I admit it. I have a foot fetish. It’s not exactly what you think. My love for feet is of the inanimate kind – stone feet sculptures, that is.

I just returned from my second trip to Rome this year. And based on my well-trained and traveled eye, I must say that Rome is probably the foot sculpture capital of the world. Everywhere I turned, there was another marble-carved foot. They were in museums, shops, piazzas, flea markets, and basilicas. Stoned feet in every direction.

The largest foot sculpture I’ve ever seen was in the courtyard of the famed Musei Capitolini, the oldest public museum on the planet which dates back to 1471. (This date is not a typo.) The really big and old foot is shown above. The courtyard also showcased a number of other large marble body parts, such as fingers, elbows, and heads.

The museum’s shop had a small marble replica of the big foot, which I wanted to buy, but my husband — as always – gave his standard complaint: “It’s too heavy to carry home.” Most of the time I ignore him, but given he ends up carrying the heaviest bags, I relented this time.

Of course, I regret not buying that foot. Its image is now plastered inside my head. I think I need therapy.

But great art, even in the sculpted foot variety, has a way of possessing the mind and soul.

And whether you call it a fetish or a passion, the positive effect of art and design can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.

This effect just might help you ultimately lap the competition by a mile – give or take a foot.

It’s hard to add to what has already been said from so many corners of the globe about the enormous contributions of Steven Paul Jobs to the fields of technology, movies, music, telecommunications, and design itself. But I do feel compelled to say something about Mr. Jobs. We just lost our country’s Chief Innovator.

Steve Jobs was a once-in-a-generation visionary who demonstrated a unique blend of design, business, and marketing savvy. He took a quirky, irrelevant computer company named after a fruit, which he co-founded in the 1970s, and turned it into a global business powerhouse boasting the largest market cap of any other company on the planet  – equaled only by Exxon Mobil.

The last decade, in particular, has been truly impressive as Jobs led Apple as it redefined the music industry via the iPod, wireless communication via the iPhone, and more recently, the computer itself via the iPad.

Jobs didn’t always get it right. In 1985, after being fired by Apple, he started the NeXT computer company. NeXT folded in 1996 after shipping only 50,000 units, but its high performance personal computers impressed many, including Apple, which re-hired Jobs in 1997.

Most important, Jobs learned from his mistakes and he wasn’t afraid to make them. At every turn in his career, he ignored traditional business school dogma, and chose to take a different path – always guided by what he felt the consumer wanted.

Jobs concluded that consumers would be willing to pay more for a product if it was well-designed and simple to use.  He was right, and Apple and its shareholders have benefited handsomely.

Business schools will be studying the “Jobs Effect” and his hyper-successful business methods for years to come, and rightfully so.

At some point, there will be another Steve Jobs. He or she will also achieve success by eschewing the safe path. And most likely, he or she too will succeed as a result of a keen focus on innovation, smart design, and creative business approaches.

After three years of delays, Boeing finally delivered its first 787 Dreamliner this past Sunday to its very patient customer, Japan’s Nippon Airways.

The Boeing Dreamliner is probably the most innovative aircraft in the company’s history. It successfully blends design, function, and energy efficiency. The Dreamliner’s lightweight carbon fiber design and use of new plastic-composites translate into a 20 percent fuel savings. Inside the cabin, there is more headroom and larger stow bins, dynamic LED lighting, and larger windows that can be dimmed electronically.

The accolades for the Boeing Dreamliner are already pouring in. Yesterday, it received “Best in Show” at the 2011 annual conference for the International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) in New Orleans.

But these awards can’t top its most important measure of success. Boeing has already received 800 orders for the Dreamliner valued at $164 billion, making it “one of the most successful commercial airplane launches” in history.

So it appears that the wait was worth it for Boeing.

Your company may be in the process of dreaming up your next best product or service. You too may struggle with delivery delays, glitches, and unexpected turbulence along the way.

Yet, it’s vitally important to push your team to improve upon what already has made your company successful.

Otherwise, you might find yourself stuck on the Tarmac wishing you had a better flight plan.

I was recently in Rome where I toured the artistic creations of the 173-year-old marble floor company, Ditta Medici.

Located on Via dei Papareschi not far from the Tiber, Ditta Medici has been designing and restoring marble floors for some of the most discriminating clients on the globe since 1838. Clients have included the Vatican, Westminster Cathedral, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Getty Museum, several Bulgari stores, and hundreds of private clients.

Priscilla Grazioli Medici is the latest family member to run the oldest marble workshop in Rome, who gave me a tour of her factory. She showed me some beautiful and unique marbles, which I have not seen in the States — some of which have not been quarried for two thousand years.

Ditta Medici has a number of floor designs which they can customize to your floor, or they can work with you to design a completely one-of-a-kind floor using the rarest of marbles.

You clearly pay a premium for custom and unique. It’s always been this way. Yet, what is a relatively new phenomenon in today’s flatter world is less emphasis on creativity and design, and more on instant gratification, low cost and sameness.

Today, you can buy the same designer label dress or suit in London, Tampa, Minneapolis or Beijing. Is this ubiquity a bad thing? Yes, if it means that many small, individual designers are pushed to the curb in the process.

Have you happened to stroll through the storied neighborhood streets of Greenwich Village in Manhattan in the last two years? Gone are many of the decades-old, sole proprietor shops where you could find rare books, clothing, art, and household items. They have been replaced by global designer brand stores that drive up the rent for everyone else, and in turn, drive out the eclectic and the exceptional.

Unfortunately, a similar fate may await Ditta Medici of Rome and many exclusive and creative shops around the globe.

But I’m not counting out the creative class just yet.

All of us should do what we can to celebrate the artisans and innovators still among us, and those young artists and designers who aspire to make a career in the creative arts.

I’m still convinced that the most creative businesses will not only succeed, but will far outlast the competition. Much like the lasting beauty of a fine Italian marble floor.

On a small street in the French Quarter of New Orleans sits a non-descript store front, which is home to one of finest copper lantern makers on the globe, Bevolo Gas and Electric Lights.

Andrew Bevolo, Sr. opened his light company in the French Quarter in 1945 based on the skills he had learned working at several leading manufacturers of the day, including Ford, Sikorsky, and Higgins. Bevolo took this knowledge and revolutionized the gas lantern industry with a hand riveting technique. Up until that time, gas lamps were made with brittle soldered joints, which greatly reduced the longevity of the lanterns.

A few years later, renowned architect A. Hays Town found his way to Bevolo’s workshop, and the two formed a partnership and the iconic French Quarter copper lantern was born.

Sixty-six years later, the company is now run by Drew Bevolo, grandson to the founder. Today the company has 40 employees and its famed hand-made copper lanterns can be found on some of the most discriminating homes and commercial buildings in all 50 states and in 28 countries.

Bevolo now boasts scores of different lantern designs, and can also custom design a lamp on request, working with its own designers or a project’s architect. Each lantern is still made by hand and in Louisiana.

Craftsmanship and artistry are words that have increasingly become lost in today’s flat world, where instant gratification and demands for the lowest price now rule the day. But too much focus on low price can come at a price. It penalizes creativity, it trivializes design, and it rewards mediocrity.

Applaud and shine light on the artists and creators, and those among us who continue to honor the old way of doing things – when the old way is better.

In fact, I have a nice, new copper lantern that can provide just the right light source.

Encarta’s Online World English Dictionary describes the word “lantern” as follows:

1. portable lamp: a portable case with transparent or translucent sides that protects and holds a lamp
2. lighthouse room: a room containing the large lamp at the top of a lighthouse
3. structure with windows: a structure with windows on all sides, resembling a lantern, e.g. one at the top of a dome

A “new” lantern, therefore, provides the maximum amount of light given the glass of a new lamp, lighthouse, or architectural structure is at its most pristine state.

Lanterns have been used for centuries to provide a source of light to guide those seeking a particular path, direct those aiming toward a certain objective, or to generally add light to an otherwise darkened state.

Our goal at New Lantern is simple: shine light on artists, designers, innovators and entrepreneurs from which we in business can learn.

This is what defines our company and our name.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the upcoming 83rd Academy Awards show on February 27 will include a major facelift for its world famous envelope, which contains the words: “And the Oscar goes to…”

LA-based designer, Marc Friedland, was tasked with the envelope’s upgrade. The redesign features an “Art Deco-influenced satin gold frame with an ecru inset panel” featuring a gold-leaf-embossed Oscar statuette. Friedland described the previous design as something that surprisingly resembled a “non-descript, office supply store bought” envelope.

Details matter, and so does image and design. Your company needs to pay close attention to how others see you, particularly the important aspects of your business that potentially distinguish it from the pack.

Look outside your organization to seek a fresh pair of eyes to advise on what may be your non-descript blind spot. Doing so could lead to your company’s own envelope and the just rewards that go with it.

Several months ago I was in San Francisco and making my way by foot to an appointment in the Financial District. I suddenly found myself at the base of the city’s iconic Transamerica Pyramid building on Montgomery Street.

For several minutes I stood there in awe gazing upward at this architectural wonder to take in its dramatic pyramid shape and its “wings” silhouetted against an intense blue sky.

In a city that boasts the Golden Gate Bridge and the Coit Tower, San Francisco has no shortage of iconic landmarks. Yet, among office buildings throughout the world, you would be hard-pressed to find one as uniquely shaped and enduring as the Transamerica building.

Designed by architect William Pereira, the building’s nonconformist shape had its detractors during its planning and construction, which started in 1969. The Transamerica building was completed in 1972 and soon became a proud and highly recognized symbol for San Franciscans.

History books are full of similar reactions to bold and unconventional designs that initially startled the senses, but over time became beloved for their distinction. Look no further than Gustave Eiffel, the French engineer who designed the famed tower in Paris that bears his name.

From childhood we are taught not to stand out in the crowd. Go along. Fit in. Conform. As adults, this conformist behavior is roundly encouraged in the workplace.

This type of imitative culture serves to stifle the very type of creativity and innovation that your company needs to thrive and endure.

Applaud the individuality of your employees and seek to encourage, not suppress, the dramatic.

Your company has the potential to leave its mark on the business landscape, but only if you give your employees the opportunity to stand out in the crowd.

Today’s blog posting marks our 100th here at New Lantern. Each week for the last two years, we have attempted to shine light on all things innovative and creative, so that your company might benefit.

We’ve profiled a wide range of creative thinkers, business leaders, artists, designers and entrepreneurs. We’ve drawn lessons from some of the world’s most notable innovators, while spotlighting the lesser known or yet-to-be-known, from whom your company can learn.

Our objective is simple: helping your company or organization effectively mine and leverage the talents of your existing workforce. We seek to apply creative right-brain stimuli to a left-brain business and analytical world, which can lead to more innovative products, services, and processes.

This marriage of the creative and analytical is nothing new, yet it is unfortunately underutilized in today’s business sector. During the 15th through 17th centuries, the Medici family of Florence helped usher in a “creative explosion” by bringing together successful people from a wide ranging disciplines such as: sculptors, scientists, poets, philosophers, painters, and architects.

Let us help your company use creativity as the spark to unlock the talents of your employees and managers.

We think you’ll find that a little bit of light – or sliver, if you will – can go a long way toward achieving your company’s objectives in 2011.

Winners were chosen in 12 categories across interactive media, film, motion picture, and traditional media. For example, Laura Bordin of Venice, Italy won in the Mobile Design category for her design work on “Heart Lift,” which is a telemonitoring system for heart patients.

Since ADAA’s inception in 2001, nearly 20,000 students from 52 countries have participated in the annual competition. This year’s winners received a $3,000 cash prize and free copies of Adobe’s high-end designer software.

Adobe Senior Vice President, Ann Lewnes, notes that “the Adobe Design Achievement Award competition attracts the best student designers in the world. We feel fortunate to be able to shine light on these future creative leaders.”

At New Lantern, we feel fortunate to shine light on these creative leaders as well, which is at the heart of our mission.