Left Hand, Ring Finger

A few days ago Jacque and I were fixing dinner, and I as I was slicing a cucumber (fresh from our garden) I got a little aggressive and nearly sliced the tip of my finger off. Do you have any idea how much you use your left hand, ring finger? Ever even considered it? Probably not. It’s not something I’ve ever sat around contemplating either, but when the usefulness of a finger is interrupted by pulsating pain your perspective changes. That finger is an integral part of my body!

Later that night I was working on some music I was leading in church the next Sunday and realized I would not be playing guitar for quite a little while. Each time I woke up during the night I was reminded that my heart was beating. Not because I was alive (although that should have been my first clue) but because I could feel my heart beat at the end of my left hand, ring finger — not ideal for sleeping. The morning after I sliced through my finger tip I was working on my email and realized just how much my self taught typing style relies on that finger — ouch! After the three Advil kicked in my typing improved.

Now that a few days have passed the healing is noticeable, and although I still won’t be playing guitar for several more days the worst of the discomfort seems to be over. So, the moral of this little tale — don’t discount the digit.

Dinner Impossible

I love cooking shows. I know, it might seem a little odd but I love food, cooking and eating. So to watch others cooking is a fun past time for me. It’s interesting what you can learn by watching professionals cook. Tonight I watched Dinner Impossible  on the Food Network. This is a show where professional chef, Robert Irvine has a limited amount of time, in challenging surroundings (or extreme circumstances as he calls them) to cook a meal for his guests. During tonight’s episode he talked about how his passion is to make people happy with food and to give them a great experience. 

What Robert does each week is create a brand experience. He knows his audience (or at least as much as he’s been told) and he knows his brand (his unique style of cooking) and he makes sure that when the two interact they have a satisfying and memorable experience. During tonight’s show people said things like, “he can come back and do this any time” and another said, “this is the best I’ve ever had.” He gave them an experience that matched his brand. What more could you ask for. I’m hungry!

 

So what allows Robert to do the impossible? How can Robert walk into an unknown location and challenging situations and make them work? Turning the impossible into possible. It’s one word; EXPERT. Robert knows his craft so well that he can make things happen in the worst of circumstances, and he actually thrives on applying his expertise under pressure. This applies to other areas of creative expertise as well.

 

This past week I was talking about some young creatives that I know and the comments that were shared with me were something along the lines of, “you can’t rush creativity and force it into some kind of timeframe.” My response; experts can. If you’re an expert you can apply your craft on a moment’s notice. You can create on demand. I’ve seen it over and over again. It’s what separates the experts from those who haven’t fully developed their expertise. Expertise is a process, a journey, and it demands a higher level of applying your craft. Beware, it may not be for everyone. Experts can turn the impossible into possible and they do it on a regular basis.