The Business “S” Curve: The Universal Line of Beauty

The “S” curve in business describes business success and challenges. Growth in successful businesses struggle at first, then have rapid acceleration, leading to a leveling off that requires a leap up to a new curve and a chance for new success. Project managers use the “S” curve to track project progress. Finance people follow the “S” curve to predict cash flow development. ?

I’m sure none of these professionals know that the “S” curve is also known as the “Universal Line of Beauty.”

I discovered this recently when I decided to do something about my handwriting. Over the years, my handwriting has become illegible. I studied cursive writing (and keyboarding) during elementary and high school, and I don’t think my handwriting was ever particularly neat. I know it has to do with my not taking the time to write clearly, and over the years, I’ve just let my handwriting go even more downhill.

It’s gotten to the point where I can’t even read my written notes, including things as simple as a grocery list. I compensate for this by asking Alexa to keep my list updated. However, that doesn’t help my wife, Sheila, when she goes to the store with my list in hand.

A couple of months ago, I received a note from my local community center that they were offering a class on calligraphy. By taking a few hours a week to relearn how to write, I thought I could develop new skills in handwriting and ensure that I was picking up avocados and not apples.

The class was quite fun, and I enjoyed learning techniques from how to hold the pen to how to write out the military alphabet, all in Copperplate (the technique we studied).

Calligraphy letters do not flow seamlessly. Instead, a line or an oval is drawn, and another connecting stroke helps complete the letter. It’s an art form that requires visualizing the words, applying the right amount of pressure, and looking for ways to add flourishes that provide beauty to the word.

One day, our instructor drew what looked like the “S” curve, which I was familiar with from discussions with my business clients. She took a moment to admire her work and then told us this stroke was known as the “Universal Line of Beauty.”

The idea, developed by William Hogarth, an 18th-century artist, describes this serpentine line as signifying “liveness and activity that excites the attention of the viewer as contrasted with straight lines.”

This simple, winding image adds beauty to the world. Think about how much more exciting walking paths that curve are as opposed to being straight. What about our own spine? It needs that curvature to support our upright posture. Look at some fine furniture and notice how the legs curve in that familiar “S” manner.

It’s all about adding beauty.

In business, the “S” curve visually represents growth and challenges; for the entity that uses and understands that curve, it can also be beautiful.

I created my calligraphy assignment by writing a message to my wife, Sheila, for Valentine’s Day. Check out the letter “R” in my name to see my best example of that “Line of Beauty.” I’m not sure how beautiful it is, but she thought it was, and that is all that matters