The simple phrase, "How did you come up with that?" said in two different ways, can mean two completely different things. It's all a matter of inflection. If you hear a client say: "HOW DID you come up with that?"
it means: "It's GOLD! I love it and I can't wait to run the ad!"
But if you hear him say: "How did you come up WITH THAT?"
it means: "It's CRAP! I hate it. Get the hell out of my office until you learn how to write a damn ad!"
What you should hear is: "I don't think this is your best work. Why don’t you have another go and we’ll meet tomorrow."
Your reply should be: "I respect your point of view. I'll take another shot at it and I'll have some more ideas first thing in the morning."
But what you really mean is: "YOU wouldn't know a GOOD AD if it slid up your leg and grabbed you by the BALLS!"
