What Only You Can Do
Have you ever been swamped with your to-do list? Ever felt like the list is a mile long and there’s no end in sight? At some point in every production or event the list gets overwhelming. Who’s going to setup? Or book actors and tech support? Or communicate all those little details? Make the schedule for the day? Build the props? Rent the tech equipment? The list goes on-and-on, and it can be hard to know where to start sometimes.
It’s easy for me to want to hold all the details and do everything myself so that it gets done the way I envision it. Though that can feel better in the moment, in reality that never helps anyone on the team in the long run, my life will be consumed by all the work, and I lose out on other people’s perspectives that can really help. I know it often takes longer to stop and explain a project/task to someone, but I promise it pays dividends in the end. If I take the time now to share or explain it, then in the heat of the stress, I have someone else in my court who knows exactly how to help instead of it all being on my shoulders.
Where to Start
A mantra I try to live by throughout any show is “do what ONLY YOU can do”. There’s lots of ways to slice a cake, but when I take the never-ending task list and break it down by person thinking through “what ONLY they can do,” clarity starts to set in for me.
Fam Jam (the latest production) was one of the biggest shows I’ve ever directed. There were TONS of details, communication, and technical support needed. Each time the list grew, I kept breaking it down to what only each person could do. For myself, I knew my best role throughout the event was communication, staying in the big picture for everyone as they went deep in their area, and to try to be a step ahead of everyone in planning to not hold anyone up.
Example
Our Fam Jam show traveled to five locations over two weekends, which meant staying really organized and knowing every prop, costume, and piece of technical equipment was on the box truck before leaving a location. I took some extra time with our intern, Meaghan, to explain exactly how everything was listed out and needed to be organized onto the box truck. I helped her understand how crucial it was to know everything was packed and not to assume it got on the truck. After the first show, I let her lead the tear down crew, standing nearby to help and guide her. By the second show I didn’t even have to think twice about the box truck getting loaded. This meant I was freed up to encourage the performers and tech crew, help with other problems that arose, or answer questions for other teams closing down that facility.
As I narrowed down what was most important for my role it brought clarity to what I should or shouldn’t be doing for the show. Just like in the example of Meaghan leading the Load Out Team, I knew I couldn’t be tied down to lead that team and be able to problem solve other challenges at the same time. Therefore, defining “what only I could do” helped me realize I needed to stay available for the big picture problem solving and delegate a big, important project to Meaghan.
Ask Yourself
When I live out this mantra of “doing what only I can do”, I often start with questions like “What tasks on this list are what ONLY I can do? What needs a specific expertise or skillset? What could be owned by an intern, volunteer, or contractor if I showed them?”
Don’t be afraid to ask people to own something! I’ve learned most people will rise to the occasion and would rather own a piece of the project over feeling like a grunt worker that’s constantly asking “What’s next?” Besides, have you ever had 20 people consistently asking you “What can I do now?” because that’s a whole other type of stress I want to avoid!
In the End
All in all, the name of the game is to refine down the tasks that only you can do for yourself and your team, and hopefully it will bring clarity to what could or should be given to someone else. This doesn’t mean dump all the tasks you hate on the next person, but it does help you to replace yourself, grow your team, and group together tasks to better suit everyone involved.
Even though you may be capable of a lot, always striving to do what only you can do is how to assure you’re getting your best self, and your team is getting the best of you. Do you know what projects only you can do in your role? Are there tasks that you may even enjoy doing, but maybe it’s not your greatest contribution and time to delegate them?