Why You Should Take Responsibility for Miscommunication

As a producer, it’s my job to communicate virtually every detail of a shoot to virtually everyone involved. I communicate call times to crews, creative briefs to creators, and delivery timelines to clients. 

With a lot of communication, there is a lot of opportunity for miscommunication. 

When a freelancer is late, or gets lost, or doesn’t bring their gear, things get stressful–fast. When I’m stressed, I search for quick explanations and solutions. The easy explanation is that they misunderstood what I said. That they weren’t listening. That it’s their fault. 

If it happens once, it’s a misunderstanding. It’s their fault. But if it happens twice, it’s a miscommunication. It’s my fault.

Through committing a laundry list of miscommunications in my career so far, I’ve learned to ask myself: how could I have communicated clearer? How could my message have been misunderstood? How could I have confirmed that they understood. 

Passing the blame is quick, easy, and simple to understand. Taking responsibility is hard, humbling, and complex. When we take responsibility, not only do we need humility, we also need the presence of mind to engineer a better solution for the next time. We become problem solvers.

Of course there are times in which it’s not my fault. Times when someone wasn’t listening. I still ask myself how I could have communicated clearer. It’s an exercise that causes growth. Isn’t that the point? 

Happy producing!