• Presume at every step of the way people will not do their jobs, therefore pre-emptive behavior and planning for incompetence are crucial.

• Make NO assumptions at any level about anything, (e.g. don't assume people have read your emails when they don’t respond, don't assume that things which are obvious to you will also be obvious to others, regarding important matters, don't assume people have the same vested interest as you, etc.).

• With a high level of detail, run through any scenario in your mind to catch potential problems, forgotten details, dropped balls, etc..

• Have contingency plans for every system, (e.g. what happens if the man with the key doesn’t show up, what happens if the package doesn’t arrive because the airport is shut down due to weather, what happens if the hall is double-booked, what happens if someone in the ensemble forgets their music, what happens if the conductor is so sick that he or she can’t perform, etc.).

• Have primary and alternate phone contacts.  Be sure that the people you might need to reach will have their phones ON, and be expecting your call. Don’t assume that because you have their phone number that they will answer.

• Do not make short-sighted financial decisions when issues of reputation and artistry are involved.  If it costs a substantial amount of money to fix something at the last minute, spend it, even from your own pocket/credit card.  You will be reimbursed.  Don’t lack courage and imagination.

• One must be resourceful.  Don’t always be bound by what superiors tell you or what the  “policy” is.  This is the worst type of employee.  And any employer who punishes you for solving an important problem outside “policy” is not a soulful employer.

• Take the initiative and don’t trust anyone’s competence, including your boss’.  Again, the assumption should be that nothing has been done properly. And you must check every thing, regardless of what someone in authority has already told you.

• Take ultimate responsibility for everything. Being defensive or offering up an “explanation” for something gone wrong will not help.

• Ask questions.  A reliable indicator of intelligence is the quantity and quality of questions asked.  If you feel reluctant to do so because you might be bothering the person, that’s their problem. You must gather salient information, and you must be inquisitive and imaginative at all times.

• Always be early (at least by fifteen minutes) and always do what you say you’re going to do, when you say you’re going to do it.  People need to know that you are reliable, trustworthy and a person of your word--ALWAYS.  Ultimately, it is irrelevant whether others do or do not exhibit good character.

• Immediately upon sensing that deadlines can’t be met or that you’re in over your head in terms of work/energy/resources, you MUST let a superior know. DO NOT WAIT until you are in crisis mode.

 

 

Cliff Colnot is a conductor and arranger. He has conducted the Civic Orchestra for 22 years, Contempo at the University of Chicago for 15 years and is the principal conductor of the CSO 's new music ensemble MusicNOW. He also coaches chamber music, and conducts the symphony orchestra and wind ensemble at DePaul University. He has arranged music for Daniel Barenboim, Richard Marx, Phil Ramone and David Bloom, among others.