Steve Jobs looked back on Pixar's year and graded it. The report card had A's as well as F's.
Grading a Year of Goals
On December 21, 1997, an email arrived at Pixar's executives.
The sender was Steve Jobs.
The subject of the email was ‘Pixar Milestone’.
A milestone is an important goal that must be achieved.
The email contained what Pixar had planned to do that year. However, it looked different from an ordinary task list.
Next to each item was a score such as A, B, or F.
An A is written for making the animated film A Bug's Life great.
A was also responsible for recruiting people and expanding necessary facilities in line with the company's growth.
The B was given to making Pixar's name more widely known.
On the other hand, launching two new products and confirming the production of a third film received an F.
Jobs didn't even cross the fact that things didn't end as planned off his list.
Reopening a List from the Year Before
This report card was not created suddenly at the end of the year.
At the beginning of the email, Jobs wrote that he retrieved the archived data on October 28, 1996.
The tasks that were decided before the year started were redone after the year was almost over.
When we put the initial plan and the actual results side by side, what did we end up with?
It revealed what was lacking and what failed to start.
Next to the item with the letter F, changes in decisions or progress made in the meantime were also written.
Rather than leaving only the result of not being able to finish, we also looked at how far the work had come.
At the end of the email, Jobs proposed setting the goals for 1998 after the holidays.
Setting the Next Year’s Goals and Timing
Five days later, on December 26, Jobs emailed Pixar executives again.
This email contained nine things to do in the new year.
“A Bug’s Life” will be released in November.
Production of the new film will begin by April.
Construction on Pixar's new building will begin in May.
Showcasing new animation techniques by summer.
Not all goals had the same date.
However, for matters where timing is important, the times to move are clearly written, such as April, May, summer, and November.
A List for Keeping the Bigger Picture in View
Jobs also explained why he created this list.
If you only focus on what's in front of you every day, you can miss the entire forest.
He wanted the team to revisit the list, remember the larger direction, and correct course when work drifted.
The completed plan was not unilaterally announced.
He asked the executives who received it to give their opinion on anything missing or incorrect.
The team decided what to do, recorded the milestones, and later checked the results against the same document.
And the results were carried over to next year's list.
Many people make plans for the new year or when starting a new project.
However, when work gets busy, the plans you initially wrote down are quickly pushed out of sight.
It's easy to forget what you decided to do, and unfinished tasks get buried in the next task.
Steve Jobs was able to grade Pixar's work because he had a list from a year ago.
Reopening the record separated what was finished from what had been missed. The next step did not have to be reconstructed from memory.
The schedule you write down will serve as a baseline for checking your progress in the next few days.
After you're done, you're left with a place to start your next plan.
The day you return to a plan may matter more than the day you first made it.
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