Intuition Over Analysis Doctrine

“Sometimes the staff would ask, “Is it commercial?” and I would brutalize them, because rather than using their instincts, they were trying to predict the public’s appetite, which I said then and say now, over and over again, simply isn’t possible. Neither is using research to help make decisions. No amount of research on ideas is worth the paper (or computer screen) it’s printed on. Data can tell you what *has happened,* not what *can or will happen*. Data is often harmful to instinct, and I believe this to be true for making not only creative decisions but many business decisions. PowerPoint can be the enemy; structured information often narrows the sieve just when you need to broaden it out in the spaces between information and real understanding. Overtraining our brains on data alone doesn’t confer an advantage, and it can be a deterrent if it’s the only decision-making component. That’s often the problem with MBA students, who come armed with all the business tools and case studies but little simple human instinct. I do not believe that using instinct rather than deep, hard numerical or fact-based data to help with decision-making is the lazier process. Too much information can overload, overcomplicate, and obscure what is at the essence of any proposal: Is it a good idea, and does it make any common sense?”

“Instinct is what I prize. Not research or data. Those who try to apply metrics to these basic decisions waste a huge amount of time and money. And experience doesn’t necessarily give you an advantage. It may even be a hindrance, since experience can easily inculcate a cynical outlook. In the TV and film business, you have no choice but to fly by your instincts alone, and that’s why it was mandatory for me to keep myself as naive and, yes, as undereducated as I could, so I could trust my instinctive ability to recognize a good idea. I force myself to remain naive in this way so many decades later.”

“Over the years, I have gained both a little and a lot of respect for money. They can be measured in so many different ways, such as in purchasing power and the power to decide over others, or in the ability to invest in one's own and others' projects and dreams. I find it so incredibly easy—perhaps too easy—to identify with and be captivated by the enthusiasm of entrepreneurs. It gives me a fantastic recharge of positive energy that can multiply the strength and desire to strive, almost like the creative intoxication of an artist. It becomes an emotional engagement that sometimes carries me beyond rational calculation and can drive me to tears of joy when a breakthrough in a project at a company is a fact, but also to anxiety when I've made the wrong investment.”

“Entrepreneurial activity and new technology are interconnected. As an entrepreneur, you always feel a bit odd, perhaps a little distrusted at times, because you do not contribute to the daily routine that everyone knows provides secure money. But the entrepreneurial spirit thrives in a mix of threats, opportunities, and an intuitive assessment of the situation: Now is the time to invest! As an owner, you must believe that it will work out, be passionately supportive, and send out secure and positive signals to the entrepreneur. At the same time, as an owner, you must remember that it involves risk if many people work solely on the future, as they may distance themselves from the company's culture. Empathy and experience are again required to achieve a sensible balance.”