dictums

I live by business life by a very simple goal:

That at the end of my career, when all is said and done, those who I’ve worked with will single me out as one of the best collaborators/projects they worked on in their careers.

That means talented, but also friendly, cordial, open to notes, kind, friendly, on-time, etc.

It encompasses everything from conception through the end result, as there can be no weak links in the chain. I can’t write a great script and then never pay for art.

I can’t write something mediocre and toss it away without a care.

It means every project has to be world-class from end to end.

It’s a pretty simple dictum, but it pretty much influences everything else in my whole career.

I used to play golf a lot, and when I played golf they would say you can have at most 3 things go through your head before you swing.

If you have any more, you’re going to choke. So I choose:

1-make every project the best of your collaborator’s career. (for business)

2-anything you can do that doesn’t hurt yourself or other people is fine with me. (for personal)

3-Treat everyone like a complete, three-dimensional person with hopes, needs, and dreams. (for both)

I can remember those, and they penetrate every other moment of my whole life. We make things really complicated, and yes there are about a million caveats that go into each of those dictums, but in the end of the day, that’s what I need running through my own head to perform at my best, and make sure everybody else is performing at theirs.