Orbiting

“From cradle to grave, the pressure is on: BE NORMAL……Reviving the creative genius in you is the beginning of Orbit.” ~ Gordon MacKenzie, Orbiting the Giant Hairball

I literally have no idea how I stumbled upon Gordon MacKenzie’s Orbiting the Giant Hairball - it’s been in my personal library for at least twenty years. It likely was found on some random path I had taken in my dissertation research. It’s a strange little book - full of drawings, artwork and handwritten notes. MacKenzie was an artist and longtime rebel at Hallmark - and his unusual book is part sketchbook and partly a call to see, recognize and then operate outside the ‘giant hairball’.

According to MacKenzie, the hairball is the tangled mass of bureaucracy, rules and “we’ve always done it this way” thinking. He isn’t suggesting that we escape from the entire system - but the trick is to orbit - stay close enough to influence, stay tethered to the mission and yet don’t get caught in the hairball. “Orbiting is responsible creativity: vigorously exploring and operating beyond the Hairball…. While remaining connected to the spirit of the corporate mission.” As a leader we need to help our teams by protecting their creative space and helping them to orbit with us while staying tethered to the mission.

MacKenzie believed creativity requires discomfort—and authenticity: The workplace doesn’t need more polished personas. It needs more heart, it needs more real humans showing up with their whole self. At Hallmark, Gordon wore mismatched socks, doodled during meetings, and encouraged others to stop hiding their weirdness. “To be fully human, fully aware, and fully alive is to be continually thrown out of the nest.” As leaders we need to show up as individuals and make room for the individuality of our team members.

You don’t need to burn the system down to be a creative leader. You just need to resist the pull of sameness, bureaucracy, and fear. Orbit the Hairball. Lead with curiosity and wonder. And give your team permission to do the same. Orbiting the Giant Hairball isn’t a step-by-step leadership manual. It’s more like a gentle nudge—or a joyful shove—toward leading with more courage, color, and clarity.

Remember: You don’t have to escape the Hairball. Just learn to orbit it—with grace, humor, and a bit of mischief - and create pathways for others to do the same.

“Orbiting is vibrancy. Orbiting is manifesting your originality. Its pushing the boundaries of ingrained corporate patterns.” ~ Gordon MacKenzie