Lighting Talk: You’re a Goddamn Tugboat Captain

In which I compare myself to George Clooney and use tugboats as a metaphor for technology work in museums

Film still from The Perfect Storm (2000) featuring George Clooney as Captain Billy Tyne.

November 19, 2014 | MCN | Dallas

Special thanks to colleagues past and present Susan Edwards, Annelisa Stephan and Emily Lytle-Painter (who was the first to suggest the tugboat metaphor), and to the fifty or so people who afterward who signed the tugboat pledge and got these pretty rad little buttons.

two small buttons, one with a tugboat captain photo, one with a tugboat icon

Chug chug little tugs!

“As a tugboat, I promise to bring a digital mindset to all areas of my museum. I will foster a culture of generosity, inquiry and openness by being humble, communicative and collaborative; by making smart choices, taking responsibility, and working hard every single day. I will make small moves, choreographed with other like-minded boats, that will change the direction of my institution for the better.”

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