The calm before the reveal.

It’s common to look for a spark when reviewing creative work. A moment that feels exciting. When it’s not there, it can raise questions.

Strong strategy moves in a different direction.

When it’s done well, the final idea feels like it has already lived in your head. You look at it and think, of course. The fit is so natural that it barely feels like a leap.

This happens when the team stops fixating on color, type, or other surface details and starts choosing the future the brand needs to inhabit. Brian Collins said it well; “We don’t design things. We design futures”. Once that future is chosen, execution stops feeling random. Every element falls into place because it has a job to do.

Teams feel this shift fast. They know where the work is heading. They stop pushing for clever moments and start building with purpose. The process becomes steadier because everyone is aiming at the same horizon.

The calm before the reveal is where most of the hard work sits. You don’t notice it until the final moment arrives and the idea feels inevitable.

Sit with:

Where are you stuck debating details because the future you want isn’t defined yet?

What future would make your next creative decision feel obvious?

What choice have you delayed that would anchor everything else?

Ready to lead with intent instead of reaction? Let’s talk

— Ian Adams, Founder the little red sofa

Before founding the little red sofa, I led strategy and creative for brands like Jeep, HSBC, and Unilever at top global agencies and in-house teams across 8 countries. Now I partner with brands to do the uncomfortable work that builds resilience. That’s how they become unshakable. Impossible to ignore.