Page 89 - Sorry, We're Not Hiring Any Visionaries Today
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CHAPTER 10
previous marriage. I needed to develop solid ideas and be the creative genius I thought I was. Unfortunately, things never really gelled.
At 56 years old, I had heart surgery. I had a quadruple bypass. That was a sig- nificant turning point for me. Stress causes heart problems, and the most con- siderable stressor is the heart. I thought I was going to die. Everybody thought I was going to die. But I didn’t die.
My biggest business problem over the last 20 years is that I’ve been the vision- ary and idea creator. I’ve always needed the right people to deal with the issues that I don’t want to deal with. Maybe I needed to improve at picking the right person for the job. This may be the visionary’s Achilles’ heel. It certainly has been mine.
So, I need help finding the people to execute. Right now, at this moment in time, I have a new idea. Everybody, from doctors to pharmacists, loves this idea. They’ve told me it’s brilliant. They say, “Yes, move forward; it’s the way to go in the future!” But now, I’ve reached a roadblock. Who exactly do I get to do this with? Because it will only work with specific pieces in place working correctly. All the players have to see the mutual benefit. I’m still searching for them.
But it is an idea. It’s a vision I have, and it would benefit people of all ages. I know exactly what I want to do to promote it. I know doctors who would be engaged in this. But it’s just very frustrating. I can’t move any further. This is why I’m trying to do AI animation.
Recently, I took a survey which indicated that I was both an implementer and visionary — 50% of each.
There is no question that, being in the fashion industry, you have to be a vi- sionary. You have to have a vision in your mind of what the next best thing is, or else you will fail. But it’s a very cyclical business.
I found satisfaction in coming up with ideas that people bought into. It was fun to pick colours. It was a challenge to get people to purchase colours like
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