 even being a researcher for new ideas and projects.){kind=link}
Being an Apprentice at the Artz Centre means a lot of things. In fact it means you become a lot of things. In my case I’ve found that includes being a technician, barista, director, toilet cleaner (although I prefer the title chief bog scrubber) even being a researcher for new ideas and projects. They’re some of the pragmatic things you become, the tangible ones. But there’s also those intangible things. Those duties that you can’t really pin down to one experience or example. You’re a friend, a leader, a role model – whether you like it or not!
In some ways it can feel like I’ve been thrust into a position of responsibility that I couldn’t fully comprehend before hand. I knew that in theory having influence on others was a big responsibility, but knowing about it and actually practising what you preach are two different things. There are eyes on you, people looking to you to see how you act or react and whom then plan to follow suit. So for instance if I’m seen to be acting recklessly then that may not just effect me, it may also impact on the students I work with. They too may then think It is good to be reckless. Plus anyone who thinks that being a role model stops when you clock off work at the end of the day is fooling themselves.
So how do you manage that feeling of being the example that people look at? For me the method is quite simple: I stopped worrying about the outside world and what impact I was having on other people, and started worrying about the impact on myself. If I am making poor decisions, I have stopped trying to correct them in order to be a better example to others, instead I am correcting them to be a better version of myself.
What that means is I don’t have to focus on what others see me do. I do however focus on whether I am proud and fulfilled with what I do. If young people then do choose to look at me as an example, they’ll hopefully see me trying to constantly become a better version of myself and not concerning myself with the things outside of my control. resultantly if that’s the example I do set, then that is one I can be happy with.
If I could distill all of that learning down… what would that look like? It is not practical for me to say to someone ‘I’ve learned to be a good role model’ who’s to say that’s true? Who’s to say it is even possible to ‘be a good role model’ since it is like saying ‘be inspired’ or ‘be motivated’ as you can’t action those things. But I’m noticing as I continue to focus on improving myself that there is one key thing that I keep coming back to: aiming high.
Aim High is an Artz Centre Value, so for starters… that’s where I’ve gotten the catch phrase from. But it stands out amongst the rest to me. Not because I think it is the most important, but because its the one that I feel helps me in everything I do (including trying to live out the other Artz values… #BeProud #ShowRespect #WorkHard).
We have high standards at the Artz Centre. Anyone who has even stepped foot in one of the buildings will know that. In fact anyone who has taken a look at our new and improved website will know that! I honestly think that the high standards Mark, our company director, has embedded into our culture are the reason I was so drawn towards a career in the arts and a career with the Artz Centre.
Why shouldn’t we expect only the very best? Why shouldn’t we work towards the very best? Why shouldn’t we believe that we can achieve the very best? Regardless of all the reasons to aim lower and set lower standards, that doesn’t stop the Artz Centre Team from demanding of ourselves the very best that we can achieve.
I’d attribute a lot of the success of our Lockdown Competition: Sing It to our team aiming high. I remember pitching the idea to Jamie and Rachel when the three of us knew we wanted to somehow take singing sessions into the virtual world. Our plan was never for the competition to be ‘just okay’ we always wanted it to be excellent. It doesn’t seem coincidental to me that we ended up having so many West End stars getting involved as guest judges… here’s what I think was the secret formula:
Because we aimed high with the quality of Sing It, we had to work hard. That was quite obviously the only way we would accomplish our goals. The hard work made us proud of the show, and that pride gave us the courage to reach out to West End stars and ask for their support. Those West End stars saw our hard work high standards and they respected our cause, so they wanted to be apart of it.
Even now… in life sort-of-out-of-lockdown-ish we are setting our standards high. Some of you may have already seen some sneak previews of a new T-Shirt range made with the best quality materials you can find. You may have also seen some behind-the-scenes looks at our coming-soon Artz Podcasts, created to revolutionise how we share stories at the Artz Centre.
Sometimes I forget how unusual it is for one community to be able to do all of the things we do as the Artz Family. Maybe that’s because I love the work we do, heck a few weeks ago Mark asked me “what parts of your job do you really not enjoy” and I honestly struggled to give an answer. Look I’m not saying cleaning spillages in rehearsals is as glamorous as directing scenes but it hardly ruins my day when someones knocked over half a Tango!
None of our work at the Artz Centre like a burden; If anything its a privilege. One of the biggest lessons I know that I’ll take with me after my Apprenticeship is having learned (at least in part) how to be in a position of responsibility; being someone’s role model, being a leader, teaching others and using my influence for good! Moreover I will finish my apprenticeship next year knowing that in everything I go on to do, I must always aim for it to be the best work I am capable of if I hope to feel fulfilled. All of which is knowledge you can only learn on the job. I think anyone would be hard pressed to name a textbook that delivers that kind of wisdom.