2016 Silicon Valley Comic-con: Big Bang Theory writers on teamwork

One of the best panels at the first annual Silicon Valley Comiccon was the team of Big Bang Theory head writers (Steven Molaro, Steve Holland, David Goestsch, Maria Ferrari, and Tara Hernandez). Even if you don't watch the show, a great point in the conversation (moderated by Adam Savage of Mythbusters fame) was how the team prepared for a season. Adam assumed that a lot of effort went into planning, outlining, and preserving story continuity from the prior season. To his and the audience’s surprise, the writers laughed and lamented what it would be like to work that way.

In fact, the team create scripts one story at a time starting with an approximate plan and then sweat out the details as they go. Since they have worked together for over 200 shows, they have learned to trust each other and leverage all of their strengths. They talked about having differences of opinion on character development but in a way that is based on passion for the story not pushing a personal agenda.

As a result of their ways of working, they can make big leaps in content, or destroy whole parts of episodes after a table reading or even during dress rehearsal. They “fight” for the best lines, jokes, and audience reactions. When it counts, they come together as a single unit to create the best quality product. This ideology and creativity is not only at the heart of what makes a team great but fun too.  The panel went on to say that given the trust they have between each other, management, or the show producers, have less to criticize or interject about their approach.

The best comment they gave about the magic of their process happens during storyboarding. For sections of the story that aren’t quite formed yet - usually pivotal pieces - they will write on the board “some, something happens” and figure it out later. Isn’t that the best way to sum up what teamwork is all about?

2016 San Francisco Spirits Competition

It’s almost time for the 2016 SF Spirits Competition held at the hotel Nikko. This March, hundreds of vendors will submit their libations for consideration. The 2015 Best in Show for Best Straight Bourbon went to one of my favorites – Blade & Bow Deluxe and I suspect more Stitzer-Weller entries will be included again. 

Last year’s competition saw 66 countries participating across 90 classifications and this year will also see an equally packed and varied field. My hope is to see the unveiling of new releases which often happens at this competition before widespread availability. For more information visit www.sfspiritscomp.com

2015: Record Year for Spirits Industry

If anyone had doubts about the seemingly bottomless spirits popularity (and pricing – especially bourbons) the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States released their 2015 report on the subject. Highlights:

• $72B US Sales
• Sales up 4.1% and volumes up 2.3%
• The sixth straight year of increased market share
• Luxury bourbons among highestgrowth – in fact growth occurred in every whiskey category with revenues rising 8%

So if any newbie collectors were hoping that prices would bottom out a bit – no such luck. The global taste and interest in spirits both to enjoy and collect continues. We probably won’t see any signs of slowdown for a long time to come.

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How Authentic Are You?

Leadership authenticity will be a key topic we discuss with guests on Spirited Conversation. The latest issue of Harvard Business Review has a great article on the often conflicting nature of authentic leadership. Most of us have been in situations where we have had to adapt or flex to certain conditions like a new boss, team, or work culture. For leaders this adaption dance all the time and the expectation is to adjust or be dismissed. As the article points out, many of the lessons we learn from experience in terms of what works for certain situations may not always align with how we feel about the approach we end up taking especially when it’s different from our values or ways of working.

The emotional response to debating authenticity is typically “just be yourself” and everything will fall into place. That’s wishful thinking in the busier, global, and aggressively growing economy and business landscape we live in. The reality is we all have to form and reform our opinions and methods to balance our personal comfort levels and the needs of business.

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