Genius needs collaborators.

I am a child of the ‘60s – that’s the?1960s for the calendar challenged – so of course I recall planting myself in front of the basement television 8:00 pm Sunday, February 9, 1964, to be one of 73 million people watch the?Beatles?perform “All my loving,” the first of five tunes they played that evening.

Truth be told, I’m not a?Beatles?fan – even since the?Stones?released “Gimme Shelter,” I gravitated more towards them – but even so I couldn’t help but return to the TV last week to watch Peter Jackson’s three-part Beatles?documentary Get Back.?After eight hours of, at times, mind-numbing viewing, I drew one, undeniable conclusion:

Paul McCartney is a musical genius of the purest sort, clearly overshadowing, at times quietly (and other times not-so-quietly) dominating John, George, and Ringo with singular, other-worldly songwriting and multi-instrument performing brilliance.?Love him, hate him, ignore him, there is no one else quite like him.

But as you watch McCartney at work, you realize he?needs?his fellow musicians – they are more than partners, they’re friends and fellow travelers – to float ideas, to venture forth on new lyrics and sounds, and to try, fail, and try again as a song slowly takes shape and resolves into focus.?They did this time and again, on song after song, on album after album, creating a musical legacy few if any will match.

Before subjecting myself to the?Get Back?marathon, I indulged in a more memorable, much shorter?documentary ?pursuit, watching?Somewhere You?Feel Free, detailing the making of Tom Petty’s album?Wildflowers.?If you read my?tribute ?to Petty after he ascended to Rock & Roll all-star heaven, you already know how I feel about his music.

Petty envisioned?Wildflowers?as a solo effort, not a?Heartbreakers?one, seeing it an opportunity to forge a new direction, but soon enough there’s the fast and facile Mike Campbell on guitar, soon to be followed by keyboard wizard Benmont Tench, both supported by the subtle, insistent drummer Steve Ferone, who replaced the more mercurial, at times volatile, Stan Lynch at the kit.?No matter Tom Petty’s name appears alone on the album cover, he got the band back together for what undeniably was a group effort.?

Some might claim?Wildflowers?as Petty’s best record; I am a?Wildflowers?fan, but also hold?Damn the Torpedoes,?Echo,?and?The Last DJ?in equally high regard.?How does Petty feel about it??He thought the collection was the most similar to who he was as a person and a musician.?Regardless, watching?Somewhere You Feel Free, you see how much he needed and relied on his colleagues to make it so.

I tried to connect the dots between McCartney and Petty and found myself unable to do so, until I recalled a conversation, years ago, with my then?Digitas?boss,?Harry Barrett :

Harry:?“Robert, do you have a second??I’m trying to work through an idea and need help.”

Me:?“But Harry, I know?nothing?about the assignment you’re working on.”

Harry:?Don’t worry; I just need to talk, and you need to listen as I think this through.”

I stopped whatever I was working on at the moment.?“Okay, talk then.?I’ll listen.”

I have no idea?what?we talked about, but I recall asking questions, venturing the occasional suggestion, even going so far as to advance an opinion or two, all in service of getting Harry engaged in conversation.?Meeting over, I recall him walking out of my office satisfied with whatever we discussed, ready to proceed.?Mission accomplished.

McCartney is a genius. Petty is a genius.?Harry, on his best day, might pass as a near-genius.?You might count yourself among those rare people who consider themselves geniuses.

For the rest of us, especially those of us in client service, our role is clear:?to serve as willing, able, and effective collaborators, ready to listen, asking the right questions and helping in any way we can.?

Why is it important we do these things for our resident geniuses?

That’s easy.

Genius needs collaborators.