The Hidden Cost of Jumping Straight to Solutions

Image credit: Umar ben via Unsplash​

A few years ago, in the rougher-round-the-edges, earlier days of Casual, we were approached to make a film for a Big Tech company. The client, budget and brief were good, so we started to think about all the 'push-the-boat-out' ways we could bring the brief to life. We made the film with a relatively large crew, using glossy lenses and cinema cameras. It looks, sounds, and feels every bit the stunning piece of cinema we thought the opportunity demanded.

Stop and Think

The client was happy with the film and process but on reflection, I think it would have felt more authentic to have been more rough and ready with the production - maybe even shooting it on a fledgling iPhone. The film was too manicured, too controlled, too high-production value. We jumped straight into what we could do with the brief, rather than stopping to think in more depth about how we wanted the audience to react.

Lessons learnt

We thought the cinematic approach would impress, but given what the film was meant to convey, a simpler, more direct approach might have better connected with the audience. This taught us a crucial lesson and helped us mature as a company. While solving creative challenges elaborately feels good, taking time to clearly define the desired emotional outcome of a production is essential.

Film production = problem solving

In many ways, one of the biggest problems we have as an industry is our desire to get on with things – just ‘crack on’. All business is about problem solving, but filmmaking and production specifically takes this to another level.

At a basic level, each film consists of hundreds of problems (or opportunities to be more positive), some large: animation or live action, some small: tiny script variations. Solve all of them in roughly the right order, and you will have a film. The ways you choose to solve each challenge will define the film that you end up with.

Solution focused production people

The benefit of this is that the industry attracts particularly solution focused people. It’s one of the things I love most about producers – ‘real make things happen’/’never take no for an answer’ people. The challenge is that we tend to jump towards a solution without necessarily considering the desired outcome in enough detail.

Begin with the End in Mind

Possibly the most important of Steven R Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is to ‘Begin with the end in mind.’ In all areas of life - from filmmaking, to planning a holiday, to going into a meeting - pausing to think through exactly what you’re trying to achieve can lead to drastically improved outcomes.

Festina Lente

Action orientation is a key skill for anyone who wants to achieve anything significant in life. In some cases that can mean starting to solve challenges before we’ve even heard the whole brief. I will often stop myself and almost audibly ask: 'what is my ultimate goal here?' or 'what is the outcome I want from this meeting?' More haste, less speed, and a moment to consider the goal could transform your effectiveness.

This week, take a moment to pause, just briefly, and see how clearly defining your end goal can lead to drastically better results.

Have a productive week.