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This video is popular again, and in every post I notice people missing a critical detail that matters a lot in art and business: Taste.

Taste in creative fields is the ability to notice, judge and choose what resonates with others. Preferably before everyone else. Taste eats skill for breakfast in creative fields.

You can see John Mayer showing his skills as a songwriter, but also his taste: Choosing inspirations, combining ideas quickly, knowing where to look, what to combine. That's taste in action. It just doesn't look like it since taste is subtle. It always is.

When it comes to innovation in companies (big and small), most leaders over-index on obvious skills (do you play the guitar? do you know these songs?), and completely forget about taste. I remind myself often as a leader - hire and promote taste.

People with taste will know how to make choices in ambiguous environments.

People with taste work their butts off to learn what "great looks like". It allows them to make faster decisions. And not get stuck in formulas or buzzwords.

People with taste are often not afraid of trying things. It's the way to close the taste gap (please check Ira Glass' video about it).And when you have leaders with taste, you have an unstoppable innovation machine. Leaders with no taste will keep companies forever stuck in a loop of safe bets and over-rationalization.

Hire and promote taste.