Is it all-brains-all-the-time that separates achievers from the pack? Or is something else at work? The difference likely is something Angela Lee Duckworth calls “grit,” which she defines as “tenaciously pursuing something over the long term.” That “something” can’t be something easy. To pass the grit test, the thing being chased must be “the highest challenge.” It’s all about passion.
Blog
Miami PAC And Major Presenter Stop Merger Talks
Miami’s Concert Association of Florida and the under-construction Miami Performing Arts Center have postponed discussions of a merger of the two organizations. “It would have been a 50-50 financial split, and frankly, we both have too much to do at the time. It was the better part of wisdom for both of us to postpone it for a year or so.”
Colorado Ballet Gets Some Good News
It’s been a tumultuous year for Colorado Ballet. One thing that has gone right? The box office. “With nearly a third of its 2005-06 performances remaining, the company has sold more tickets than it did during the entire 2004-05 season and reached 93 percent of its $3.2 million ticket sales goal for 2005-06.”
The New New Musicals
A new generation of improbable-sounding musicals is hitting London stages. “A key common denominator among this new breed of offbeat shows is that they’re about the lyrics as much as the music.”
NBC Struggles To Reinvent
NBC’s having a terrible year. The network is trying anything, and recently had a hit with podcast episodes. “Could it be that video iPods are helping decide prime-time winners? You can never prove anything for sure, but it hasn’t hurt and probably helped quite a bit.”
Movie Compensation, Explained
“The studios’ business nowadays is entirely driven by one or two huge franchises that serve as worldwide licensing platforms. And the most predictable producers of these windfalls, such as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Tom Cruise, Jerry Bruckheimer, and Peter Jackson, are all gross players represented by savvy lawyers and agents who know all the ropes of the movie business.”
Pixar And Disney – An Odd Match?
Disney is in talks to buy Pixar. But the two companies have very different styles, and there is some concern about whether the two cultures can mix. “Pixar is known for its egalitarian ways where the lowest-ranking animator can share ideas with the bosses while Disney has a reputation for making creative decisions from the top down.”
PBS Names New President
Paula Kerger has been named new president of PBS, replacing Pat Mitchell. “Kerger is executive vp and chief operating officer at the Educational Broadcasting Corp., which holds the license to Thirteen/WNET and WLIW in New York. Her job, which she has held since 2004, includes responsibility for the editorial content of both stations.”
Challenges For New PBS Boss
“The management change comes at a challenging time for PBS, which supplies programs to 348 stations. In recent years, cable has encroached on the documentary, nature, drama and children’s programming for which PBS is known. Even so, PBS has struggled to get its stations, which prize their autonomy, to agree on a common strategy to compete for viewers or even a consistent nationwide schedule.”
The Mozart Question
“Who was this guy, and how did he do what he did? How is it possible that a mere human being could have created music of such unearthly beauty and emotional profundity, and apparently (though this point may be overstated) done it with such effortless facility? Mozart’s life helps a little, but not much.”