When you’re building a house, do you choose standard lumber to construct the walls, or do you source exotic logs and mill the pieces on your own?

When you’re brewing tea, do you purchase cups for serving or do you throw them yourself on the potter’s wheel?

When you’re starting a company, do you use existing HR software or do you build the tools from scratch?

At every point in a project, we have the choice between standard and special.

We need “special” to build something remarkable. But inevitably, there will be areas where standard inputs will still contribute to beautiful outputs.

Not every project has the scope and the budget of the Palace of Versailles. Even that were so, working without constraints can lead to mediocrity.

How and were we choose between standard and special can often affect the impact of our work and how it’s remembered ... or forgotten.