Disagree and commit: the new growth mindset
I recently read a game-changing philosophy from Jeff Bezos about the power of making decisive decisions. He encourages his teams to make faster decisions by going with 70% of the information they need. If the logic in that 70% is convincing enough--regardless of whether he agrees with the direction--he'll get on board with it and commit to making it happen. He calls it "disagree and commit".
I call it playbook material for advertising agencies. We live in a world with racing deadlines, imperfect information, and an enormous amount of subjectivity surrounding what ideas to put in front of our clients.
Too often big presentations and pitches fall victim to the endless squabbles that eat away at what little time we have to craft a truly integrated end-to-end story. And the thing is, none of us know all the answers in that shrinking window of time before the deadline. Not even the client, or they wouldn't need our services. In due time, the data will be there to show us the way. But in that presentation or pitch moment, what clients feel--right or wrong--is the conviction from a team who is united in approach. A team with some members who likely had to disagree and commit in order to help a vision survive.
A culture of disagree and commit saves time, with less going towards analysis paralysis and more energy applied building and making.
It also breaks down the ego echo chamber that plagues creative fields, encouraging the kind of growth mindset that reminds us that unexpected greatness can be tapped through conviction.
And to say nothing of the teamwork that gets established when others know you're willing to get on board and find solutions even if it wasn't your idea.
Try it. Let someone show you a compelling argument that goes against your intuition and then agree to take a gamble with them. It might just pay off.