Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1434261
BE OPEN With apologies to Billy Shakespeare (who not only wrote a few plays, he also helped run a theater company), some are born managers. Some achieve manager-ium, and some have management thrust upon them. Many people who end up running shows or supervising departments start their careers as artists and move up through the ranks. Some are groomed to e superisors thers are tapped perhaps before they express interest or even before they're necessarily ready to lead. As for the best managers, they are the people who want to be managers, according to Upton. "It sounds simple and straightforward, but not everyone wants [this]. People typically start a career because they love the craft," but the further they go, they might find themselves forced into a management position. "Sometimes that's fine," Upton says, "because you may be inclined and interested in developing those skills." But it's important that this inclination and interest is genuine. Leadership, particularly within a cre- ative industry like animation, also takes a special mindset—an openness to, well, being open to others. ne o y uidin principles is to embrace humanity," says Upton. "No matter what process you use or what del- egation techniques you apply, the people on the receiving end are the trump cards. So I think it's important to come from an understanding that there is no one-size- fits-all approach to everything you do as a leader. It's a bit about being humble." ENJOY THE RIDE Certainly, there are deadlines and deliver- ables that come with any project. But as any Type A creative will tell you, when you focus too much on plowing through the work just to get it done, that's when the quality suffers. The same goes for manage- ment, says Walker, who maintains that supervisors who delegate with a "get-it- done mindset" can miss the bigger picture. "It sets you up for a really bad frame of mind," she explains. With all of your attention on the endpoint, it's hard not to think of every step as "my work," and the idea of someone else doing "my work" can be stressful. So you end up doing—or micromanaging—everything yourself. A more productive way of thinking is to view the project as a system. As the manager, how do you make your system QUESTION & CALIBRATE As a manager, you want to make sure your instructions are understood so the o ets done correctly ou also ant to chec in alon the ay ur eperts have a few tips for how to communicate from start to finish. • nce you'e assined a tasand eore the person ets to oras i everything you said makes sense. Ask if anything needs to be repeated. • Don't check in randomly. Set clear timelines and schedule checkpoints so the person is prepared. These checkpoints should be quick, reviewing what has been accomplished so far, allowing for clarifying questions, and making course corrections if necessary. • nce the or has een copleted, i it's not as epected, ollo up ith constructive questions with an eye toward encouragement, collaboration, and improvement. Let the person know that their work is valued, and invite them to both help solve the problem and contribute suggestions for how to avoid the same mistakes going forward. "The best supervisors are those who lead with empathy and treat employee istaes as learnin eperiences, san says his helps the sole challenges with their employees instead of for them." F E AT U R E With all of your attention on the endpoint, it's hard not to think of every step as "my work," and the idea of someone else doing "my work" can be stressful. So you end up doing—or micromanaging—everything yourself. 40 KEYFRAME