My first experience at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity was in 2006. Our work, Guinness Heroes, had honoured The World's No. 1 Direct Mail Campaign and was shortlisted that year. My client, boss, team, and company were hopeful to win a Lion.

We did not win that night. Everyone was disappointed.

My mind has been racing with thoughts the whole night. We had an excellent team that created Guinness Heroes. The agency and client put in our best minds, resources, and support, made the highest-quality work, and passed our litmus tests.

Before this competition, we did exceptionally well in Asia and the world. To compete at the Cannes Lions International Festival is my first time. Many questions pop into my head. What must we include to help us stand a better chance globally? What would be our litmus tests? Did we present our Chinese creativity well enough in the international market?

I was determined to discover what we had missed and how we could have done better. The following day, I returned to the Palais's basement to see the works again and find out why. Seeing our work the second time as a shortlist against Lion winners was very revealing.

I was struck on the head by a giant Hummer.

The Learning

When we do our work, we see it in isolation. It is challenging when we cannot see it against the other best players in the world; we cannot see where we stand. That morning, our work stood among all shortlists and scored above 90% of the Cannes Lions' primary creative excellence; the Lion winners scored 95-100%, and the Grand Prix exceeded their score beyond 101%.

Creating an award-winning idea demands all the energy, attention, time, and resources in our body and mind to nurture and push it to fruition with the last bit of power left. Everybody wants our labour of love to succeed and be recognized globally.

I started by getting our work to meet 100% of the Cannes Lions' creative excellence, which would be sufficient. Unknowingly, this had put our best chance at the primary contest–shortlisted in the Cannes Lions only. I discovered that what we did not do well stopped us from moving forward to win the Lions.

Even I knew our industry never stops excelling and moves every criterion in the same direction. I needed to be trained to identify the difference between the best creative now and the norm in the future.

The giant Hummer that hit my head is—–to win the Lions, we are better off starting at 101% and beyond creative excellence. Observing how to create 1% and beyond is an important skill set to differentiate your work from all the competitors to win Lions and businesses.

The Discovery

As we can see, this year's Grand Prix has reached a new level of creative excellence. Use this year's Grand Prix as a benchmark to evaluate all the necessary deliverables, focus on what you can put in—your magic touch 1% in every area, and filter out all the nuances.

What is great this year will be the norm next year. While you follow this year's Grand Prix's trails to inspire you, focus on what they have done right and use your new magic to bring out your magic touch 1% to impact the brand, industry, humanity and fellow creative masters that would later judge your creative excellence.

Winners create their new path. It sets its work on the 1% differentiation from the competition. By adding up a good collection of 1% in every area that matters, winners are placing handsome leverage to keep them ahead of everyone else.

Creating new ideas is uncomfortable, uneasy, and scary, like this year's Heinz's Seemingly Ranch, Specsavers' The Misheard Version, DoorDash-All-The-Ads, and Micheal CeraVe, to mention a few. They have shaken our views, act, market, and collaborate differently. 

The 1% principle shapes the mind and the work. It can guide us to see things from a high level. It can also help us keep track of staying open-minded for "why not" and keep us daring to push on new that challenge our comfort zones.

The 1% principle keeps us moving forward daily to improve efficiency in addressing the most essentials, including a well-crafted narrative to help our winning idea fight through all competitors in every competition alone.

I met up with my ex-creative partner for the Guinness Hero, who had recently won a Lion for their work for Heineken. He told me how lucky they were to be supported by the regionals and guided them to rework their creative submission, which helped them win a Lion.

Every year, 90% of all great ideas submitted to The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity could not get a Lion, primarily due to a weak representation or narrative of their worthiness of a Lion. The 1% principle counts on every 1% extra afforded, including the submission presentation, which makes a vital 1% trajectory.

Becoming lions

Tens of thousands of ideas compete each year. A winning idea needs a winning team that does winning work throughout. Imagine if everyone contributed 1% improvement daily; your work would create a massive gap of creative excellence ahead.

Suppose you did not win a Lion this year. Don't be discouraged. 

Now is an excellent time to start again. Creativity begins when you look at every situation from a fresh perspective. As Anselmo Ramos, founder, creative chairman of GUT and winner of Grand Prix this year, said, "Every boring brief is a GP brief." This statement demonstrates a mindset of finding gold in mud (brief) and diving in.

The 1% principle helped me improve my work, see things from the top, and win my Lions. Let me know if it works for you. 

Hi, iamnickiwong. I'm rooting for you.

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