Kennedy looked at me with a furrowed brow. “That doesn’t make any sense, daddy. It should be ‘like a row of colorful, tall flowers’ but that doesn’t rhyme.”
Thus began a lively conversation about poetic license, which (after a quick search on my iPhone) I defined as: “the liberty taken by an artist or a writer in deviating from conventional form or fact to achieve a desired effect.” I looked up from my phone to see Kennedy displaying yet another furrowed brow.
“Let me explain,” I said. “A poet has license, which means she can bend the standard rules of writing in order for her poem to rhyme. Songwriters do it too.”
It later occurred to me that this concept applies to all forms of artistry, whether poetry, architecture, or even the art of delivering exceptional customer service. Kennedy’s uncle, Brian, for instance, is an architect. In school, he learned all about the “rules” of architecture. Today, as a licensed architect with offices in New York City and Toronto, even though he must adhere to certain building codes, it’s the freedom he enjoys to “design outside the lines” that energizes him and allows him to put a unique stamp on his work.
Service providers must also honor the technical aspects of their jobs (e.g., policies, procedures, protocol). In many cases, this is all they do: execute job function, treating each customer like the last customer. In the process, they unwittingly forfeit the opportunity to demonstrate job essence – to fully express themselves, to interject personality, and to “serve outside the lines.”
Comment below if you’re so inclined,
From a stool, or a couch, or a chair reclined.
