Promoters (see something good and getting it out there)
The name Steve Jobs conjures up very specific feelings and images in the minds and hearts of millions of people around the world. As the co-founder of Apple, Jobs first revolutionized the home computing industry, before moving on to the music industry, and eventually the telephone industry.
Outside of Apple, Jobs was also one of the early advisors and board members of Pixar. With his position there, Jobs helped to revolutionize yet another industry, animation and film.
One cannot deny that Jobs was a wildly creative and successful artist. Consider this though, did Jobs actually build the technology for the Apple I? No, Steve Wozniack did. Did Jobs create the design for the iPod or iPhone? No, he had his general vision for it, but it was Jonathan Ive who was responsible for executing the actual design. Jobs was often not physically in the animation room creating characters like Buzz Lightyear and Mike Wazowski. Pixar had an entire team of animators and storytellers who did that.
Jobs was not an Originator. Nor was he Gatherer. Yet he was still one of our most influential artists because Jobs was something different. Jobs was a Promoter.
Looking at Genesis 1 this week, we have discovered how God is an Originator (bringing something out of nothing), and a Gatherer (bringing something new out of something old). I hope you’re catching on to the theme and are inferring that God also must be the ultimate Promoter.
All through the creation poem, there’s a repeating line, “and God saw that it was good.” This is the first attribute of a Promoter. A Promoter has the ability to see and discern what is good from what is not. Before the sun had any plants to water, or humans to give Vitamin D to, God already saw that it was good. Before computer animation was a popular staple of film and entertainment, Jobs saw the potential of Pixar. These are classic signs of a Promoter, the ability to see potential for good.
Later on, when God creates man, he gives him “dominion over the fish of the seas, and over the fowl of the air,” and so on and so forth. This is the second characteristic of a Promoter, to place what’s been created in the hands of those who can use it and benefit from it. This is what Jobs was all about at Apple. He and Steve Wozniak started the company with the original intention of empowering the individual with the latest technology, so they would compete with the big corporations. A Promoter always looks to place what has been created in the hands of the right people.
Jobs’ ability to see potential, and his vision and ability to get the message and products into the right hands is what makes him such a great Promoter.
A Promoter is someone with the ability to see something good and to get it out there.
And there we have it, three types of creativity, brought to you by Genesis 1. If we were to keep searching the chapter (which I will) I’m sure we could find several more, but these are the three that pop out to me most obviously. Our world has a funny way of limiting the term “artist” to only apply to those who are Originators. But as we can see, God is a multifaceted artist, and his abilities to create stretch far beyond His original content. We, having been made in His image, have been given the ability to create as well. Perhaps you are not an Originator because you were created to be a Gatherer, like Malcolm Gladwell. Perhaps you are not a Gatherer because you were created to be a Promoter, like Steve Jobs. Whatever type of artist you are, if you want to create your best work, then it’s time to search yourself and find where you fit.
Find it. Own it. Do something with it.
Outside of Apple, Jobs was also one of the early advisors and board members of Pixar. With his position there, Jobs helped to revolutionize yet another industry, animation and film.
One cannot deny that Jobs was a wildly creative and successful artist. Consider this though, did Jobs actually build the technology for the Apple I? No, Steve Wozniack did. Did Jobs create the design for the iPod or iPhone? No, he had his general vision for it, but it was Jonathan Ive who was responsible for executing the actual design. Jobs was often not physically in the animation room creating characters like Buzz Lightyear and Mike Wazowski. Pixar had an entire team of animators and storytellers who did that.
Jobs was not an Originator. Nor was he Gatherer. Yet he was still one of our most influential artists because Jobs was something different. Jobs was a Promoter.
Looking at Genesis 1 this week, we have discovered how God is an Originator (bringing something out of nothing), and a Gatherer (bringing something new out of something old). I hope you’re catching on to the theme and are inferring that God also must be the ultimate Promoter.
All through the creation poem, there’s a repeating line, “and God saw that it was good.” This is the first attribute of a Promoter. A Promoter has the ability to see and discern what is good from what is not. Before the sun had any plants to water, or humans to give Vitamin D to, God already saw that it was good. Before computer animation was a popular staple of film and entertainment, Jobs saw the potential of Pixar. These are classic signs of a Promoter, the ability to see potential for good.
Later on, when God creates man, he gives him “dominion over the fish of the seas, and over the fowl of the air,” and so on and so forth. This is the second characteristic of a Promoter, to place what’s been created in the hands of those who can use it and benefit from it. This is what Jobs was all about at Apple. He and Steve Wozniak started the company with the original intention of empowering the individual with the latest technology, so they would compete with the big corporations. A Promoter always looks to place what has been created in the hands of the right people.
Jobs’ ability to see potential, and his vision and ability to get the message and products into the right hands is what makes him such a great Promoter.
A Promoter is someone with the ability to see something good and to get it out there.
And there we have it, three types of creativity, brought to you by Genesis 1. If we were to keep searching the chapter (which I will) I’m sure we could find several more, but these are the three that pop out to me most obviously. Our world has a funny way of limiting the term “artist” to only apply to those who are Originators. But as we can see, God is a multifaceted artist, and his abilities to create stretch far beyond His original content. We, having been made in His image, have been given the ability to create as well. Perhaps you are not an Originator because you were created to be a Gatherer, like Malcolm Gladwell. Perhaps you are not a Gatherer because you were created to be a Promoter, like Steve Jobs. Whatever type of artist you are, if you want to create your best work, then it’s time to search yourself and find where you fit.
Find it. Own it. Do something with it.
