What Would I do? I Enjoy This Stuff.
The New York Times’ Robin Pogrebin asked ninety-two year old, famed architect Frank Gehry, given his age and accomplishments, had he considered taking a break or scaling back.
He dismissed the idea.
“What would I do? I enjoy this stuff.”
With a sense of pride, Gehry added he “has now reached a point in his career where he has the luxury of focusing on what matters to him most: projects that promote social justice.”
In reponse to a similar question from Scott Pelley of 60 Minutes, Bruce Springsteen responded:
Why would you stop? I mean, you play the music, and grown men cry and women dance. And that’s why you do it.”
After pausing, Springsteen added, “What else am I going to do? Seriously. Garden?
The last couple weeks, I’ve been going back and forth with my good friend and former COO charting LexBlog ahead.
- What’s the problem?
- What’s the solution?
- Vision (What are we building?)
- Mission (Why does LexBlog exist?)
Seventeen years ago the problem was that lawyers needed a place to blog – after they and I knew what a blog was.
Today, the problem has changed to something close to the fact that much of the online writing of legal professionals (blogs) is not permanent, easily available or constructive seconday law.
Tackling that problem is exciting, and one uniquely up LexBlog’s alley.
In addition to being excited about the future of legal publishing, and that it lies in blogging, I now get to do things that matter most to me.
Working on social justice issues via publishing partnerships with organizations in the United States and overseas is the kind of thing I could have only dreamed about when I was in law school – or even seventeen years ago on LexBlog’s founding.
Traveling to meet and engage people and organizations to champion the power of legal blogging in order to help people has become an undying passion of me.
I get to do all of this by owning something. My Dad, a small business owner most of his life, always said there is nothing better than owning your own show.
It’s not the ownership per se, but controlling your destiny and vision, and working with a team you care for and whom care for you.
I don’t make men grown cry and women dance, but I am enjoying myself plenty enough not to retire or sell the company.