Certain people get to a truck, or to a production facility, and think: okay, now I own the place, and now I get to do whatever I want, and now I get to ask for anything I want.
And it is not like that.
In this business of broadcasting, many times we are guests at somebody else’s house. We get to work in fancy trucks, trucks rented by the company we work for. But usually they don’t belong to that company. So we get to the truck and there are two or three people there, the engineers in charge, and everybody is educated enough to treat them with the respect and the kindness you treat people with when you go as a guest to their house.
Same when you go to a production facility. You get there and yes, it’s true, you are paying, or the company you are working for is paying. You are still a guest.
We go to stadiums. We go to arenas. And we have seen people that don’t understand the value of respect and kindness (or at least understand it, but don’t exercise it) when they are guests at other people’s places.
Good, but rude
This is extremely important for freelancers, from my point of view.
There have been moments in my life where I have been faced with the decision of hiring person X or person Y. And the facility where we would be working said: Oh, we didn’t have a good experience with person X. Good, but rude. Treats people badly. Doesn’t take care of the equipment. Or is just not a kind person.
And then you are left with person Y, who is probably good as well, the references are good, but has the advantage that they are mindful about the equipment, mindful about the people working at that facility, mindful about the people around them, and leaves a good impression.
That is crucial. When your attitude, your kindness or your respect towards others determines whether you are hirable or not, that’s a big problem, and you need to be aware of that.
But it’s not only because of the commercial side of this. It’s just about you being a good person. The more you treat others well, the more they are going to appreciate you, the more doors are going to open for you, the more good references are going to come your way. And that is something you should not take for granted.
They are part of my team
One of the first things I have done through my career is to try to know the people running the facility, the EICs in charge of the truck I’m working in, and make sure that they understand not only that I am the client, but that they have my biggest level of respect, that I am there just to serve and to help as much as I can, and that they are part of my team.
And even when I’m not in charge of a production, when I’m just part of it, I also introduce myself to the people of the truck, to the people of the facility. They know who I am. And they are going to be in a better position when it comes to helping me later.
I don’t think it is a good thing when you are just trying to be THE guy. When you pretend that you are too important, or too talented, or that just because you work for X or Y network you are more important than those who own or work at the studio you are renting.
Long story short
A little bit of kindness goes a long way. It doesn’t only earn you respect, it speaks highly about who you are.
Because at the end of the day, it is not about being a good tech operator. It is not just about being good at your craft. You need to be a good person.
Be kind and you will have more opportunities. Especially nowadays, when some of the tasks you might be hired for can be done by a machine.
P.S. If you are the one working at the facility, don’t be afraid to respectfully call out those who are not kind, who are not behaving, even if they are the clients. It’s your house. This is a two-way relationship.
Two quotes nailed it: You are a guest, and "A bit of kindness goes a long way".
Decades ago we supplied facilities for a venue out west. I worked with the programmer and designer to come up with the system. We built and documented it.
Day one in San Francisco I met with the locals showed them our design. They proceeded to tell me what they wanted to do. Several breaths later I said that works.
A couple of days later one of the locals commented - you were so calm as they shredded your design. I said I'm a guest here. It's your house, it's important for you to have a system you are comfortable operating once the system is installed.