The Masterpiece
In which a gifted craftsman learns about asks and needs.
A magic ink craftsman came to see a Master, and said: “Master, I believe I am good at what I do. People come from all over the world to give me assignments. But once my work is completed, I never hear from them again.”
“Are they unhappy with your work?”, asked the Master.
“Oh I never get any complaints. It’s just that they seem to lose interest as soon as I am finished.
Two months ago, this wealthy nobleman asked me for a calendar painted in magic ink. He promised me a thousand golden florins. I got to work and created my finest piece to date. I put my entire soul in it. He came to pick it up and said it was beautiful. But this morning, I heard from a janitor who works in his mansion that he had put the calendar in storage.”
“An unfitting destination for a work of the soul,” said the Master.
“It is, Master. But why are people so unappreciative of my art?”
“What did the nobleman ask you to make, exactly?”
“A calendar, Master. A beautiful calendar.”
“A calendar. How peculiar. And what did he need the calendar for?”
At that moment, the craftsman was Enlightened.
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Continue to the follow-up post, Design as an Emerging Property of User Needs.