pushed the issue by asking if anything else happened. Invariably, they said they would, for example, look at a building and wonder who designed it. Or they would see a garden and wondered who planted it. Or they would see the juxtaposition of several visual elements and wonder what time of day would be best for photographically capturing all the nuances of that particular scene.
They were able to make these discoveries because they were seeing rather than merely looking. And because they were walking, they had time to become stimulated to think what they had not thought before.
Journalism is no different, a point you most likely have unconsciously proved many times. Indeed, journalism really is a matter of discovering, thinking, following up on those thoughts then reporting what was found out.
One of the finest compliments any journalist can receive is to have someone say, “I just read your article and I really liked it because I hadn’t thought of it that way before.”
About Szent-Gyorgyi:
He was born in Budapest where his mother’s father and brother were professors of Anatomy in the University of Budapest. He matriculated in 1911 and studied in his uncle’s laboratory until he began serving on the Italian and Russian fronts during WWI.
After the war, he completed his studies and worked with pharmacologists and studied electrophysiology before going to Hamburg for a two-year course in physical chemistry. Then came a series of several prestigious positions at European universities where he conducted extensive research leading to notable discoveries concerning cellular growth, hormones, muscles and the discovery of ascorbic acid.
Szent-Gyorgyi left Hungary in 1947 to settle in the U.S. where he became Director of Research at the Institute of Muscle Research, in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
Later in life, he began to investigate free radicals as a possible cause of cancer. His interest in cancer led to his establishing the National Foundation for Cancer Research. He became a member of the National Academy of Sciences in 1956. He continued to live in Woods Hole until his death in 1986.
Posted: February 15, 2010
"If you want a chicken, you got to get the chicken.” -- Elliott Hubbard ( 1966- )
My Take:
I recently met Hubbard in Florida minutes after he had opened his booth at the annual Art Fest in Fort Myers, an event for which only 200 of 800 applicants are accepted.
The crowd had begun to build when I walked by and saw his exhibit of some truly colorful clay pieces some of which were priced into the four figure range. He enthusiastically stuck out his hand and with a big smile invited me to have a closer look.
I didn't stay but a minute. Yet, in that short time I identified him as being not only a fine artist but also an exciting man. When I asked him about his talent, he said he had a strong urge inside him to create when he was eight years old. Not long afterward, he knew art would be the passion he would pursue.
I commented that sometimes passion rather than education is what drives a person forward. That's when he threw back his shoulders and said directly and convincingly, "If you want a chicken, you got to get the chicken."
I thanked him, took another look at his works and left.
Later, I thought seriously about what he had said and tried to remember the last time I had witnessed such enthusiasm in ag journalism's ranks.
Perhaps that's being a bit unfair. Yet, you would be wise to take note: Hubbard is an entity unto himself, a free spirit whose profession rises in direct proportion to his investment in it, a happily intense man who openly and proudly says the word "restrictions" isn't included in his vocabulary.
There's no stopping to those who have those qualities. Nor is fear, uncertainty or indecision ever likely to override the confidence they have in themselves and their profession.
They want that chicken and they're getting it.
About Hubbard:
He along with 11 brothers and sisters grew up in the small rural community of Blakely, Georgia. His father was a carpenter. His mother is a homemaker who enjoys painting in her spare time.
Inspired by his mother to follow his talent, Hubbard was in the 6th grade when he received his first art award, a summer scholarship to the Fine Art Gallery in Albany, Georgia, where he worked with clay.
Later, he worked with watercolors, pencil, pastels, acrylics and oils but eventually returned to clay as his medium. He spends many hours hand building and creating original clay sculpture to which he sometimes adds metal or wood.
In the meantime, he has refined his glazing and firing techniques. And he has discovered new ways to express emotion and thought in his works that stimulate conversation.
Hubbard has won 21 awards and participated in 36 group exhibitions. His work hangs in 6 collections plus homes throughout the U.S. and in several foreign countries. He and his family live in Fairburn, Georgia, an Atlanta suburb.
Says Hubbard, "I love art because it gives me the opportunity to share a part of my heart, to enlighten and enrich others. When creating, there are no boundaries."
Posted: December 28, 2009
“Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.” -- Voltaire (1694-1778)
My Take:
Although these 11 words may appear innocent to you as a journalist, to the contrary, they are exceedingly powerful.
I try to think of this every time I meet a person. It’s also a key issue whenever I interview to get information.
When I meet a person for the first time, I can instantly learn much about him not by how he answers my questions but rather by the questions he asks me. Even then, there are two aspects to consider.
First, how many questions does he ask? If he asks only one or two questions and definitely none at all, that’s a clear signal he has little to no interest in knowing anything about me. It’s also a strong indicator he is primarily interested only in himself.
Second, what kind of questions does he ask? It’s one thing for a person who has never met me to be satisfied in knowing only simple details. But it’s quite another if he asks for my opinions and viewpoints or wants to know more about what I do. Frankly, the latter is what makes me want to stay in contact with him.
In interviewing, I always assume that whatever he thinks of me is going to be largely determined by what kind of questions I ask.
If my questions are trite and give him little opportunity to express himself, he is likely to identify me as a shallow minded opportunist who is using him to further my own agenda.
His attitude, however, will be quite different if my questions are thoughtful, respect his privacy and acknowledge what he knows and believes. In that stimulating environment, I will soon gain his trust and confidence in me as a journalist.
About Voltaire:
Francois-Marie Arouet used Voltaire as a pen name. He was born in Paris and attended a Jesuit college. His wit, intelligence and defense of civil liberties made him one of France’s greatest writers and philosophers. Indeed, at 17, he was already circulating among Parisian aristocrats. Eventually, his writings included plays, novels, essays and poetry plus many historical and scientific works, thousands of letters and hundreds of books.
His sharp wit, however, often got him into trouble with the authorities. He was also an outspoken critic of religious intolerance and persecution. At one point, he was exiled for three years and spent the time in England.
Voltaire was eventually accepted and returned to Paris. But soon after, he became sick and died. When asked on his deathbed by a priest to renounce the devil and turn to God, he is alleged to have replied, “For God’s sake, let me die in peace.” His remains lie in Paris’ Pantheon.
Posted: November 27, 2009
“Just because you are good at something doesn't mean you should be pigeonholed.” -- Carlos Irwin Estevez a.k.a. Charlie Sheen (1965 -- ) in an episode of "Two And A Half Men"
My Take:
You entered this profession at zero. That is, although you might have excelled at journalism in college or even high school, that was to earn a grade, not make a living. Only when you went to work did you begin to prove that yes, you really could write well enough that someone would pay you to do it.
What often happens, however, is that we feel so fortunate to have a good job, we forget how deep an imprint it can make on both ourselves and others. If we do the job well, there's a tendency to stick with it. After all, the chance we took is working. So we ask ourselves, why should we bother to challenge ourselves all over again? This is even more likely when whoever signs our paycheck reassures us of the great job we're doing.
That certainly happens in the entertainment profession. All of us can name actors who having played one character for several years in a highly successful TV series, suddenly find themselves hopelessly typecast. This problem can occur in any profession, including ours.
In Webster's dictionary, to be pigeonholed means to be put aside indefinitely, to categorize or classify. I don't believe any of us wants that to happen to us.
So if you have been doing the same job so long that you do it very well, you would be wise to take a careful look at your future. It may very well be time for you to make an upward or outward move.
About Charlie Sheen:
It's probably unfair to credit Sheen with this quote because those words most likely came from whomever wrote the script. As for Sheen himself, Google his name for plenty of entertaining reading.
Posted: September 28, 2009
“The reason why so few good books are written is that so few people who write know anything.” -- Walter Bagehot (1826 - 1877)
My Take:
Although Bagehot's name isn't all that well known, his literary contributions on government, literature and economics are impressive. That may be the reason he felt strongly enough about good writing to write the quote.
I wouldn't, however, limit his thoughts to just books. To me, his quote also applies to magazines and publications of all kinds. In any case, his quote is as accurate now as it was then.
Before computers, identifying writers, definitely the good ones, was fairly easy. Our society recognized writers as possessing significant talent. It also regarded the publishing of a book as a major accomplishment.
Now, however, there are few if any qualifiers. Those whose writing is disseminated by any means consider themselves writers. Also very apparent is that few of these people have in-depth knowledge concerning the subjects they write about. They use "facts" from questionable sources and do little to verify them.
My guess is that if Bagehot felt strongly enough about the subject to write that quote nearly 150 years ago, he would look upon our present situation as a journalistic catastrophe. For sure, we in ag journalism must increasingly know more if we are to be regarded as an accurate source of information.
About Bagehot:
Bagehot, born in England, studied mathematics at University College, London, then went on to earn a master's degree in philosophy. He joined his father who was in the shipping and banking business. Later, he wrote for different publications and in 1855 joined a friend in founding the National Review. Then he became editor-in-chief of The Economist, a publication founded by his father-in-law. In 1860, Bagehot increased the amount of news about the United States and as a result had significant influence among political leaders. Over the years, he authored three books. One of them, The English Constitution, compares the British and American governments and is considered a classic work.
Posted: August 25, 2009
“You’ve read about how print publishing is a dying industry, right? A lot of that is hype, spread about by a bunch of naysayers who are locked into an outmoded definition of magazines.” -- David Zinczenko
My Take:
This is a sharp departure from the usual because this quote was written only a few weeks ago and appears in the latest issue of Men’s Health, the world’s largest men’s magazine.
More important, it targets an extremely timely subject with a strongly worded opinion by the editor of a prominent and highly successful magazine.
It would be awfully tempting for an ag journalist to rationalize or even reject this quote on the basis of the ag press being different from mass magazines. That would be a mistake because editorially, the only difference is the subject matter.
The underlying principles don’t change. Neither has the old triad of message, method and audience that’s been around for a long time. It applies to every one of the thousands of magazines being published.
On that thought, I will give you a project. Buy the latest issue of Men’s Health and see what happens when, conceptually and stylistically speaking, you substitute what you read with what could be written about some agricultural subject. Admittedly, that will be a real stretch with some of the editorial material. But try it anyway.
Also, be sure you read “From The Editor.” You will find the above quote plus some other thoughts that might cause you to ponder during your next coffee break.
Who knows, for the sake of your health, you might become a regular reader of the magazine, maybe even a better writer.
About Zinczenko:
Biographical information is hard to come by. But we do know he attended high school in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and is now 38 years old. Once an overweight child, Zinczenko is not only editor-in-chief of Men's Health and editorial director of Women's Health, but also author of several best selling books related to health, fitness and diet. He's widely regarded in publishing circles as a visionary.
Posted: July 25, 2009
"I want to touch people with my art. I want them to say 'he feels deeply, he feels tenderly." -- Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890)
My Take:
Think about this for a bit and you might conclude, as I have, that writing has a close kinship with art, photography and music. Maybe our relationship isn't as if we were a brother or sister but certainly we can consider them first cousins.
Not only are they related, they also have much in common. For example, all four must be created within certain parameters. That is, writing can exist only if there is a language. Artists must have a medium with which to express themselves. There can be no photography without light. And music can be composed only with a set number of notes.
Maybe the most important similarity is that the creator is driven not so much by the need to express but rather by the desire to share with others. How well the creator accomplishes that goal determines, in turn, how the audience reacts to the creator. It's a two-way street, an important point I believe Van Gogh was addressing.
Nothing quite touches any of us as powerfully as having readers congratulate us for what they consider to be a fine piece of writing. Yes, those are compliments. More than that, however, they confirm, as Van Gogh says, that you felt deeply and tenderly about the subject of your story or article. The same is also true for those of us who make photographs.
About Vincent Van Gogh:
Van Gogh was born in the Netherlands and originally studied to be a minister. But reactions others had toward his unorthodox behavior caused him to feel unloved and without friends. That's when he turned to art.
His first works were still life subjects and paintings depicting peasants at work. He used dark colors and heavy brushstrokes. During a visit in 1886 to Paris to see his brother, he was attracted to the impressionist art he saw there, resulting in his paintings becoming lighter in appearance. In 1888, he moved to Arles in southern France where he painted his most expressive works.
In the meantime, he was suffering from violent seizures. During a seizure in 1888, he cut off one of his ears after threatening French painter Paul Gauguin, who was visiting him at the time. Two years later, he committed suicide.
Although Van Gogh is now considered one of the most famous painters in modern art, he was never recognized as such. In fact, he sold only one painting during his entire lifetime.
Posted: June 26, 2009
"Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative."
-- Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
My Take:
Do you really believe being consistent is a virtue? It wouldn't surprise me if you did because that's the context in which consistency is generally used. But think about it for only a little bit and you will see why that's in error.
If you are consistently good, you may not be getting worse but neither are you getting any better. The same is true if you are consistently bad. From that, you can easily conclude consistency represents no significant movement in any direction.
That's even worse if you are a journalist because it means you are going nowhere while your audience moves on. Even if you create what you consider to be your best, you can't stay that way indefinitely, no matter which communication medium you use.
You must not change merely for the sake of change. Your purpose must be to experiment with new methods and approaches. For the individual journalist, that means changing writing style or placing greater emphasis on such vital elements as better headlines and tighter editing.
Imagination not only is the driving force behind all fine writing, it's the hinge on which swings your future as an ag journalist.
About Oscar Wilde:
Wilde was born in Dublin, Ireland, of a mother who was a successful writer and a father who was Ireland's leading ear and eye doctor. He studied classic literature at Trinity College and was awarded a scholarship to Magdalen College, Oxford, where he won the 1878 Newdigate Prize for his poem "Ravenna."
That laid the foundation for his writing of many short stories, poems, essays and quotations that have continued to be popular with people throughout the world. Also, he has been the subject of many biographies, stage plays and television presentations.
Wilde figured prominently in the esthetic movement in Britain. He became involved in bisexual and homosexual relationships that later were responsible for him serving a two-year prison sentence. Suffering from failing health, he died three years after his release.
Posted: May 20, 2009
“Every person has a right to his opinion. But no one has a right to be wrong with the facts.” -- Bernard Baruch (1870-1965)
My Take:
Such plain talk all but shuts out any further discussion. For that reason alone, many might dismiss it as being too blunt. Yet, now more than ever, it begs to be recognized and held in high regard among journalists.
Perhaps at no other time in history have so many people run fast and loose with so-called facts. Far too many facts are skewed, quoted out of context, distorted by opinion or just plain wrong. At the same time, finding reliable facts has become increasingly difficult. The source may be unknown. Or if known, the quality of the information may still be questionable.
The internet has had a profound effect on truth. Information is streaming from anyone and everyone anywhere and everywhere and no one is accountable. Sometimes, the accuracy of facts can be traced. But few journalists have the time and patience to do that.
There is no ready answer to this dilemma. About all we can do is seek what we believe to be the best possible information sources, then couple that with our own judgment in deciding if the information is, indeed, the real thing .
About Bernard Baruch:
Born in Camden, South Carolina, Baruch moved to New York City in 1880 where he graduated from City College. Having a keen mind for finance, he joined a Wall Street firm and later bought a seat on the New York Stock Exchange.
Baruch went on to serve as an unpaid advisor to every president from Wilson to Eisenhower. Although he was most influential while serving as chairman of the War Industries Board during World War I, Baruch was appointed by President Truman to serve as U.S. representative to the United Nations Atomic Commission. In fact, it was Baruch who suggested a plan for UN inspection of atomic energy production.
Posted: April 2, 2009
"If you can learn to write faithfully of what you can see and judge to be true life, you will speak to everybody." -- Eudora Welty (1909-2001)
My Take:
Luckily, we in ag journalism write in an environment that encourages us to, as Welty states, write faithfully of what we can see and judge to be true life. As a result, our writing does have universal appeal.
Still, we aren’t immune to the possibility of our writing being colored or somewhat distorted. That can occur when commercial interests are involved. It can also occur when we must accommodate or work around special interests or pressure from groups who favor actions that can’t pass the tests of truth and accuracy.
Those are dangers we face and must reckon with as best we can. If we don’t, then and as Welty contends, we will be violating the trust others place in us to speak to everyone.
I suspect she concluded that belief after many years of living, working and writing around people in her native state that trusted her with their many thoughts, opinions and ideas.
You could argue that as a writer of short stories, Welty was too far removed from our journalistic pursuits for her quote to apply to us. To me, however, her observation applies to all writing.
About Eudora Welty:
Welty was born in Jackson, Mississippi and spent most of her life there living in the city’s Belhaven district. She was educated at the Mississippi State College for Women, the University of Wisconsin at Madison and Columbia Business School.
She began as a photographer and spent several years traveling throughout the state and photographing people from all walks of life for the Works Progress Administration (WPA).
Eventually, she gave up photography in favor of writing. She wrote her first short story, Death of a Traveling Salesman, in 1936. Five years later, her first collection of short stories, “A Curtain of Green.” was published. The book was a success and firmly established her as one of American literature’s leading figures.
In 1973, her novel, The Optimist’s Daughter, won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. In 1992, Welty was awarded the Rea Award for her lifetime contributions to the American short story. She also was a charter member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers founded in 1987.
During her career, Welty wrote 12 collections of short stories and 6 novels plus an autobiography and several essays
Posted: March 6, 2009
"To swear off making mistakes is easy. All you have to do is swear off having ideas." -- Leo Burnett (1891-1971)
My Take:
It’s happened to me. It has happened to you. When you began as an ag journalist, you met people whose opinions are still with you. You also knew of media giants whose names you have never forgotten. For me, Leo Burnett was one of the latter.
I was a regular reader of Advertising Age and Editor and Publisher. There was hardly an issue that didn’t refer to Burnett's work or his views. He became synonymous with everything new, interesting, exciting and successful. Although his main focus was on advertising, his insights and wisdom often spilled over into other media areas. That he was not only a giant in advertising but also in the communications profession gives strong credence to about everything he said during his career, including this quote.
My main concern is the tendency in this profession to play it safe. We don't want to endanger our position. We don't want to get into trouble. We don't want to make anyone unco mfortable or mad. We don't want to change things for fear we might end up worse instead of better. And the list goes on.
All of this gangs up on you to the point where you fear making mistakes. You no longer take chances with new ideas, approaches and methods. Before you even realize it, you are at a standstill on a sidetrack while a world of opportunities rushes by on the main line.
On Burnett:
He was born in Michigan, studied journalism at the University of Michigan and became a reporter at the Peoria Journal in Peoria, Illinois. Then came copywriting stints in Detroit and Indianapolis that eventually led to him creating his own agency in Chicago, now known as Leo Burnett Worldwide.
Burnett concentrated on style, of creating an image around the product. That contrasted sharply with the usual approach of using a lot of description to show why one product was better than another. He also was strong on symbols and created such famous icons as the Jolly Green Giant and the Pillsbury Doughboy.
One of his best internal symbols was the one identifying his own agency, a hand reaching for the stars. It reflected one of Burnett's sayings, "When you reach for the stars you may not quite get one, but you won't come up with a handful of mud either".
No wonder Time named Leo Burnett as one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century.
Posted: February 2, 2009
"When I'm anxious, uneasy and bad thoughts come, I go to the sea, and the sea drowns them out with its great wise sounds, cleanses me with its noise and imposes a rhythm upon everything in me that is bewildered and confused." -- Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926)
My Take:
This quote was written by a poet. As a journalist, however, perhaps you have been in a similar situation.
Several years ago, I was staying in a guesthouse on the southern tip of Eleuthera in the Bahamas. I had just finished a long and tiring week of researching a story about loyalist farmers from the Carolinas who moved to the islands after the Revolutionary War. They attempted to duplicate the cotton culture they had left behind only to experience failure and heartache.
I awoke about 4AM to the sound of the surf. I got up, slowly walked to through the darkness to the beach and sat down among the Casuarina trees. Starlight revealed swells moving toward shore, breaking, then easing into the shallows, an environment unchanged for thousands of years.
Within an hour, the eastern horizon began to brighten. As the sun rose, billowing clouds turned from gray to pink and birds began wheeling through the sky. Suddenly I was aware that all my tiredness was gone, my brain was clear and that I was keenly alert. In my own way, I had discovered why writers go to such places to find peace, rest and be inspired.
About Maria Rilke:
There's not much to say about this man. He was born in Prague and spent much of his life wandering from place to place throughout Europe. His poetry has a melodic lilt, is rich with imagery and reflects self-examination and prophecy. The Book of Hours, a book he wrote when he was 30 years of age, expresses a longing for a mystic union with God.
Five years later, he published The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge. Considered a highly innovative work, it portrays the loneliness and confusion of a young poet searching for his identity in Paris. Later, he wrote poems praising the existence of humans.
Posted: January 2, 2009
"How often we recall, with regret, that Napoleon once shot at a magazine editor and missed him and killed a publisher. But we remember with charity, that his intentions were good." -- Mark Twain (1835-1910)
My Take:
So who is every journalist's point person? Of course, it's the editor who accepts, rejects, corrects and controls.
Other musings by Mark Twain reflect his dislike for editors. They nearly always insisted on tinkering not only with his writing but also his style.
The modern role of editors is that of mainly making sure everything moves along on schedule and that final copy is suitable for readers and acceptable to upper management. Yet, the best editors I have known also effectively challenged every journalist under their command to crank themselves to ever increasingly higher levels of excellence. In the process, they were serving several roles -- teacher, counselor, psychologist and enforcer -- and being a patient and careful listener.
Maybe Mark Twain was never fortunate enough to be submitting his work to an editor with such sterling qualities.
Consider yourself extremely lucky if you are.
About Mark Twain:
Born in Missouri as Samuel Clemens, Mark Twain grew up in Hannibal, Missouri, in an environment filled with steamboat captains, entertainers, gamblers, slave traders, swindlers, prostitutes and assorted other river travelers. Those experiences served him well in later years when he became internationally known for his novels, travel narratives, short stories, sketches and essays.
In the beginning, however, he shunned high school and college to gain an education in print shops and newspaper offices. Indeed, at age 22 he had traveled to several major Eastern cities. But he aborted a planned trip to South America and instead training to be a riverboat pilot. Later, he said that during his riverboat piloting he "got personally and familiarly acquainted with about all the different types of human nature that are to be found in fiction, biography or history."
He traveled extensively throughout his life as he wrote such famous works at "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" and "Huckleberry Finn." Although he was a serious and often pessimistic man, he is best known and remembered as a humorist.
Said Ernest Hemingway, "All modern American literature comes from . . . .'Huckleberry Finn.'"
Posted: December 8, 2008
"Try to say 'yes' to ideas and allow as much freedom as possible, particularly with the creative person, the golden asset in your organization." -- Marshall Loeb
My Take:
Creativity is at the very heart of this profession and everyone who chooses to be a part of it. Although creativity can be stimulated, it can't be bought or taught. A person either has it or they don't. Highly successful organizations tap into that valuable resource by encouraging their most creative people to express themselves. They also follow up by taking positive action on those ideas holding the greatest promise. It's significant Loeb stresses that point, considering his exceptional credentials in journalism and business. How ironic then that when an organization must scale down, its most creative people are often considered the most expendable and among the first who are forced to leave.
On Loeb:
Marshall Loeb, editor, author and broadcast commentator, said those words during a presentation he made at the 1991 annual meeting of the American Agricultural Editors' Association (AAEA), in Memphis, Tennessee. He speaks from many years of varied experiences in journalism ranging from writing for Chicago neighborhood newspapers when he was 15 years old to his present role as Senior Correspondent and a member of the Advisory Board of a leading financial and business news service on the internet. Among his many positions, he served as editor of Money and Fortune, was a newspaper reporter and foreign correspondent, has written 13 books and has won every major award in U.S. business journalism. He is a board member of several organizations including the Knight-Bagehot awards program at Columbia Journalism School.
P.S
Heard on Sirius Satellite Radio's Trucker Channel: "Remember to stock up on those air freshener cakes. You never when your next load is gonna be livestock."
Posted: November 7, 2008
"Courage is being scared to death -- and saddling up anyway."
-- John Wayne
My take:
This is one of those universal quotes that can summarize what could be a long dissertation on life itself. Yet, it hammers at the very heart of who we should be, what we should do and when we should do it.
Not only that, it forcefully reminds us we will never be rewarded for chances we aren't willing to take.
Yes, there is some truth in the accusation that we have become a nation of sissies. Certainly, that can't be said of our military forces but is does apply to the population at large. When compared with our forefathers, we all too often come up short in courage, shy away from risk and tend to become uneasy when we are around gutsy people.
Even then, we should be willing to cut ourselves some slack. Times have suddenly gotten tough. Just think of how our profession has changed over the last few years. For many of us, what was once a profession with an interesting future has sunk to the level of being a deadline infested job. For the most part, we can't afford to even think about taking risk..
Still, I urge you to always remember this quote, even if you must put it on the end of a long leash. It could become your greatest friend when opportunity reveals itself to you.
On John Wayne
He was born Marion Michael Morrison in 1907 in Winterset, Iowa, but soon afterward moved to California with his parents. He was a movie prop boy before he made his film debut in 1928. He then went on to star in several low budget westerns under the name of Duke Morrison. In 1939, he changed his stage name to John Wayne when director John Ford cast him in the classic western movie, "Stagecoach." During his acting career, he appeared in nearly 250 movies and won an Oscar in 1970 for his leading role in "True Grit."
Wayne, who died in 1979, was more than a great actor. He was also a man's man. He had that tall, solid and rugged no-nonsense look and was fiercely patriotic. He said what he meant and he meant what he said, qualities evident in both his life and in the characters he played on the screen. After all these years, he is still missed by the Hollywood community and millions of fans everywhere.
Go to IMDB.com/johnwayne (fourth entry on the first page) for an extremely fascinating collection of John Wayne trivia..
P.S
I have an unused bumper sticker that reads: "John Wayne for Secretary of Defense." Enough said.
Posted: September 24, 2008
"The joy of living is his who has the heart to demand it."
-- Theodore Roosevelt
My Take:
No, this quote has nothing to do with ag journalism. It does, however, have everything to do with us as ag journalists. We all must bend to the pressures of the profession, however you define them wherever you are. But no story, deadline or responsibility is nearly as important as enjoying life. That universal and perpetual truth welled up inside Roosevelt more than a hundred years ago.
On Roosevelt:
Teddy Roosevelt first went to western North Dakota in 1883 in search of buffalo. After days of pursuit, however, he managed to shoot only one. Yet, in that short time, he became obsessed by the Badlands and its stark beauty and therapeutic emptiness. He came back a year later and stayed for two years. He quickly became farmer, rancher, cowboy and conservationist. At the same time, he grew spiritually as well as physically. His remarkable success in causing many parks and monuments to be preserved has inspired every president who followed him. Later in life, Roosevelt said, "If it were not for my years in North Dakota, I would never have become president of the United States."
I visited Theodore Roosevelt National Park a few months ago. No words can describe the landscape that caused Roosevelt to associate himself so closely with American agriculture as well as America's natural grandeur. He was a true friend of the land.
Posted: August 25, 2008
"Instruction is what we say, influence is what we do, image is what we are." --S. Truett Cathy
My Take:
That's a perfect fit for summarizing our role as ag journalists. Offering instruction has always been our hallmark. We have influence as evidenced by the effects we create through reporting. And we are all too aware that what we do is how others think of us. This is a sobering reminder of the importance of our purpose and our mission. It's also a subtle yet powerful call for excellence.
On Cathy:
Truett Cathy learned the principles of hard work, fairness, honesty, loyalty and respect while growing up during the Great Depression in a boarding house operated by his mother. Then he applied them when he and his brother Ben opened a small restaurant in 1946. In 1967, he opened America's first Chick-fil-A restaurant, now a chain of more than 1,000 restaurants with annual sales of more than $1 billion. Cathy sees no conflict between biblical principles and good business practice. The evidence? None of his restaurants are open on Sunday. He has created foundations, summer camps, foster homes and college scholarships for children. If all that weren't enough, he has taught a Sunday School class of 13-year-old boys for more than 40 years.
Posted: July 20, 2008
"Our grand business is not to see what lies dimly in the distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand." --Thomas Carlyle (1785-1881)
My Take:
Technology is rushing at us at unprecedented speed and with uncertain consequences. And we are being told how dramatically that will change how we have traditionally interacted and communicated with others. Far more important, however, is that in the meantime, we strongly maintain a steady and responsible course in serving our readership.
On Carlyle:
Thomas Carlyle was a Scottish essayist and historian, once considered the greatest social philosopher of Victorian England. Many agreed with his conservative views. But he lost favor during his later life as his thoughts became more extreme. Carlyle, a prolific writer, authored several books. A bit of trivia: He lent the completed manuscript of the first volume of the first one, The French Revolution, to fellow philosopher John Stuart Mill only to have it accidentally burned by Mill's housemaid. He was able to rewrite the book mostly from memory.