Okay, back to the Lessons for a little while...
One of the great misconceptions I face on a daily basis is that running a comedy festival (four of 'em, and two TV departments as well, to be exact) is a barrel of laughs.
I gave a speech at a prestigious men's club a few weeks ago and the first question--well, statement--was "It must be so must fun at the Just For Laughs office!"
Well, hate to break it to you harshly...but it ain't.
It's work.
It's hard.
It's a daily challenge and an hourly struggle.
I often say that we make ourselves miserable so that you can have fun.
I used to have fun working at Just For Laughs. Going to MTV and Comedy award shows was fun. Going to clubs to scout comedians was fun. Going to Oscar parties in L.A. and theatre premieres in London was fun.
Maybe I'm getting older, but nowadays, those are chores. Fun is playing hockey. Fun is walking my dogs. Fun is going to the gym. Fun is writing this blog.
But this is not to say that I don't love work. Or that there's no more fun at all there anymore.
It's just in a different place.
These days, the fun is in the win.
Nothing else matters.
Vince Lombardi was right. Or maybe it was Red Sanders...
(As an aside, and as a corollary to my observations, please read this piece by Bill Plaschke, one of the best sports articles I've had the intense pleasure to read in ages. Staggering, revealing, tell-tale...and explains a lot about the actions of your favorite sports stars.)
But the best thing about my gig is that there are usually multiple wins on the same project.
For example, I just got back from Toronto where a sponsorship pitch resulted in an offer to become an equity partner in the project itself.
Or take the example of a TV show we just sold to the W Network. Getting the meeting to make the pitch was a win. Getting them to say yes was a win. Getting them to rush it on air in May was a win. If it rates well, it'll be another win. So will it be if it's critically acclaimed, if it's picked up for 20 more episodes, and if we reach our profit goals.
And so it goes...
I never believed in those "Fun in the Workplace" books and consultants. Contrived, silly and phony. Only the most naive don't see through the thin band-aid.
There's a reason it's called the workplace. You want fun? Celebrate your wins and celebrate your people. I don't care what business you're in. Without wins, you're not gonna have a workplace for long anyway. (And to avoid extreme backlash, I'm talking about ethical wins here; no scorched-earth policy promotion.)
At Airborne Mobile we had great Hallowe'en parties and great Christmas parties, but we had wins. One contributed to the other. The year that we realized the game was over, our Christmas party was like a morgue. Hard to have fun when you ain't winning anymore.
Again, maybe I'm getting old--or worse yet, maturing--but to me these days, it's more about the nutritional value of the cereal than the colorful character on the box or the free prize that's tucked inside.
It's about the destination, not the journey.
And now...back to work ;)
Or shall I say, back to win.
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P.S. Let the record show that I just composed a 595-word blog post on "winning" without once mentioning Charlie Sheen until the very, very end.
