This is a picture I took of my father, Steve Vengrove. He wrote the old “Oh, What a Feeling” campaign for Toyota back in the 1980’s. The story of the campaign and the famous “Toyota Jump” is an inspiring one and involves me and my late dog, Kelley. To this day, I share this story with colleagues to teach the importance of “objective-based communication.”

Here’s the story:

My father was a creative director at Dancer Fitzgerald Sample in NYC. Along with his partner, art director Ray Krivacy, they flew out to California to present a new campaign to Toyota’s U.S. leadership. (It should be noted that the original concept did not include the “jump” at the end of the spot.) The presentation went great. Everyone was on-board with the campaign and wanted to proceed. However, one of the senior executives made one closing request.

As my father tells it, the client said, “I love the campaign. However, the closing shot is very flat. You’re ending the spot on a static shot of the car and a super that reads ‘Oh, what a feeling.’ It would be great if there was some visual way to convey what 'Oh, what a feeling’ actually feels like or looks like.”

My father replied, “That’s a great OBJECTIVE! I understand what you’re asking for. I don’t have a solution. But let us think about it and we’ll get back to you.”

Fast forward to a weekend shortly thereafter at our home in Connecticut. Our family just took in a stray dog. She was a puppy and while we tried to find her owners, we eventually adopted her and named her Kelley. She appeared to be a mix of Whippet and Lab. She was fast! I was driven to train her to become a champion Frisbee dog.

On Saturday afternoon after lunch, I took Kelley outside to start the training. Long story short – I failed miserably. The training quickly turned to teasing. I held the Frisbee high up in the air – amused as Kelley enthusiastically jumped up to grab it (of course, I held it just out of her reach!). Jump, jump, jump…

Meanwhile, my father was at the kitchen sink washing the dishes from lunch. He looked out the window and saw Kelley jumping up for the Frisbee. Aha! Connection made! He decided that a jump at the end of the Toyota commercial would be the best way to convey “Oh, what a feeling.” The rest is history.

Lessons for objective-based communication:

It’s always best to ask for solutions in the form of objectives rather than simply requesting a specific solution. Objective-based requests empower the broader team to continue thinking of innovative solutions. Quite often, the team will exceed the requester’s initial idea of what the solution should be.

Creativity often entails making connections from unexpected or unrelated concepts, thoughts or experiences. Creating diverse experiences both in and out of the office helps trigger imagination and provides opportunities to connect back to problems you’re trying to solve in the office.

It’s OK to admit you don’t have a brilliant, immediate solution to one’s request or challenge. Ask for some time to think it over.

Providing clear objectives is a great way to lead teams and direct reports. It empowers people to think on their own, develop solutions to problems, and grow. It may be tempting to take the easy approach and simply ask for what you want. But, I’ve found life gets a lot easier as a leader if your team becomes adept at generating creative solutions that exceed your expectations.

I encourage you to think of ways to apply these insights to your job. If you do, you may find yourself jumping for joy at the level of ideas your team brings to the table.