$200k Freelance Newsletter

Become more valuable to studios with one question [Issue 017]

You’re one question away from being more valuable to studios.

The good news…

The question that will make you more valuable to studios doesn’t have to be a smart question.

It’s the “dumb” question that no one else is willing to ask that will bring clarity, make things flow smoother and make you looks good in the eyes of creative directors.

The bad news…

The nature of asking “dumb” questions is complicated.

  • You are hired as an expert at your craft… shouldn’t you know what you’re doing?

  • Nobody likes feeling dumb.

  • The longer you wait, the dumber you’ll feel asking it

Here are some ways to ease into a question you think might sound dumb...

  • "At the risk of sounding like a real dum dum..."

  • "I have what might be a dumb question..."

  • "I probably should have asked this earlier, but..."

  • "Is ____ an industry term or an internal term your team uses?"

  • "What does ____ mean?"

tl;dr

  1. We fear looking dumb.

  2. Because of this, we don't ask our “dumb”question.

  3. This keeps us dumb (or at least ignorant) that would help us BE less dumb.

  4. The best thing to do: Ask that "dumb" question early... or as soon as you realize you should have asked it earlier.

 

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Austin Saylor