There is a scene early in Pixar’s Ratatouille where Remy enters the kitchen of Gusteau’s restaurant for the first time. Most people are watching Remy as he moves throughout the kitchen; the wonder on his face, the chaos around him.
Many of us are not watching the background details that Pixar’s animation team spent months getting right. Details that required research, expertise, and obsessive care. Details that most of us will never consciously notice like the grease on the prep counter, the wear on the chef’s apron, or the steam rising off the stockpot.
Own Your Work
John Ternus, soon to be CEO of Apple, spent years as an engineer before rising to lead its hardware division. In a commencement speech, he shared about the countless hours he spent perfecting the screws on the back of a monitor. Not the screen, hardware, or interface anyone would see or feel right away. The screws on the back of the monitor out of sight.
He, like any of us, questioned himself. He wondered if it mattered and if he was wasting his time. But he knew that every time he saw that monitor, those screws would be a reflection of his work.
Ternus and Pixar’s animators never met over this idea, but both arrived at the same place. So do many others. The care you put into your work matters, even if nobody is watching.
When We Don’t Own It
We all know and feel the difference between the projects we poured ourselves into and the projects we moved through as fast as possible. The difference rarely shows up immediately but reveals itself over time. Whether in the details that we quietly let slip, the trust we slowly lost, or the way we felt about ourselves after.
What It Says About Us
The standard we hold in private is the standard we actually have, not the one we talk about or post about. This is as true for individuals as it is for teams. A team that cuts corners when no one is looking creates a culture on a foundation that eventually erodes. A team that owns the work, all of it, builds a culture that lasts.
Ternus knew no one would see the screws. Pixar’s animators knew the background would be the last thing people paid attention to. They spent the time and energy anyway. That’s the point: To love and own your work regardless. Period.
