The manager is in

Do you know this old Andy Warhol quote? “When I think about what sort of person I would most like to have on a retainer, I think it would be a boss.”

I found inspiration in a surprising place this week. I was watching an old episode of Parenthood in which one of the characters, Kristina, decides to run for mayor. She starts interviewing campaign managers, and the young woman she hires is a young, very smart political dynamo.

They manage to make it clear that this young woman, the campaign manager, is not just in it to win, but because she wants to help people who really care get into office and get the job done. (Or at least that felt clear to me.)

I was so impressed, I also decided to hire this young woman.

Or at least to take inspiration from this character and adopt her voice as my own internal manager.

And wow, it was shocking how effective it was.

She had a lot to say about some of my art habits. For example, my not bothering to get out and visit galleries and museums more often.

There were numerous other things she had to say that I don’t need to bore you with – or perhaps I will bore you with them at a later date! – but the main thing I want to share is how this character enabled me to find the part of myself that could cut through my own resistance and see what needed to be done.

So I guess I do have a boss on retainer.

Here’s to finding your inner boss! Oh, and if you want to see that inspiring episode, it was episode 2 of season 5.