Today I was nicely surprised by my friend Tom Zuziak, who wrote me these words about an old post that I had deleted for political correctness:
"Nic,
Yesterday I was visiting a dealer in Kentucky with a Sales Manager and we took time out to listen to a “webinar” that launched the Powerstar Tractor in North America. The host of the webinar was the great Brad Moore. Within the presentation was some of your great masterpiece slides even two years later. You wondered in your blog how it is that some people get to be remembered. For you my friend it will be your masterpiece powerpoint creations!
The tractor was well received and represents a very good chance to gain back some of the market share we have destroyed over the years. Thanks for your help."
So this is what I was writing back on December 16th 2008, exactly two years ago, and you will say if meanwhile something has changed (personally, I'm not making so many slides anymore):
"The world economy is down this year, but one thing is still continuing to grow: the number of PowerPoint slides per head created every day. I don't have official data, but I am sure they are billions and growing anyway.
Now, before going on we need a little note for the lucky ones who don't know what PowerPoint is: the growth in the number of slides will not help by any means to reverse the downturn of economy and, at worst, will even delay an eventual revival. Why? Because nowadays more and more time at public companies is spent making the slides beautiful, even if the average employee is certainly not supposed to have any artistic skills. This meaning that if you have to say your company is going bankrupt tomorrow, it will take you three weeks to draw the most beautiful miniature to make happy the CEO. And you can imagine the consequences.
And then it comes to me that, lead by my very comfortable recklessness, take advantage of this to make something really beautiful for the sake of art and to float over the unreality of office work. By the way, this stuff is procuring me some real success.
Actually I also think that sooner or later some modern art museum will open a contest for slide makers, we artisans of the 21st century, and I let you judge which prize I'll win with these two I made these days (see below).
Take care my friends and, if some beggar will ask you just to make a slide or two for him, pretend you don't speak his or her language!"
