You know what really grinds my gears? When a grown man blames another man or woman for something going wrong in his life. I don’t care what it is, everything that is happening in your life, with the exception of circumstances in which you did not have even the most remote possibility of involving yourself, IS YOUR FAULT. Notice I said, “involving yourself”, not “being involved”. Be proactive people, it’s your life. I take the responsibility for my outcomes upon myself, and I think everyone else should too.
For example…Do I show up to the studio 15 minutes before the session starts, find out that the room is a mess from the session before, and start blaming other engineers or assistants for the fact that I don’t have the room ready to go when my client gets here? FUCK NO! I show up an hour early and make sure everything is clean and organized, and that the gear is tested and ready to go. What is the result of this? I am usually ready when the session starts instead of being stuck with my thumb in my ass blaming other people.
What are you really doing when you point the finger at someone else? You are saying to me that you are not competent enough to overcome someone else’s errors. A grown man doesn’t do that. A grown man does what he has to do to get the job done, regardless of other people’s fuck ups. If you still can’t get it done, that’s ok. At least you did everything in your power. Admit that you fell short, and you will be respected. More will get accomplished this way than any other.
This is the difference between the employee mindset and the employer mindset. The employee does only what he is told to do, with no regard for the outcome. A boss does things simply because they need to be done and he is there to do them. I recently saw the OWNER of a major studio mopping the floor before a listening party, because the intern was out doing a run.
Be a boss. When something goes wrong, instead of looking at what other people screwed up, look inward. Was there something you could have done to avoid the error? Or maybe you should have done the task instead of delegating it, if the other person couldn’t complete it properly. Maybe you could have delegated it to someone better qualified. Whatever the solution, take responsibility upon yourself.
