Several year ago I had the opportunity to go to a bass clinic. The event featured the legendary Victor Wooten, who is debatably the best bassist in the world. Nate Watts was the other bass player that was featured at this event, he is the bass player for Stevie Wonder and is a good player as well although not nearly as technical as Victor.
Nathan Watts went first and played some Stevie Wonder music and jammed along to it. He mentioned a few times that he felt a little intimidated playing in front of Victor. At the end he opened it up for questions. I was surprised that Victor's hand was the first to go up, and he asked about a specific technique he noticed Nate using. Nate graciously answered the question and moved on.
By the time Nate's section was over Victor had asked 3 or 4 questions. I was thinking to myself, “If anyone doesn't need to learn more about the bass it is Victor Wooten!” I was surprised to see one of the world's best bass players humbling himself to ask questions on how to improve his own technique.
In traditional Victor Wooten style, Victor went on to wow the audience for nearly 15 minutes with amazing solos on his instrument. However, as I left the clinic that day I was more impressed by his willingness to ask for guidance and help than on his amazing ability to play the bass.
So, what does this have to do with being a church technical director? Well we all need to ask for help from time to time. Maybe you have run into a situation you don't know how to handle, or maybe you are a sound guy trying to understand video? Each situation may be different but we all find ourselves needing outside assistance from time to time.
What's the big deal with asking for help? Why do we have such a hard time asking for help when we need it? Why don't we like to read instructions or ask for directions? Here are some of the top reasons that we don't ask for help when we need it, and how to overcome it.
We Don't Want to Lose Respect
It takes a big dose of humility for most techies to admit that they don't know something. After all it is our job to know things! If we don't know something are we even qualified to do what we do?
Just take a deep breath. You won't lose respect for asking for help. Sometimes you may find that one of your volunteers actually knows more about a specific area than you do. So ask them for help. Or ask them to teach you! Does this make you less of a leader? Not at all! Leaders should always be learning. And good leaders should always be demonstrating humility.
One individual that I have worked with would never admit that they didn't know something. They would even make things up just so they didn't look ignorant. In my opinion, that is pointless! Just admit you don't know and ask for help.
You Don't Know Who to Ask
Sometimes you hit a brick wall and you don't even know where to turn for help. This is a great time to ask your senior leadership for guidance. I ran into some issues putting together a video system once and I didn't know where to turn. I asked the senior leadership and they simply asked me if I had contacted any vendors or manufacturers for help. I hadn't. It seems like a simple solution, but it is one that I totally overlooked. I called up a vendor and they were able to quickly help me to overcome the obstacle that I faced.
You Forget
This seems silly, but sometimes we simply forget to ask for help. We feel overwhelmed and things are moving so fast that we don't even think to ask. The problem is that we can waste so much time trying to figure out the problem on our own. If we had stopped and asked for assistance we could already have moved on to other things.
The Bottom Line
Let's face it. We all have strengths and weaknesses. It is time to own up to your weaknesses. Admit that you have them, and don't be afraid of them. When you are faced with something that is in an area of weakness find someone that is strong in that area and talk to them. Usually they are more than willing to help you.
Sometimes it is easier to imagine yourself in their shoes. How would you feel if someone came up to you asking for your advice on an area that you excel. You would most likely be very happy to help. So will they!
