Issue 112: You don’t bump into people on Zoom

You don’t bump into mandolin players on Zoom.

The debate around working from home continues to rage, and while much of the conversation focuses on productivity and convenience, it often misses something more important: the role of chance in creativity. We’re now seeing major companies – including Amazon, JP Morgan, Dell and Paramount – pushing for a return to the office. The reason is simple: you can’t replicate the speed of human interaction through a screen. As Amazon CEO Andy Jassy put it, “you need to be joined at the hip with your teammates” when inventing and solving hard problems.

I’m reminded of the recording of the Grateful Dead song Ripple. The band had arranged a baseball game the day before their studio session in San Francisco, playing against Jefferson Airplane. A friend happened to be in town and joined the game. He played the mandolin. And was invited to join the band the following day for their recording session, where he added the mandolin part that helped turn Ripple into the standout track on the album American Beauty. Had he decided to stay home that Sunday, one of the most distinctive elements of that song would never have existed.

It’s a simple story, but it highlights something fundamental about creativity. Great ideas often come from the unplanned and the incidental – the conversations that weren’t scheduled, the encounters that weren’t organised. Creative organisations thrive on these collisions of people and ideas. You can design processes, plan meetings and build efficient systems, but creativity also needs space for spontaneity. Those moments when people cross paths, exchange thoughts, and spark something fresh. As we think about what makes a great working environment, we should remember that these accidental interactions are often where the magic happens. Because one thing is certain: you don’t bump into people on Zoom. Especially mandolin players.

Mystery is at the heart of creativity. That, and surprise…

/Julia Cameron