It's a pretty long read, so for those who can't be bothered, the core of it is that someone accidentally deleted the main directory with all of the files for Toy Story 2... while they were in the middle of making the film.
The first part of the story is a very interesting reflection about the ways in which we can react to something like that. For many, as the article says, the first reaction would be to try and track down the person who made the mistake and reprimand them severely. Pixar's reaction? No point in doing that - there's too much to do, we just need to get it fixed.
Great quote about meeting culture in the midst of that...
The thing about a disaster like this one is that the technical directors and staff at Pixar had to trust one another to fix the issue, even though there were several mistakes made and one of them was responsible. 'If you can't sit down and calmly engage that meeting, you can't be in that meeting with them'.
What an awesome culture to be part of - no pointing fingers, just all hands on deck, let's solve the problem. Together. Even though everyone knew that one of the people in the room was the source of the huge problem, if you can't let that go and be part of finding the solutions, you're best not to be in the meeting.
Even more interesting as you get further through the article is that less than a year before the release date, they decided the movie wasn't as good as it could be, so they started most of it again. From scratch. In any circumstance, that's a big call, but to do it after the issue with the deleted files? Wow. Again, what a great culture to be part of - one where the focus is on doing the best we can do - even if it means that we have to scrap some things that people have invested significant time into, even if it means having hard conversations about "Are you kidding? After all the work we did restoring the deleted version?"
I love the comment the writer makes towards the end of the article:
The thing that I take away about these experiences is that the spontaneity of the communal support speaks to the culture of Pixar the rest of the time. That kind of thing doesn't happen all of a sudden. You can't simply have a disaster and suddenly develop this sense of community and camaraderie and help and support.
It has to seep out. It has to be in the soil. You don't just go ahead and plant it and watch it grow in one day. It has to be cultivated.So true.
What culture am I cultivating in my spheres of influence?
When a problem comes up, am I someone who wants to find the source or the solution?
How much am I willing to sacrifice, in order to get to my very best?
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