Lou Maxon returns to Awaiting Approval for part two of our conversation, and this time the theme is care.

We meet in a metaphorical Bryant Park with Mountain Dew in hand and quickly move beyond nostalgia into something deeper: what it really means to lead with kindness in an industry obsessed with speed, scale, and minimal viable products.

Lou shares the story of the Mr. Rogers figurine that sits on his desk - a daily reminder that creativity is about moving between reality and imagination, and that how we treat people matters just as much as what we make. From there, we explore the erosion of hospitality in product and brand experiences, the cultural drift toward MVP thinking, and why “good enough” is quietly damaging the magic of great creative work.

There is a thread running through this entire episode: care is a choice.

Care in how we present ideas. Care in how we treat collaborators. Care in how we show up for customers. Care in whether we scale convenience or scale kindness.

Lou reflects on hospitality in Japan, the power of unexpected generosity, and how small, human gestures can ripple outward in ways no KPI can measure. We talk about the difference between internal experimentation and external experience, why creativity should entertain and respect its audience, and how showing up as a great teammate might matter more than individual brilliance.

There is also something beautifully grounding about Lou’s perspective. He speaks about curiosity over ego, being interested rather than trying to be interesting, and following unexpected doors when they open. Whether that is building a studio on rails, operating a century-old train in Japan, or starting a podcast that invites others into honest conversations, the common thread is this: care enough to make it real.

By the end, Lou reframes approval entirely. It is not something he grants. It is something earned through generosity, teamwork, and showing up with integrity.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why kindness feels urgent in today’s creative culture

• The hidden cost of MVP thinking and incrementalism

• Hospitality as a design principle

• Scaling care versus scaling convenience

• Being a good teammate in the “locker room” and on the ice

• Player-coach leadership and knowing when to step in or step back

• Curiosity as a creative advantage

• Creating amazing experiences versus adequate ones

• Serendipity, adventure, and following unexpected doors

• Why being interested makes you interesting

• Delivering work that respects the audience’s time

• What it really takes to earn Lou’s approval

If Season 1 was about people being the work, Season 2, Episode 15 is about how we treat those people once we’re there.

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This is Awaiting Approval. The globally charting design podcast about the messy, human side of creative leadership.

Hosted by Adam Jennings - a creative leader with three decades of experience leading teams and projects for global brands including Microsoft, Salesforce, 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, Ancestry, Dolby, BBC and many more - this show features honest, unscripted conversations with the leaders shaping design, storytelling, and innovation today.

These are the conversations you don’t hear in keynotes. The ones about imposter syndrome, trust, failure, confidence, and finding your voice as a leader.

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Produced by Adam Jennings & Jasmin Egner.

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Awaiting Approval. Season 2, Episode 15: Lou Maxon – Care