8 Lessons On Working Smarter (And Proving Naysayers Wrong)

Based on the craziest project I've ever worked on...

Welcome back to The Snow Report!

This month, my team at SHOWRUNNER released a behind-the-scenes web series documenting how we made a TV pilot about freelancers—outside the Hollywood system and using special effects technology that people assume only Star Wars can afford.

It’s an awesome project, and you can watch the web series here, but for this edition of The Snow Report, I wanted to share 8 lessons that I’ve taken away for myself on in light of this project.

Whatever it is YOU’RE working on, I suspect one or more of these lessons on working smarter will change the way you think:

Lesson 1: Don’t Argue With People About What “Can’t Be Done.” Win The Argument By Doing It.

• Post: Hollywood gatekeepers said “no” to our show. Here’s how we built a team to make the show anyway »

Lesson 2: If You Want Your Team To Push Boundaries, Get In The Trenches With Them

• Post: Lobbing impossible challenges at others is called “being terrible.” If you want people to do more than they think possible, you’ve got to personally get involved »

Lesson 3: When Solving Big Problems, Tap Into More People’s Thinking Earlier On

Even if you don’t go with everyone’s idea (you usually can’t), you can always use more options and more filters.

• Post: How to nail the crucial collaboration stage between vision and execution »

Lesson 4: The Only Way To Solve Problems Smarter Is To Approach Them From New Angles

• Post: Math teachers may have rewarded us for using the prescribed formula, but innovation is about creating new formulas. That requires weathering criticism and resistance, but when it pays off, it pays off »

Lesson 5: For Breakthrough Ideas, Look Outside Your Field, Not Within It

• Post: Best practices are nice, but breakthrough practices come from diverse thinking, which comes from outside your lane »

Lesson 6: Team-Building Should Be Like Casting, Not Cloning

• Post: To solve hard problems, you want a brain trust. That brain trust shouldn’t always be the same people »

Lesson 7: Great Teamwork is Choreography, Not Yahtzee

• Post: Good leaders don’t “throw people at problems” »

Lesson 8: Tools Are More Effective At Changing Behavior Than Persuasive Arguments

• Post: It’s easier to change your habits, or the way you work, if you have the right kinds of tools. And if you don’t have them, you can always build them… »

I hope at least one of these lessons gets you thinking differently about how you approach your next big thing.

Make a great week!

—Shane

P.S. I’m quickly booking up on speaking engagements for the rest of this year. So if you’ve got a group who any of this stuff would resonate with, check out my keynote speaking page and give my team a shout!