Article

Monday, August 29, 2011

Seven Habits Of Highly Effective Sound People

In this technical industry, tech skills are a must. But there's more to it than that...

This list of “effective habits” is distilled down from a much larger list as being the most important – based on my experience these 15 or so years in the business.

How these relate to you will depend of course on exactly what kind of work you are doing, but in general, they apply across the board, so to speak.

You probably have your own list but because you are reading this article, it points to the fact that you’re probably willing to learn new things and already have a great attitude.

Without further latency…

1. Excellent Organization
Understanding how to be organized is partly a personality thing and also partly a learned skill. It takes time to gather enough experience to know how to be efficient and organized for your set of circumstances.

Some people seem to just have a sense of timing, priorities, and how to get things to happen. But the other side of this – the tools – take some learning. Now that PDAs, iPhones, various software packages, etc., are out there, in many ways staying organized has never been easier.

At the same time, these tools require learning, updating, and almost constant attention.

My advice is to avoid trying to be “ahead of the curve” and stick with using the simplest tools available that will get the job done. This will help keep you from getting bogged down in using the tools for the sake of using the tools – not that we are gear sluts or anything! Once you have established an effective routine, stick with it.

2. Continuous Learning
Like with the organizational tools mentioned above, audio equipment is constantly changing and getting more complex and sophisticated.

This is good because we always want the best tools and the most efficient ways of doing things. But the bad side is that the barriers to entry are ever higher and it requires all of us to keep on top of the latest technology.

But even without chasing the latest software or hardware solution, we need to be on a path of continual learning in our craft. Although this concept would apply to toilet paper and water pumps, it is even more important in our field where art and science meet to create new experiences.

None of us should ever think that we can coast from here on out. I suggest signing up for a class or seminar once or twice a year. There are some great workshops and panel discussions at the trade shows, particularly InfoComm and AES.

And then good ol’ OJT has never let us down. Ask around to see where you might be able to get in on a job and learn something you didn’t know before. What are you waiting for?

3. Good Attitude
This is one of those universal things that applies anywhere. Without a good attitude, you will make enemies and stunt your career’s growth.

But with a good attitude, you’ll be more able and willing to learn, take direction, and impress your clients, employees and bosses.

Of all the factors that I’ve seen make a difference in a person’s potential career, this is probably the most important one. What are some examples?

Re-filling the paper in the copy machine or fax machine. Not waiting for someone else to change the toner cartridge. Volunteering to fix cables, load racks, replace drivers or any other “dirty work” while you have some down time. Offering to be the one that shuts off the lights, sets the alarm and locks up at the end of a long day. Being willing to admit when you make a mistake and offering to “make it right” then being ready to accept what that means.

I’m sure you can figure out plenty of other examples on your own. Basically, you want to be thought of as the person that just “makes it happen.”

4. Mentoring
This is perhaps not as obvious or intuitive as the other items on the list, but equally important. All those skills you’ve picked up along the way? Be sure to pass them on without fear of others surpassing you.

Frankly, it is inevitable that the young guns will end up knowing more than you do and will eventually replace you. But wouldn’t you want them to think of you as the guy that helped them get there, like some sort of hero?

Instead, many of us hold our “secrets” to our chest and pretend that others should “figure these things out for themselves.” Don Davis, founder of SynAudCon, used to say “two people meet and exchange dollars, so now each still has one dollar. Two people meet and exchange ideas, now each has two ideas.”

Nothing fosters growth of the team faster than sharing the ideas and working to support the best ones. And don’t forget that the best ideas may not be your own.

5. People Skills
This one should be obvious, but nevertheless, I think it can’t be emphasized often enough. The people skills will almost always win out over the technical skills. No one wants to work for the “genius” that treats others poorly.

We’ve seen it in bands, we’ve seen it on crews, and it always ends up badly. If you tend to ever think, “this is everybody’s fault but mine,” (to quote Homer Simpson) you might just want to look in the mirror and figure out how to get some people skills.

Generally, most everyone is trying to do his best. So how will you help them do that? And, of course, people skills are even more important when dealing with clients. Don’t forget that they are paying the bills, and need to be treated accordingly.

Sure, they might have some stupid ideas or an unrealistic sense of “what it takes” to get a particular job done.

And there’s a nice way to tell them those things – a way that will have them eating out of your hand and not calling your competition.

Here’s a statistic to remember – people generally feel more loyal to a vendor when something goes wrong, was corrected, and they were treated fairly vs. loyalty to vendors where nothing ever went wrong. Think about that.

6. Technical Skills
Yes, of course – in our technical industry, tech skills are a must. But how good are your tech skills really? If you don’t think you have anything to learn, check the second item (Continuous Learning) above. We can all learn more.

In fact, it never ceases to amaze me whenever I learn something new how it immediately is applicable to what I’m doing.

Back when I was starting out in this business, I was surprised how some of the basics I’d been taught in school, like how to calculate dB, Ohm’s law, basic power supply design, and signal flow through various systems set me apart from my peers.

Part of the problem with our industry is that anecdotal information is prevalent, but real knowledge is often more rare than anyone is willing to admit. Take the classes, attend the seminars, hit the books once in a while.

Even “old” books like the Yamaha Sound Reinforcement Handbook can be an excellent resource. You should have a copy, and you should randomly flip to sections and read what’s in there.

Related to this are things like soldering technique, how to use a Volt/Ohm meter, how to troubleshoot a system, how to solve grounding problems. It’s almost inconceivable that any of us could be in this business without some of these kinds of skills, but you and I both know that indeed it is the case.

7. Listening
Finally, we all have to learn how to listen. First off, we have to listen to what people are telling us, even if we don’t agree. There’s almost always an element of truth to what others are saying. This is true in any business.

The type of listening specific to our business is about sound. And even if our physical hearing acuity is excellent, we must train our brains how to listen critically and then what to do with that knowledge.

Unfortunately, 99 percent or more of the sound we hear is of poor quality in a variety of ways. Mucho distortion. Horrific frequency imbalances. Too loud. Inappropriate for the source or the genre of music, etc.

So what do we do? Well, I always recommend spending time listening to acoustic music whenever possible. Listen to or play an acoustic guitar. Go hear an orchestra or a bluegrass band. Get your ears used to what real music sounds like, without any system and the associated distortion involved.

And while doing so, ask yourself, “how can I tell this is acoustic sound?” This is the great question, and the answers are not obvious.

By now you should have noticed many times before that when you hear a real instrument, you know it’s real. The sound of a saxophone coming out of an open window. A real Celtic harp. A real string quartet.

But how can you tell? Take this question and apply it to how you design, set up and run your sound system. We’ll all be better off for it.

Karl Winkler is director of business development for Lectrosonics and a long-time contributor to Live Sound/ProSoundWeb.

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