Sounds Like Portraits

When I sat with Ismail, he told me the story about his special relationship with his clarinet: "My contact with it changes my state of mind and my body feels happier." And then, he told me about his multiple inspirations.

J'ai rencontré Raphaël dans ses bureaux, non loin des Nations Unies. La stratégie est sa passion. Il m'a expliqué la nature de la créativité des diplomates et des stratèges. Elle leur permet de sortir des blocages d'une situation ou d'une négociation. Mais comment font-ils ?

I sat with Eugene to listen to his relationship to his voice which is also his own instrument. "Finding your true voice is a real journey."

I sat with Bertrand at his new office office in Hudson Yard with a stunning view overlooking Hudson River. He told me his passion for building in general. For that purpose creativity is crucial: "As the leader of the organization, you have to make sure that everyone can think out of the box."

I sat with Robbie who told me the Japanese origin of origami. The word is used now for all folding practices to make a sculpture from a flat square sheet of paper. It is more than a hobby, a real lifestyle: "In origami, we have a language around things that involves bases and collections of folds."

Quand j'ai rencontré Xavier chez lui à Paris, il m'a parlé avec une joie non dissimulée de sa passion pour la stratégie. Pour lui, tout le monde est créatif dans son domaine, c'est le climat de confiance qui permet à la créativité de s'épanouir dans une entreprise. Créer ce climat et surtout le faire durer, c'est une affaire de management. Voilà pourquoi il a tant lu Clausewitz et Napoléon.

As Three-Time Audie Award Winner for Best Audiobook Narration, George Guidall has completed narrations for over 1600 unabridged titles. His narrations of classics like Crime and Punishment, The Iliad, Don Quixote, and Les Miserables, along with many popular best sellers, have set a standard for excellence recognized throughout the audiobook industry.

Quand j'ai rencontré Guillaume, j'ai tout de suite senti qu'il était habité par l'écriture. En l'écoutant, j'ai compris que pour lui, écrire, c'était se rapprocher. Des autres, mais aussi de lui-même.

Before sitting with Hasan, I saw his amazing performance with Omar Faruk Tekbilek at Carnegie Hall. Hasan has always tried to be a good cook because "music is like cooking." He started to play violin and kanun at the age of 8 and came to NY in 1989. His instrumental program of original compositions evokes moods of the Middle East, jazz, new age, and classical music.

I sat with Suzana at Google's office in Chelsea and we quickly talked about speed: what is the fastest reaction time on the Internet? Anticipation is the answer. Suzanna tells her Google's story. She does not only try to understand what customers want, but she anticipates the relevant experiences they will have. But how does this translate into the creative process of the Google's work teams?