Danny Meyer's Writing A Great Last Chapter, But For Agency Life

Borrowed & Learned

I had a call last week with a prospective client. We had been close to getting a contract in place when the stakeholder I’d been speaking with suddenly stopped answering my emails. They looped in a new contact, and I joined a call to bring them up to speed on where things stood. Part of me was ready to learn that the project was dead.

Luckily, I was wrong and the conversation couldn’t have gone better.  this new contact told me about their reference calls ahead of chatting with me, which meant asking their friends in CPG about us. Some had worked with us directly. Others had just heard good things. I felt grateful and proud of what we’ve been building, but it also left me thinking about how important it is to make sure everyone who comes into contact with us walks away with a positive impression.

The beauty of positioning lies in your ability to focus on a strong ICP in a highly connected world. But if you don’t deliver, it can work against you tenfold.

In Setting the Table, restaurateur Danny Meyer shares a similar concept from his career in hospitality called writing a great last chapter.

It’s about what happens when things don’t go as planned. He writes, “Whatever mistake happened, happened… While we can’t erase what happened, we do have the power to write one last episode so that at least the story ends the way we want.”

He outlines the Five A’s for getting it right: awareness, acknowledgment, apology, action, and additional generosity. Whether it’s a complimentary meal, a free dessert, or a thoughtful follow-up, the goal is to leave people with a memory that outweighs the disappointment.

Meyer is mostly discussing how to handle mistakes. My focus is a little different. Over the years, I’ve come to see that this mindset can be helpful in all kinds of moments, not just the final chapter. In an agency, it might be when a project wraps, an engagement evolves, or a tough stretch needs closure. It’s not always about a grand gesture. Sometimes, it’s simply about being intentional with how one chapter moves into the next.

When things move fast, it’s easy to skip over these moments or assume they don’t matter. Others happen so quickly that we don’t realize what they could have been. Writing them down is a way to brainstorm, take stock, and create a reference I can return to.

Here are five examples that came to mind from more team and client experiences:

TEAM

1. Closing a rollercoaster project

Some projects technically end well, but no one walks away feeling great; they are just relieved that it’s over. Sometimes the timeline is demanding. Other times, a new client stakeholder joins and shuffles everything. Without space to debrief, those feelings can carry into the next project, or worse, the next one with that same client.

We debrief after every project, but we’ve learned to carve out time to discuss openly what didn’t work and why. That might mean a group discussion or one-on-one conversations. As Meyer says, “There’s always a story behind a story if you look for it.” Nothing can change what happened, but processing it can reset the tone, make it productive, and shift how we remember the experience, which has a big impact on how we work moving forward.

I’ll never forget the project where we did what felt like 100 revision rounds because the client said they wanted it to feel “warmer.” We kept adding warm tones. It turns out they meant they wanted to see more people. That frustrating experience led to a workshop we now run with nearly every client, called Creative Alignment, and an experience I fondly look back on.

2. Navigating difficult collaborations

We recently completed a project where the consultant the client brought in, and who originally referred us, ended up making things more complicated than necessary. In another case, we brought in a third-party partner who didn’t deliver as expected. Both situations were draining. The team pushed through and did great work, but by the end, everyone was questioning whether we should ever work with those folks again.

Instead of burying the frustration, we talked about it. We looked at where alignment fell short, what boundaries we could have set, and how we could better support each other. In the second example, we even had a debrief with the consultant. Months later, we’re discussing bringing them in on another project. A quick conversation can be all it takes to release the tension and move forward.

3. Resetting team dynamics

In 12 years at Barrel, I’ve seen my share of team members who don’t mesh. The dynamic is off, communication feels tense, and it impacts the work. It’s easy to avoid putting them on future projects together and hope it works itself out. But that doesn’t solve anything.

What I’ve found helpful is sitting down with each person, hearing both sides, and helping them reset their perspective. Things may not change overnight, but the effort usually leads to more empathy, better understanding, and a stronger next attempt. It’s not about fixing everything. It’s about creating closure so people can move forward with less baggage.

4. Employee moving on

When someone gives notice, it’s natural to move quickly—how will we fill the role, what’s the handoff plan? But those final weeks are an opportunity. They shape how that person remembers their time with us and how the rest of the team sees it, too.

We conduct exit interviews, but I’ve found that a personal one-on-one conversation, where I say thank you, hear their feedback, and celebrate them, goes a long way. Meyer has this concept that employees are volunteers because they can work anywhere and choose to work with you. Creating this space can leave them with a smile and help us learn how to better retain the volunteers we still have.

5. Working on messy internal initiatives

In the past, I’ve launched internal initiatives, like holiday cards, website updates, and promotional materials, with too little direction, only to see them stall. Eventually, I’d step in to get it done quickly. But it always felt rushed.

What I’ve learned is the value in pausing afterward to acknowledge the mess. Talking with the team about what didn’t work, where I could have been clearer, and what we could do differently next time helps turn a flawed process into a learning moment.

CLIENTS

1. Wrapping up a project

Whether it’s a big build, a quick audit, or a short-term optimization, how a project ends matters as much as how it begins, Meyer writes, “What mattered most to me was trying to provide maximum value in exchange not just for the guests’ money but also for their time.”

A strong ending reinforces the value of the partnership. Lately, I’ve been making an effort to personally reach out at these milestones, whether it’s a call or a quick email to say congrats. Especially when it’s a big project that took months, we want to show the client we value them because we can never assume. All said, I think there’s more we can do here.

2. Parting ways after a one-off engagement

Sometimes, a client wraps a project and chooses not to proceed. That can be disappointing, especially when there’s more we could do together. But it doesn’t mean we disappear.

Making time to understand why, express gratitude, and reflect on the work we did can keep the relationship alive, even if the work isn’t there right now. We recently had a client return for a sizeable project because of how we ended our last engagement and stayed in touch. Even without a clear next step, ending well keeps the door open.

3. Addressing client hiccups

Mistakes happen. A team member might say, “It’s taken care of. The client seems fine.” But I’ve learned those are opportunities.

Stepping in, acknowledging what went wrong, and asking if we can make it better changes the client’s experience. As Meyer says, “Our mission is to learn from the mistake and to write a great last chapter.” Even if the issue is minor, how we respond matters.

4. Managing stakeholder transitions

When a client contact leaves, the focus is often on keeping the work moving. But reaching out to say thank you, reflect on the work, and wish them well is worth doing, simply because it’s the right thing to do.

You never know what might come from it. People remember how things ended. A chapter closing here might be the start of another one elsewhere. We’ve seen it happen many times. You don’t just build relationships with brands. You build them with people.

5. Supporting clients through unexpected changes

This year, one of our clients had its business shut down by its holding company. Another merged into a different brand. Others hit roadblocks like tariffs. In each case, momentum came to a halt. Some people lost their jobs. None of it was easy for anyone.

There’s value in showing up and showing we care. These aren’t just business transitions. They’re human ones. With one recent client, I’ve maintained close contact and even assisted them in finding their next role. These moments give us a chance to reflect our values when it has nothing to do with any engagement or project on the horizon.

In Closing

None of this takes much. Most of it is simply noticing the moment and deciding not to let it pass. A few words. A thank you. A follow-up. The goal isn’t perfection. It’s care. And more often than not, a better close leads to a better next chapter.

There's plenty beyond the list above, but some other scenarios I’ve been thinking about:

• Prospects who go through a multi-step sales process and don’t move forward
• Freelancers who take full-time jobs elsewhere
• Partner managers who change roles
• Prospective hires who go through multiple interviews that don’t lead to an offer

The chapter will always end. Whether we choose to write it with intention or not is up to us.

Thought

Where have I moved on too quickly without acknowledging an end?

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