Newness vs Nuance

Jiro Ono is the 98 year old chef and owner of Sukiyabashi Jiro, highly regarded as the best sushi restaurant in the world. He was also featured in the documentary, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, which dives into his process and mindset.

He was 85 years old at the time of the documentary and still going strong. Here’s one line that stood out to me:

I do the same thing over and over, improving bit by bit. There is always a yearning to achieve more. I’ll continue to climb, trying to reach the top, but no one knows where the top is. - Jiro Ono

To a novice, novelty is newness. To a master, novelty is nuance. And nuance is infinite.