How to be Bored on the Board

I work for this company I founded, which is certainly in start-up mode, but ramping up quickly. So many decisions, and so many little choices take up much of my time, which is normal, and actually can be a lot of fun. Every person that we bring in at this time will be exposed to the same type of schizophrenic energy of creating something dynamic and new. That is the good news. Employees are one thing, because each of us as staff must work a lot right now. It is the nature of the game. Bringing on Board members is a little bit different, as the extent of their commitment is not so well defined. Board members join companies for many different reasons.

Nanotronics Imaging has approached, and luckily for us been able to enlist a new director to our board, Thomas Campbell Jackson. For those of you that know Thomas there is no need for me to explain why I would want him as a part of our inner circle in creating a business which we care so deeply about. To list two important items, Thomas is one of the nicest  and most trustworthy guys I know. For another he cares about making a difference in the world through science and technology. So that is easy. He does this often through commitments through his philanthropy. Through these he is working on stem cell research, international public health, and even ways for science to reach larger audiences through music and movies. A corporation, in theory, is less romantic. We are in the business of being a business. I have no idea if this is how Thomas feels about it, but from my perspective I could imagine how he could. Of course, this is why he is so appealing to me as a friend and now a fellow director. Thomas must have to segment his time between all of his other activities, and now being on a corporate board will only add to that already busy schedule. My hope is that through Thomas we can create a  model, where corporate activity is less about actions, and more about creativity. Thomas knows finance, and business, but he also has managerial experience, and has a Masters of Public Health from Columbia. It is that side of Thomas that I want to tap into and collaborate with as he becomes a more integral part of the company. The question for him, and for me is how to make that happen as we all get busier.

Gertrude Stein made a wonderful observation in Paris during the German occupation. She said that for creativity to reach new heights by the artist (I will extend this out to all creative activities) it is important to be overcome with boredom. This on the surface seems so opposite of my life. I fill every second to avoid boredom. My acting teacher years ago said that boredom is the worst fear of the actor, which I could relate to. At the same time Stein was exactly right. Dirac, Einstein, Godel and many other famous physicists spent hours walking. This is seemingly a boring activity. In the case of the Stein comment, it came during the forced boredom of the occupation. With a curfew and often lack of electricity, there was no choice but to sit at home and be bored. Her point though is well taken. It is in those moments where the mind can freely associate without the need to produce, that the most interesting production eventually comes. I tried this with some of my piano compositions (to admittedly mixed results), but Keith Jarrett did it with near perfect results. That is, he improvised for hours on an idea, but didn't transcribe or record them. Then after months of doing this, he went on a stage alone in front of thousands and just played. He has done this many times, and always beautifully. In essence he didn’t force a composition. Instead he forced the doing (transcribing or recording) of nothing.

I hope that the Nanotronics team, and Thomas will do some of this, because it will make the contribution so much richer than just being another commitment in a long line of commitments. Regardless of his process, I feel lucky to have him aboard. Being a board member is full of corporate activity, but what we need is creative activity as well. Therefore I hope he lets me bore him a little.