--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The most important thing is to be…" description: "\"“The most important thing is to be excellent, interesting, authentic, or useful. To be the thing, not the thing that sells the thing. That's fantastic ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac6/andrew-essex-44720_business_the-most-important-thing-is-to-be-excell_159713.jpg" --- # The most important thing is to be excellent, interesting… ![“The most important thing is to be excellent, interesting, authentic, or useful. To be the thing, not the thing that sells the thing. That's fantastic news for creative people, who specialize in the stuff. Thanks to toomuchness, creativity, once exclusively the province of poets, has suddenly…” quote by Andrew Essex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac6/andrew-essex-44720_business_the-most-important-thing-is-to-be-excell_159713.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac6/andrew-essex-44720_business_the-most-important-thing-is-to-be-excell_159713.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac6/andrew-essex-44720_business_the-most-important-thing-is-to-be-excell_159713.jpg) > ““The most important thing is to be excellent, interesting, authentic, or useful. To be the thing, not the thing that sells the thing. That's fantastic news for creative people, who specialize in the stuff. Thanks to toomuchness, creativity, once exclusively the province of poets, has suddenly become a business imperative.”” [Andrew Essex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-essex/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Excellence, authenticity, and usefulness should drive creative work, not merely commercial goals, turning artistic expression into a business priority. **In simple terms:** Create with quality and purpose, not just to sell. Key Takeaway Prioritize genuine value over mere profit. Themes creativity authenticity business excellence purpose Mood inspired determined Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - marketing strategy - product development - content creation Key Concepts value creation brand identity artistic integrity market differentiation Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance artistic integrity with commercial demands? - What does “being the thing” mean for your work? A Different Perspective Creative work must still resonate emotionally, not just functionally. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Creative people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-people/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) ## Related quotes > [“The idea that creative endeavor and mind-altering substances are entwined is one of the great pop-intellectual myths of our time... Creative people probably do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-idea-that-creative-endeavor-and-mind-altering-substances-are/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [You know a shooter when you see it. At least the creative people do. 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