By John Mills

I heard a great analogy once. Close your eyes and picture a parade. Yeah, the kind with marching bands, giant flower covered floats, and of course a fire truck or two. It's a hot summer day and we are just sitting on the side of the road watching each piece go by. Now pause for a moment and realize that from our limited viewpoint we can only see the marching band that just passed, the clowns that are directly in front of us, and the drum corps approaching. We can't see past the one or two things right in front of us, but we know there is more coming. How do we know that? Well simply put, because we've been to a parade before.

Now consider a helicopter pilot hovering high above the parade street. He can see from the very beginning of the parade all the way to the end. He can see the traffic jam on 5 th avenue that is going to hold things up, he can see the big space between the Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck blimps; and he can radio down to the street and tell them to tighten up the spacing, as to possibly slow down to avoid the the traffic on 5th .

We technicians should always be able to focus on the little things that make the event happen, those things should almost be second nature, but we should never lose sight of the �big picture�.

We are often called upon to make fast decisions. The right decision is always the one that reflects the best possible outcome of the entire event. Communication is the key here. If our speakers are going to block the video screens, it's probably time to talk with the video team and see if they can move a bit� if they can't, because of the geometry of the room, then maybe it's time to let go of a little pride and put the speakers on the other side of the screen, but what ever the decision, the thing that separates good techs from great techs (hear good leaders, from great leaders) is the ability to see the bigger picture.

Now just how do I do that John?

Much like the three most important points of buying real estate are location, location, location. Technical would be experience, experience, experience. While there are a few good schools that teach the technical arts� the programs that really stand out are the ones where their students get hands on training. We can spend an entire day talking about how to time-align a system, but until you've actually done it for yourself, it's just theory.

So what's the answer to the question? Experience. But the trick to experience is to pay attention to your situations. Always try to learn something . After every event I'm a part of, I always take a few minutes to consider the day, and find at least one thing I learned. Most of the time it's many more than just one thing.

Whether technical, everyday-life, or literally wherever you are, why not adopt the question, �What can I learn from this person?� It's easy to ask that question when it's obvious that said person is more �accomplished� than you are� but I've honestly learned just as much, if not more, by considering myself less, regardless of where the social, technical, or political ladder puts them. When I consider myself less; opportunities to learn just spring up all over the place.

As I said earlier, in a live production environment it's best to keep the �big picture� in mind. We are all leaders of our specific areas. When we make mistakes it's always best to humbly claim that mistake and move on. We should never flaunt our knowledge and/or use it as a wedge to manipulate a decision to our advantage. Obviously, everyone is at a different level, but don't treat him or her like they are, or try to use your accomplishments to make yourself superior.

Recently a tech at an outdoor concert was arguing with the bandleader about the placement of the audience mics for the in-ear mixes. Trying to prove his knowledge level the tech threw out the line �I've been doing ear monitors for over 30 years.� Well not only was the bandleader right, but the tech �proved� himself wrong� ear monitors haven't been around for 30 years.

I think the old saying �The proof is in the pudding� goes much further than a long list of accomplishments. Humbly and quickly do your job, and people will automatically consider you great at what you do� regardless of your knowledge level.

And the trick to the �Big Picture��

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Philippians 2:3 (New International Version)

Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. Proverbs 11:2 (New Living Translation)