Pixar Animation Studios has captivated audiences worldwide with its enchanting animated films. Since becoming part of Walt Disney Studios in 2006, Pixar has maintained its distinct storytelling style, stunning visuals, and unforgettable plots. The studio’s achievements are reflected in its many awards, including 23 Academy Awards, 10 Golden Globe Awards, and 11 Grammy Awards.
At the heart of Pixar’s success is its ability to tell great stories. The studio follows a set of storytelling rules that ensure its films meet high standards. Interestingly, some of these rules can also apply to business leadership. Let’s look at four lessons from Pixar’s storytelling rules:
Rule #2: You gotta keep in mind what’s interesting to you as an audience, not what’s fun to do as a writer. They can be very different.
This rule highlights the need for customer-focused thinking, both in stories and in business. When creating new products, services, or restructuring business units, leaders should focus on what works for the users, not just what looks good on paper. Just because something sounds great doesn’t mean it will work well for customers.
Rule #7: Come up with your ending before you figure out your middle. Seriously. Endings are hard. Get yours working up front.
Many leaders stress the importance of a clear vision and goal from the start. Whether it’s a company’s mission, strategy, or project, knowing the desired outcome early on makes it easier to plan and track progress. It also helps others understand and support your ideas.
Rule #9: When you’re stuck, make a list of what wouldn’t happen next. More often than not, the material that gets you unstuck appear.
This trick works in business too. When you don’t know what to do, try listing what you don’t want to happen. This can open up new ideas and help you see the problem differently.
Rule #20: Exercise: take the building blocks of a movie you dislike. How would you rearrange them into what you DO like?
This rule encourages looking beyond your industry for inspiration. Study companies you admire, even if they’re in a different field. Identify what you like about them—whether it’s their branding, products, or values—and think about how you can apply those lessons to your own work. Sometimes the best ideas come from mixing different successful strategies.
While these rules were made for storytelling, they offer valuable insights for business leaders. By learning from different fields, we can find new ideas and solutions. The key is to stay open to inspiration from unexpected places and keep improving our approach to leadership and problem-solving.