Quick Thought: Aiming Higher

I was sitting around with a friend of mine after dinner not too long ago talking about life and the world of church production, and it wasn’t long before our conversation landed on a phrase neither of us like: Distraction Free.

I hear a lot of people in production talking about eliminating distractions or creating a distraction free environment.

I can’t stand these phrases, and in my opinion, they really have nothing to do with what we do.

I mean, when’s the last time your production team went through the house removing crying babies? Or stopped that kid from watching an iPad with the volume turned up too high? Or asked those people having a conversation to step outside? Or asked that guy to get off his phone and told him shouting doesn’t make it work better?

Plus, if we’re talking about “eliminating distractions” in terms of the production we provide, that’s basically the lowest common denominator of doing our job. I think it’s really just a nice way of saying, “Don’t screw up.”

In my experience, if you’re looking for a good way to put more pressure on anyone in a production position, you tell them, “Don’t screw up.”

Personally, I think we could and should aim higher with things.

What would our production teams and experiences look like if we shifted the way we think and talk about things a little?

What if instead of “eliminating distractions” we set out to do a “great job”?

What if the mission was more like, “To facilitate and support the messages and talent presented on our platform in the best way we possibly can through the use of great production”?

Isn’t that more along the lines of what we ACTUALLY try and do every week?

So what if instead of asking people not to “screw up”, we told them, “You’re gonna do great today, and I’ll be here to help if you need it.”?

Just my $.02.