In Swift’s time I bet good was ranked above mediocre. Today I think they’re about the same.

You raise some good issues, Kate. Is this settling for good syndrome an individual thing or a corporate thing? I believe it’s both. And as I spoke to in an earlier post on creative fulfillment, there is a big gap on the creative fulfillment landscape between what individuals want/need and what companies provide. And since the people who write the pay checks have more to say about this agenda than those who cash them, well, it means individuals simply have less say in the outcome.

So, to your core question, Kate, ‘how to be “great” in a “good” shop?’ It does hinge on people and talent. But it’s not merely a question of the companies with the best people and greatest talent win on this one. The winners are not the groups with the greatest raw talent, the creative fuel going into the machine, it’s the companies where the creative engines are most properly tuned that get the greatest performance. But, again, some people within a company (or other function group; team, department, family,…) simply have more control - the people with the most “authority, power and influence,” as organizational consultant Paul Deslauriers of NRG Consulting terms it.

I’m not saying an organization can’t be changed from the ground up (although that might be quite painful, if management doesn’t want the change), I’m saying the most effective way to change an organization is to have real change at the head. Some management are serious enough about shifting their companies to an idea culture to make the necessary changes. In some companies the shift happens when caring, hardworking people like you express views sincerely to management, to help them see the wisdom of making changes. It’s surprising how many managers already know they are stifling people, and when faced with reality actually make the shift (I mean they have to look in the mirror as much as anyone when they brush their teeth).

Beyond changing the company at the organizational level, I advise people to look for small victories. Get great ideas approved under the radar. Adjust your definition of a “great idea” victory to a more realistic place. I am not suggesting compromise for the sake of compromise, I’m suggesting compromise for the sake of progress. I’m suggesting taking small steps forward, if possible, as opposed to standing still or fighting and being thrown back 10 steps. As long as the path goes forward…

Actually, as I explore this response to your very thoughtful questions, Kate, there is so much here,… I could write a book,… Maybe I should. Do I have all the answers? No. But I think I have enough of them. Or,better yet, for this forum, at least I have an answer, hell, THE answer, that could lead to a lot of solutions.

(Drum roll, please)

Communication.

That’s it. Short of writing the book, I think that’s the best I can offer. If you’re on the short end of a good/great dynamic,… if you are creatively unfulfilled in any way,… Communicate openly, sincerely, passionately, but not emotionally, about your desire to fulfill yourself creatively. Start a dialogue. Be strong, but patient. Keep the discussions positive. Look for places to test new attitudes. (Damn, I am writing a book. That’s the table of contents)

I dunno’, maybe it’s easier to just become a shepherd.

BTW, Kate, thanks for the kind feedback. I’m flattered to be listed with Ernie and Seth.

(Maybe at another time I’ll have the energy to address that huge “confidence” issue you brought up.)

I work at a small Midwest agency. Our clients and budgets are small, and many times we do what jb says and struggle to just crank out the good. I’ll never be the creative who name-drops Lexus, Toyota and Pioneer - not because I couldn’t make it in a big place, but because it’s easier to stay where I’m at.

So the question is, how to be “great” in a “good” shop? Is that possible? I’m guessing your answer will hinge on people and talent - we’ve got great resources for both. But often I think we struggle with confidence.

For me, the Internet and blogs like this are the great equalizer. My little agency can be great if I buckle down and make it great. Right? Like training with the best runner to elevate your own expectations for yourself.

Tom, I haunt blogs like yours - Ernie Schenk, Seth Godin - because all of you inspire me to do great things. Thanks!

Great example on the Lexus line, mwb. I, too, stopped at Pursuit of Perfection for one of my clients years ago. I guess neither of us were relentless enough.

Good, I believe, is the “foundation” of great, not its enemy. Good is the seed of greatness, not its downfall.

I’ve found that the real enemey of great is mediocrity … in all its forms. I believe that anyone (or any client) who (or that) settles for second best, third best, or worse … their own notion of what a solution “should” be, or any client or person that will not (or can not) see through the cloak of their own personal or corporate ego when they are being told or shown that “this” (true greatness) is the answer to the specific creative problem, this person, or group is the real enemy of great.

Why? Because these individuals or corporations appear to have an inbred need to bluff and bluster, to bully and belittle real greatness, bringing it down to their level of average.

Therefore, good, if done right and done well, can be a stepping stone or a bridge to greatness; something I think is true of many fields, not just advertising.

The key, I think, in creating greatness is in being persistent, in not giving up or settling for “just OK”, and in bouncing back, reinventing, revisiting, prodding, reheating, and folding good in the same way that a blacksmith takes a piece of steel and turns it into the sharpest of blades.

Naturally, I don’t expect you to agree with me, but this is what I think, and, it’s something I’ve observed many times during the course of the last 20 years.