Month: March 2008

career, creative process, Microsoft, work

It’s all a matter of process

Christa Avampato

“I like to tell people that all of our products and business will go through three phases. There’s vision, patience, and execution.” ~ Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft

I’ve been thinking a lot about process lately. We are involved at several large scale projects at work, all of them highly cross-functional. Some of or projects have been successful or are on their way to becoming successful, and some have fallen apart. Regardless of outcome, the learning that is taking place, especially for me, is far greater than I ever imagined I would have at a job in such a short period of time. 

While success is always welcomed, I also find that I embrace failure just as well. My boss has joked with me that I can learn more from a sinking sip than one that stays afloat. When I look a projects of ours that haven’t worked, I notice that one of the three elements that Ballmer outlined wasn’t as solid as it needed to be. And it’s important to have these three elements in that order: vision, patience, and execution.

For me, the toughest part is patience. Vision and execution I understand. Despite the fact that I practice yoga every day, that sitting still, that ability to take things one piece at a time, in turn, is difficult for me. Not impossible. Persistence in difficult times can some times seem fruitless. Though if we take the long view, I am beginning to learn, slowly, that it pays off if we are willing to stick around long enough to play out the hand. I just need to be more disciplined when it comes to patience. And that means patience with myself, as well as with others. And also, it means patience with process.     

If it works for Microsoft….

art, creative process, creativity

Two sides of the management coin

Christa Avampato

 “To know when to be generous and when firm — that is wisdom.” 

~ Elbert Hubbard


Last week was a little tough for me, and for the people around me. I’ve found that in my career I’ve work with two kinds of people – those who are generous or those who are firm. And very often I have come across people masquerading as one kind of person, while truly being another. Occasionally, I have come across people who can straddle line – generous and firm at the right moment. These are the people I have tried to emulate. 


Last week may have been the first time in the past 8 months that I’ve put my stake in the ground and called people to the carpet when something wasn’t done to meet high standards. There was a lot of finger-pointing, a lot of excuses made. At the end of the day, it wasn’t about blame and it wasn’t about having a reason for what happened – it was, and always is, about responsibility. 


This ability to be generous and be firm is critical in the creative process as much as it is in any other setting. If too firm, the end product will have the life beaten out of it. If too generous, the end product won’t be as good as it could have been with constructive criticism. The most beautiful pottery gets its shine from the care of the potter’s hands and the fire of the kiln. The same should be true for the creative work we put out into the word – a little gentleness mixed with a little fire yields a truly extraordinary masterpiece.    

books, nostalgia, school, student

A little fall of rain

Christa Avampato

There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort. ~ Jane Austen


Right now I’m reading Frank McCourt’s Teacher Man, and I’ve just finished watching the 5th season of The Gilmore Girls on DVD, both of which are conjuring up old memories for me. All this, coupled with the rain, and there’s no way to avoid nostalgia, and maybe a bit of regret. 

While my student days were less than ideal for a whole host of reasons, I still miss the thought of being a student, of dedicating my days to reading, to being involved in the school community with an entire world of people my age just outside my door. Though I studied so hard, a part of me wishes I had worked even harder, that had been more concerned with reading the classics than making sure I was doing everything right. I wish that I could have worried less about money, making friends, finding my calling – I wish I could have worried less, period. 

As a kid, and particularly as a student, I used to dread the rain. I always felt the world knew more than I did, and by raining it was signaling to me that bad news was on the way. I hated sloshing through it with a backpack that was much too heavy, trying to shield myself with an umbrella that would invariably be blown inside-out by some nasty gust.

As an adult, I have come to love the rain, even wishing for it when we’ve had too many sunny days in a row. I love the sound it makes on rooftops and sidewalks, love the booming of thunder, and the rush of a strong wind. I love the idea of washing away the happenings of the day before, and the day before that. I love the cleaning feeling it leaves the world, just after it’s subsided. These are days I hole up inside my tiny apartment and dream, and remember.

creativity, friendship, New York, relationships

Messages out to the world

Christa Avampato

“One that would have the fruit must climb the tree.” ~ Thomas Fuller

I’ve been dating a nice guy for about two months – my first foray into match.com. Last night we decided to go our own ways and while I was a bit sad, there was a part of me that was also excited. I learned a lot from this very briefing relationship: one thing being how much I’ve grown emotionally in the last year, and the second thing being that putting out into the world what you’d like back in return is a very healthy and helpful thing to do. My friend, Steve, is grateful that I have now turned the corner to stop dating jerks – he’s grown a bit tired of hearing about them – rightfully so. There’s something to be said for growing up.

So while this guy didn’t have the creative and adventurous side I was looking for, I learned how very important those two things are to me. My sweet friend, Katie, said that this world needs my creativity. And she’s right – it needs everyone’s creativity. It needs everyone to be exactly who they are and I need someone who not only nurtures that creativity in me, but also someone who has his own creative work going on that I can nurture in him.

I have found in the past few weeks that as I spent more time with him, my writing suffered, as this blog shows. He didn’t inspire any kind of narrative in me. And I found I couldn’t share any of my creative work with him. He would listen politely, because he is very polite, though couldn’t reciprocate in any way.

Last night for a bit, I felt frustrated that it took me a few months to realize this fact, though I have to admit that the only way to know if the fruit is the right fruit for us, we must, as Thomas Fuller says, make the climb and check it out. No harm done at all; we can always climb back down and walk on to another tree that appears to hold more promise.

The above photo can be found at: http://www.avonk.com/images/Lemon%20tree.bmp

career, creativity, culture, innovation, invention, job

Soil and seeds

Christa Avampato

I met with a group today who is interested in doing some consulting work with my company. We can’t afford them, though I enjoyed the way they spoke about their projects. They think of them as soil or seed. 

Soil projects are those embedded in culture, building competencies and new skill sets. Seed projects are those that explore new opportunities or new systems. Though the metaphor is simple, it has a tremendous amount of power. A ground of fertile soil won’t grow anything if seed isn’t sewn, and the seed won’t flourish if it’s planted in concrete.
Companies are the same as soil and seed. No matter how many fantastic ideas we have, if we don’t have a culture of innovation and comfortability with change. And if we have a strong culture without the creativity to create new ideas and concepts, the culture won’t do us any good. 
There’s just one snag in the soil seed metaphor. I am left wondering if one can generate the other. Can a creative culture inspire creative project ideas or can a collection of ideas inspire us to build a culture that brings those ideas to life?     
charity, Tap Project, volunteer

Tap Project 2008

Christa Avampato

Anyone who can solve the problems of water will be worthy of two Nobel prizes – one for peace and one for science.
~ John F. Kennedy


The U.S. Fund for UNICEF’s Tap Project is a nationwide grassroots campaign to raise funds for UNICEF’s Water and Sanitation Programs, which provides safe and clean drinking water to children around the world.  During March 16th-22nd, diners at participating restaurants will be invited to donate $1 for the tap water that they normally enjoy for free.  All proceeds will go to help UNICEF bring safe and clean water to the over 1 billion people currently living without.  Nationally, over 1,400 restaurants and 1,600 volunteers have signed up so far and still counting!

**Join the party on Thursday, March 13th, for Drinks to Celebrate the upcoming Launch of Tap Project 2008!**
7:30PM
Black Door
127 West 26th Street (between 6th and 7th Avenues)
New York, NY 10001

Suggested donation: $20 (at the door, smaller donations are welcome)

Watch the 2008 Tap Project Video at http://www.TapProject.org. Look up the project on Facebook. You will also see it publicized in Esquire, O, The Oprah Magazine, In Style, Entertainment Weekly, People, The New York Times and many more place from cabs to bus stops!

Dine out at participating restaurants during March 16th – 22nd. http://www.tapproject.org/restaurants/info.
career, friendship, job

Build your own road

Christa Avampato

“The best way to predict the future is to invent it. ~ Alan Kay” 

My friend, Amy, has taken an adventure to Switzerland to work for the UN on a 6-month assignment. Amy is one of those people whom I met and immediately knew we’d be friends forever. She’s one of the people in my life who is endlessly supportive and positive. She helps me keep my head on straight no matter what’s happening. 

During a conversation several years ago, we talked about the different talents it takes to build your own road versus allowing other people, an employer, a university, etc. o build one for you. “What path are you on?” “What bucket do you fall into?” “What’s the career track for that kind of profession?” All common questions, and ones that I never have an answer for. 
Only recently have I found that I have stopped looking for an answer – I’m not on one path, one track, and  don’t want to be. I like that in my career I’ve been able to carve my own way. It’s tough for sure, and some people get a bit dizzy when I explain the choices I made, changed industries, geographies, job responsibilities. My one goal was simple: I wanted to learn as much as possible, as quickly as possible.   
In these uncertain times – politically, economically, socially – I’ve been doing my best to remain as calm and level-headed as possible. It’s easy to fall into the trap of planning every move, taking strategy to the extreme. I’m fortunate in that at the moment the only person I need to take care of is me, and I treasure the freedom that my current situation creates. “Where are you going with this experience?” My answer: anywhere I want. 
art, career, job, writer, writing

A life in pictures

Christa Avampato

I’ve been impressed with The New Yorker’s Cartoonist of the month blog. February chronicled the journey of Michael Maslin as he made his way as a cartoonist. After pouring through his favorite publications, The New Yorker in particular, he would submit idea after idea and would be rejected continuously. 

Early on he was offered a weekly gig with The Soho Weekly, and when he asked a mentor for advice, he said he’s be crazy not to take it. Mr. Maslin politely turned them down. He was saving himself for the publication he truly coveted, The New Yorker. 
When your career’s success requires someone else to accept your work, it may be tempting to take the first thing that comes along that carries any kind of paycheck. Especially in fields like art that are so competitive, there’s a sense that you should be grateful if anyone takes a second look. Though just as it’s important for consumer products makers to consider what channels they want to sell through, it’s also important for artists to consider the best showcases for their work. There’s something to be said for the old adage “you are whom you associate with.” 
For Michael Maslin’s full journey, visit http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/cartoonists