He built Pixar by surrounding himself with people who cared about the same thing he did.
In 1986, Ed Catmull bought a failing computer graphics division from George Lucas for $10 million. Everyone thought he was insane. Why buy a failing company that even the great George Lucas couldn’t make work.
According to Catmull, it wasn’t about the money. He didn’t want to make money. He just wanted to make a movie. A fully computer-animated feature film that would change cinema forever.
The tech didn’t exist. The market didn’t exist. The business model definitely didn’t exist. But it wasn’t about the business. It was about the art. And Catmull had something more important than a business plan. He had fellow rebels. People he had gathered with the same vision for the art.
Catmull didn’t hire the most talented animators. He hired people who believed in the same impossible future. People who thought computer animation could create emotion, not just spectacle. People who valued story over technology. People who cared about getting it right more than getting it done.
He surrounded himself with rebels who shared the fight – John Lasseter, who believed animation was an art form. Steve Jobs, who believed ‘different’ was better than better. Andrew Stanton, who believed stories could change lives.
Not people who agreed with him. People who fought for the same world.
For nine years, Pixar lost money. Every year. Investors pushed Catmull to pivot. To do it the ‘normal’ way. The way they could make money faster. To focus on software sales. To abandon the film dream and build something profitable.
He refused. His fellow rebels refused. They fought the investors.
They could have made money other ways. They could have compromised. Built a successful software company. Called it a win. But they weren’t fighting for money. They were fighting to prove that computer animation could make people cry.
So they kept going. Through the failures. Through the doubt. Through nine years of losses.
Because when you’re surrounded by people who share your fight, you stay strong when conventional wisdom says quit.
Then in 1995. Toy Story. The first fully computer-animated feature film was released.
It made $373 million and changed cinema, launching Pixar into the history books.
And what really mattered to Ed Catmull was that they’d proved it was possible. They’d created a new medium. They’d built something that mattered.
Not despite his fellow rebels. Because of them. Catmull succeeded because he surrounded himself with people who cared about the same impossible thing.
Not people who wanted him to succeed. People who wanted the same world to exist.
There’s a massive difference.
Supporters want you to win. Fellow rebels want the same victory you want. Even if you don’t get the credit.
So who are your fellow rebels? Not who supports your business, but who shares your fight?
Who believes in the same world so deeply they’ll push you towards it when you waver? Who refuses to let you compromise when pressure comes? Who fights alongside you even when everyone says you’re wrong?
If you can’t name them, you’re trying to lead a revolution by yourself. And that never works.
Most leaders are surrounded by the wrong people. Board members who care about returns, not impact. Advisors who push conventional wisdom, not courage. Peers who want you to succeed in safe ways, not meaningful ones.
And slowly, conversation by conversation, those people pull you back to ordinary.
Catmull built Pixar because he was ruthless about who got close. He surrounded himself with people who shared the impossible dream. Everyone else, no matter how talented or well-meaning, was kept at a distance.
Look at the five people you talk to most about your business. Do they share your vision of the world you’re fighting for, or are they trying to make you more realistic? More conventional? More safe?
Because you can’t build something extraordinary while you’re surrounded by people pushing you towards ordinary. You need fellow rebels.
Find them. Protect them. Listen to them. Your revolution depends on it.
