Artists are Entrepreneurs &Entrepreneurs are Artists

I have been grappling with this issue lately. Can you be a successful entrepreneur and a dedicated artist at the same time?
Can you equally emphasize the quality of your art and the growth of your business?

One of our best friends is a highly successful entrepreneur in the Washington D.C. area. He also happens to be an art history buff who loves businesses that successfully balance a commitment to art & design with a commitment to profitability & growth. Since we were in D.C. this weekend for a wedding, we had a chance to visit him and share some fun conversations.

We talked about Abraham Louis Breguet the famed Parisian watchmaker whose exquisite sense of style created modern watch design. He revolutionized an entire industry through his commitment to uncompromising aesthetic standards and smart business growth. Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI wore Breguet's watches and he was recently memorialized at Versailles by Swatch Chairman Nicolas G. Hayek.

Here's what Hayek said about Breguet:

I consider a real entrepreneur an artist, a creator. An entrepreneur for me is Picasso, Henry Ford, Beethoven, Breguet. A good entrepreneur is an artist who is always creating something new. They keep innovating with absolutely high standards and high quality — and don't forget beauty, beauty, beauty! An entrepreneur must continually create new products, create jobs and find new markets. He must be continually on the move and prepared to take responsibility for his actions. An entrepreneur has always been and always will be an artist, a creator, and an innovator, who motivates all people around him and creates new wealth and workplaces."

The legacy of Breguet the artist and Breguet the entrepreneur reminds me that art and business are not mutually exclusive. It is indeed possible to excel at both. In fact, the best entrepreneurs are often artists. They view business itself as an art!