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Curtail Bad Coworker Ideas Using the "Good Show, E™" Method! (And maybe spare some feelings in the process)

Writer's picture: tylerhamtylerham

My partner and I were the only two employees of Paragon FX Group when the company started. Aside from a shared love of pop culture, a shared lack of knowledge on how to run a company, and some experience in the high end collectibles worlds, we were essentially strangers.

 

Over time we became friends – but there was a feeling out period at first.

 

One of the most awkward things you have to do in a creative field is tell someone else their idea is bad. Especially when you don’t really know the person. I’ll never forget the ironically forgettable feedback a supervisor at EA gave me one day while I was creating digital waterfalls:

 

“Take this from wow, to wow.” This still makes no sense and reminds me of the legendary feedback that was once given at ILM, and still lives on in infamy, “Make it lighter darker.”

 

Needless to say, feedback delivery is as important as the feedback itself. And nothing is more awkward than having to stop someone in the middle of a brainstorm to tell them “You know – this idea kind of sucks.”

 

In one of the all-too-frequent sessions of frustration we felt when trying to launch a collectibles company in the heart of a global pandemic, I decided to lighten the mood by sending over a youtube link to one of my favorite MadTV sketches, where Will Sasso portrays Elvis Presley in his descent into madness.

 

You don’t HAVE to watch, but the rest of this will make far more sense if you do:

 

The short follows Elvis and his two handlers through his erosion of sanity, ending up with Elvis making preposterous claims as fact. Defeated, the handlers simply tell him, “Good show, E.”

 

This is where the Good Show, E Method™ originated.

 

From that point on, when either of us started going down the rabbit hole that is creative startup ideation – when the idea was less than good we just stopped the other and said “Good show, E.”

 

End of conversation. No feelings hurt. We would laugh, and move on.

 

That’s not to say the Good show, E method™ was the final word. We created a failsafe:

 

The “Hear me out method™.”

A Good show, E™ could be overruled by a Hear me out™ - But here is the kicker, once a Hear me out™ has been uttered, there is no going back. Akin to the triple-dog-dare in the holiday classic film A Christmas Story, once those words are spoken, you better bring it.

 

A Hear Me Out™ followed by another Good show, E™ is a shameful experience. Many who have lived through the phenomenon have yet to recover. However, if you have faith in your idea, it's rewarding when the Hear Me Out™ turns into a "Ok, you were right, lets try this!"

 

Take this advice as you will. The Good show, E™ method isn’t for everyone – but it softens some blows and spares some feelings.




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