Lesson #5 "Good, Fast, or Cheap"

"Good, Fast, or Cheap." Pick two because you can't have all three.

That's the saying and I would classify it right now as indelible as an india ink stain on a linen shirt. Throughout my career, I have found this adage to be impeccably true.

Here is how it works. You are approached with a creative project and the producer doesn't have a ton of money (cheap), the producer also informs you that they need the project finished yesterday (fast). Can you make it "good" too? The answer is "no way in hell." You have no time and no money, you will be lucky to get the project done let alone make it "good". P.S. "good" is hereby defined as the best you can do (just to make it clear).

Let's tackle another example. A producer offers you a job that needs to be good, but also needs to be cheap. So it cannot be fast, right? The producer needs to be informed that in order to make this job both good and cheap that you need time to accomplish this. P.S. this has nothing to do with whether the job is worth taking.

A producer wants a job that is both good and fast, well if they come up with the cash (not cheap) you can hire the best talent and the problem of speed and greatness is tucked away in a nice cozy bed after the best party ever.

I have used this adage to explain my position to a producer many times and it has never failed to directly describe the issue of time, money, and quality. I have been able to explain to a producer that "good" cannot be fast and cheap and that they must not care enough about their own project without insult. A very valuable tool.

Embrace this adage, it can save you.