When a career retrospective of an artist’s work is assembled, it’s not unusual to see early works — perhaps even some that aren’t very good. Why would an artist keep old sketchbooks around when his or her talent has long since progressed far beyond the work they contain? Two reasons. They’re an encouraging reminder of how far things have come. And they may still contain the seeds of great ideas waiting to be more fully realized. How does your company measure progress? Where are the artifacts of those early steps? They can help you stay motivated as you work every day to improve — and remind you of the sparks that flew when you first ventured out there.