On my first day as lead producer, I was stressed out, sweating, thinking producing a show by the end of the day would be impossible. As it turns out, it is definitely possible - and there’s always room for improvement.
In the middle of the semester, my faculty advisor Stacy Scholder asked each of the producers to set some midterm goals for ourselves. Each of these goals was intended to help improve day-of-air production and really improve the quality of the show produced.
I had several midterm goals; each of them had to do with communication and really getting good at time management. One particular goal of mine was to meet deadlines: to have graphics figured out by 10 a.m. at the latest, and have the rundown story order determined by 1 p.m., so that the rest of the day could run smoothly.
For graphics, I started communicating with my co-producer Savannah really early - shortly after the morning pitch meeting - and ever since then, we usually have graphics outlined and requested in the Trello board by 9 a.m. As expected, meeting my rundown deadline was a lot harder, but it has become easier with every show. I have found that keeping a notebook by my side has been the most helpful tool this semester. Physically writing things down on a piece of paper has always helped me. I take notes and keep track of how stories are doing throughout the morning, and if things are not looking good, I either start looking for solutions or resort to floating them.
While floating a story can be pretty disheartening (especially if I was excited about the story) I have found that being realistic is really important. Trying to find sources for a story while juggling all the responsibilities of the lead producer only adds extra stress. There is no room for extra stress during the day - it just makes things messier.
Though I have consistently met my deadlines the past two times I have been lead, this past week as lead producer I did not meet my 1 p.m. deadline to have the rundown completely in order. I found myself really frustrated, because I had been doing so well. In the rundown meeting (each lead producer goes over the rundown for the show with Stacy at around 1:30 p.m.) I had to move around a lot of stories, which usually throws everyone off.
Even though I did not meet the expectations I set for myself this week, I found that it is possible to make a mistake and jump back from it. Next time I am lead producer, I will be hyper-aware of my deadline and really work towards it.
I am really glad that I set out to meet deadlines for my midterm goal, because I know I will have to develop and use this skill out in the field. Journalists multitask all the time! When I am focusing on one thing, I can work really well under pressure. On production days, however, I am focusing on multiple things at once and working under pressure - I am definitely not as good at this, and I am still trying to improve.