Will Packer is one of Hollywood’s most influential film and television producers. Ten of his movies have opened at number one at the box office, and his filmography has grossed over a billion dollars. He is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was selected as the Producer of the 94th Academy Awards Ceremony, for which he received an Emmy nomination.
What’s the big idea?
Hollywood, for all its outsized egos and unsubstantiated hubris, offers valuable advice that applies to all walks of life. A healthy dose of arrogance, wrapped in a blanket of humility, patience, and well-calibrated priorities, can transform a budding star into a blazing comet.
Below, Will shares five key insights from his new book, Who Better Than You?: The Art of Healthy Arrogance & Dreaming Big. Listen to the audio version—read by Will himself—in the Next Big Idea App.
1. Be arrogant!
I will never forget Kevin Hart saying to me, “Will, these people don’t know who the heck you are!” It was after an international screening of our record-breaking movie Ride Along, and I had stood in front of a sold-out crowd and hyped them up with a ton of bravado and confidence as I introduced our film. “That’s their fault, not mine!” I replied.
Some of the highest-achieving people have healthy arrogance. Superior confidence not only in themselves and their abilities but also in their predestined success. Not that they might be successful; not that they desire to be successful, but that they are meant to be successful. This manifests itself in ways that you may not immediately think of. These are individuals that, when in a room full of successful and powerful people, don’t think uh oh—I’m not sure if I belong. They think not only do I belong in this room, but this room is better because I’m in it.
Hollywood is the land of outsized egos and unsubstantiated hubris. But people in all walks of life could learn a lot from the mindset of “I’ve got something major to bring to the table whether others realize it or not.” That kind of purposeful way of thinking has a contagious effect.
My first movie was a tiny student film shot when I was just a junior in undergrad. The film was not that great, but we went all out and held a black-tie premiere on campus in our student auditorium. We invited the heads of every major studio in Hollywood—not one of them showed up, but that is not the point. Because we took it so seriously, it forced those around us to take it seriously too. We got support and resources that we otherwise would not have. People are attracted to successful people who they perceive to be flourishing and triumphant. Healthy arrogance can open doors because it forces others to respect your mentality and believe in it.
2. Take the thunder out.
One of my top movies is a heist flick called Takers, and it stars the late Paul Walker along with an all-star cast of attractive male actors. Takers stood out because this heist crew is clean cut and dapper, wearing suits, ties, and pocket squares. They were the best-dressed thieves in cinema.
A lot of movies have a moment where that movie almost didn’t get the chance to be made. But very few movies get to the first day of production and damn near fall apart. Despite all the conversations between the studio and me about the look of the film, somehow, on day one of the shoot, Paul Walker showed up in ripped jeans, a scruffy beard, and a baseball cap. That wasn’t usually a big deal. Actors show up looking all kinds of crazy before professional glam squads get their makeup brushes and hair gel on them. The difference this time was that Paul insisted that this was his best look for the film, and he refused to change.
“Too often, we think apologizing, admitting wrong, or accepting blame is a sign of weakness.”
The head of the movie studio was livid. As I’m trying desperately to intervene between my studio chief and my star yelling and screaming at each other, I’m getting calls from my director on set telling me it is time to shoot the first shot. Paul had now retreated to his trailer and was planning a flight back to Hawaii. I went to talk to him one-on-one. I felt like I had done everything necessary to make sure all parties were on board with the vision for our film. I didn’t feel like this was my fault, but I immediately said to him, “I am so sorry. This is our first time working together, and you are so unhappy, and your experience has been extremely negative to this point. I take a lot of pride in putting talent in a position to succeed. Clearly, that hasn’t happened, and it doesn’t even matter how we got here. I take full responsibility for that. I’m going to make it my mission to make sure every day from this point forward is better than today because, on a Will Packer set, I never want you to feel the way you’re feeling right now.” I said it, and I meant it.
After a few deep breaths, he responded, “I get it. You’re the good cop. But you’re a damn good one.” We got past that moment. The movie was a success, and Paul and the cast looked great in it. My approach gave Paul somebody he could assign fault to who was not the exec he had screamed at. It also showed him somebody felt real remorse for him being so upset.
In a high-pressure situation, our default can be to fight back: prove you’re right and the other person or entity is wrong. Too often, we think apologizing, admitting wrong, or accepting blame is a sign of weakness. On the contrary, it is a way of taking control of a situation so you can move past and focus on the essential goal in that moment. Taking the thunder out of a situation can give you all the leverage.
3. Sometimes you must fabricate momentum.
The first step is the hardest. It’s easy to get stuck in a rut trying to start a new undertaking. I remember trying to raise six to seven figures to make my first independent film, and, for the life of me, I could not come close to that fundraising target. So, instead of a financial goal I pivoted to a date goal. I said to myself, whatever I’m able to raise in three months’ time will be the budget for the film. I was only able to raise $75K. So, I shot a low-budget $75K movie. But now I had some momentum. I had an accomplishment to show people. Most importantly, I had something to show myself that I could do it.
My next movie had a little bit bigger budget and the next one a little bigger than that. Sometimes, we must convince ourselves that we are progressing even if it feels like we aren’t. Sometimes, we need to fabricate some momentum to power our own mental propulsion. It’s ok to make that first step a more manageable one just so you can accomplish it, say that you did it, and move on to the next goal. Don’t allow yourself to get stuck on the first rung. Adjust your perspective so you can give yourself credit for having done something. Slow progress is still progress. Sometimes, we just need a reason to cheer ourselves on. We can all use a little applause at the beginning.
4. The enemy is to the north.
In the hit TV show Game of Thrones, warring kingdoms are ready to fight to the death over who gets the power of the throne, all while an unstoppable zombie army marches from the North to destroy them all. Whenever my wife and I have a disagreement that seems important but is actually trivial in the grand scheme of things, one of us will remind the other: The enemy is to the north.
“The more relaxed, confident, and stress-free you are, the more prepared you will be for conflict that matters.”
Too often in life, we underestimate the value and impact of strong personal relationships on our business pursuits and endeavors. Business meetings, negotiations, pitches, etc. are like going to war. You can’t go into combat ready to give maximum effort when you have been arguing all night about which boots to wear on the battlefield. The more relaxed, confident, and stress-free you are, the more prepared you will be for conflict that matters.
Every now and then, I remind my wife that our positive relationship and her undying support of me at home are great tools in my business arsenal. She doesn’t love the comparison, but the truth is that in both business relationships and personal ones, we all fall victim to getting caught up in the minutia of minor quarrels while losing track of the bigger, substantive challenges that await. Only those able to stay focused on big-picture goals will survive the zombie apocalypse.
5. Find the wrinkle in their slacks.
What happens after a group picture? Everyone rushes to review it, lest a bad picture somehow makes its way online, ruining lives for all posterity. And what happens when they review the picture? Do they look at all the folks in it? No. They zoom right in on themselves, right past you, right past the great pyramids of Egypt, and right to the wrinkle in their slacks or whatever thing that bothers them about their appearance. All they can say is, “No, no, no. We have to take another one.”
If you want to connect with anyone, anywhere, find out very early on what that person’s wrinkle in their slacks is. What makes them tick? Keeps them up at night? Gets them out of bed in the morning? You have to read people. People’s favorite subject is often themselves. People always want to talk about themselves and tell you what they need or what they’ve done. Use that to your advantage. Your success depends on it.
Good leadership relies on getting people to work toward your goals because they understand that they have a stake in them as well. Your objective needs to align with the greater good. For that to happen, you need to understand what is important to others. Tie that into your aims and push together toward mutual success.
To listen to the audio version read by author Will Packer, download the Next Big Idea App today:
