Lesson from a Blown Theater Projector
Stay out of the way. Let the professionals do their job.
The Backstory
There are moments that turn out to shape you more than you may realize at the time, and I had one of those in the summer of 2014, as I was working with my AV partner during a convention keynote presentation.
I help produce live shows… experiences that immerse the audience into the stage content through audio, lighting, and video. In order to pull these off, I partner with an audio-visual technology company and their team of experts to staff the “Oz” areas — the behind the screen roles that pull the strings for what happens when and how.
I am typically stationed behind the large screens backstage, with several computers, monitors, and buttons ready for my command.
There are lot of things that can go wrong, and we try REALLY hard to avoid them and have back up plans, but sometimes, stuff happens.
The Object
We were in a Washington, D.C. ballroom and over a thousand people had just taken their seats.
I was ready to start the countdown timer to trigger the one minute mark and then… one of the three projector bulbs blew. Screen blackout.
The video tech and I looked at each other. He sprang into action. In the zone.
I held off the countdown and watched as he climbed the scaffold, tools in hand, to investigate immediately. Luckily, we were rear-projecting that year! We weren’t running late, but we also couldn’t hold the show off for very much longer. There was an eager audience, leaders waiting, and little time to spare.
I stood next to my AV lead and asked, “What can we do?”
He shook his head, both of us staring up, and quietly said, “Let him work.”
Basically, stay out of his way and let him do his job. Alrighty then.
The video tech got the projector to fire back on in a couple of minutes, and we were good for the rest of the show. No one knew any different. No one knew the stress and outage we almost experienced. That’s our job.
The Lesson
I learned a valuable lesson in that moment and have reflected on it many times since… to the point that it has become a defining philosophy in my management style and working relationships.
When a crises happens, not everyone needs to respond. Not everyone needs to tackle the same piece of the problem at the same time. There are professionals with defined expertise that know what to do — and how to do it right.
The Take-aways
- Give professionals a chance. Stay out of the way and let them do their job.
- Respect the expertise and experience of others
- Once you live through a crises with people, you’ve bonded on another level together
- Be prepared. Stuff happens.
It used to be difficult for me to sit back and trust the experts, but since that blown theater projector moment, I try to keep my cool, ask the right questions, and let the professionals do what they do best…
Their job. Their passion.
BONUS:
Shout out to the team at Audio Visual Service Center (AVSC) for their amazing work and professionalism.
