The Holdout

I don’t know why it happens.

It’s a mystery.

I have asked colleagues. I have asked psychologists.

Nobody knows.

In every project, no matter how big, whether an exhibition, experience or something else, one thing is for sure:

One part will resist having a design chosen until the bitter end. Yes, one part will be … the holdout.

The planning and design team will come up with 5, 10 … 25 good solutions. But the people who have to choose — can’t. Even they won’t be sure why. They’ll enlist others. They’ll convene nationally-ranked thing-choosing advisors.

To no avail.

In the end, it won’t get approved until the last moment, weeks or months after the deadline.

Here’s the thing:
Like Maria in the Sound of Music, the holdout can’t be solved.

Here’s what I’ve learned to do: realize it might happen, roll your eyes about it, and don’t pound your head on the wall. 

And meanwhile, wait to see which part might be …

… the holdout.

Warmly,
Jonathan

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MtM Word of the Day:
Archival materials. Substances safe to have in the same display case as important artifacts. Archival materials don't emit toxic gases or attract pests. (Confusion alert: the same term also means “stuff we have in our archive.” So we could put our archival materials on display in a case made of … um … archival materials.)