The first time I saw true craftsmanship was at Fish & Richardson. Seeing Hans Troesch's work was like seeing a new primary color. Hans is a once-in-a-generation craftsman who redefined "excellence" for me. Congrats on retirement, Hans!

At Fish, I learned to pay attention to details I used to skip. Every word mattered. I’d spend an hour polishing a few sentences. Then a partner would send back red-lines that showed how much better it could be. If it was Hans, I'd expect an extra thoughtful response (welcome to getting Hans'ed).

Getting a partner's comments on a draft was the most stressful part of being an associate for me. Occasionally, I'd get "Great work, please send to client." That felt amazing.

But more often, there were red-lines. After the initial sting, I'd find myself nodding. They were right; the edits were better. The inventor and in-house counsel wouldn't have noticed the difference. But that's craftsmanship: doing better work just because it can be done better.

It’s rare. Most people rest once something’s good enough. But every so often, you get to work with people who polish past the point of necessity. The work then becomes art. And, in my opinion, an environment like that is worth seeking (or creating for yourself).