This is me playing favorites

[fbhjr]

Last November I was accused of playing favorites because I paid for one
troupe member’s plane ticket and not another’s.
I don’t think I was, but I’m sure it can look that way, and I have no
interest in trying to convince folks otherwise.

This trip we had a last minute addition.  Normally we require 6 weeks of
rehearsal before a big show.  This person had only done 1.
So, by agreeing to bring them to the show I am stretching the rules and
playing favorites.

Why am I playing favorites?
That’s easy: having this person at shows makes the shows better.
This person does stage fights, historical fights and fire acts.  They are
also a good person for fueling the fire tricks, which is something we were
missing this trip.  We trained someone else, but this would have been their
first time doing it at a show.

This person is also very helpful at shows, helping to organize, pack and
set up things.

They have also done a huge number of shows with us, more than 150.
I was told that the total number of shows people do is not a fair
assessment.  We used to do 30-40 shows a year and now we’re only doing 15.
So, people who were with the troupe in those years got a bit step up that
others can’t get now.

So, only using shows since the latest member of the folks going from New
England joined I recalculated.
In those 33 shows, this person has done 30, or 91%.  The only people who
have done more shows in that time are my wife and myself.  The next closest
person going on this trip has only done 67% of the shows in that time.
Of the shows down south, they only missed one since they joined the troupe,
and that was the one less than2 weeks after they joined, so that would have
been too much anyhow.

And, this person is riding down in the car, but paying for their own plane
trip home.

So, what does it take for me to play favorites?
Be good at what you do.  The more you do the better.
Help us out at a lot of shows with a lot of things.
Don’t expect me to foot the bill for high cost last minute travel changes.

But, I am clearly playing favorites because I would not do this for anyone
in the troupe.  There are others that I would take last minute like this.
But, not very many.

Comments

[chris-warrior.livejournal.com]

i'm just glad you got another person who knows what the heck they're doing. maybe it's crazy, but when a show is light, and you have someone you know is going to be competent volunteer, i'd think it was totally your discretion whether or not to bring them; you signed a contract and you owe your audiences good performances.

ie: "People who complete 6 weeks of rehearsal before a performance are allowed to come to a show; anyone who fails to make rehearsals *may* be allowed to do a show, based on a final determination by the show director."

i'm still flabbergasted that people whine to you about this stuff.

[kismets-kiss.livejournal.com]

Um, this is your company, you and Temper make the calls.

Whinging about favorites? Really? You are the one who makes the decisions about what your company needs, and you have always, since I've known you, followed through. You've made allowances and concessions to those who needed them.
Hell you have allowed me to remain part of this group and I appreciate it a heck of a lot, because I've had to miss shows that I've said I would be there for. I don't see that as favoritism, I see it as you being a good person who looks at the overall picture and makes a decision.

But maybe I'm biased.

[ravena-kade.livejournal.com]

Gee, do the folks that complain to you about you playing favorites think this is an admiral trait to show their troupe leader? I would think it would put me in the "she gets to travel in the trunk of the car" position.

[pallid-regina.livejournal.com]

I'm just going to put it in writing that I'm very grateful you chose to play favorites on this one, for a multitude of reasons.

Also, you the boss. Period. Ain't nobody gots to like that, still the truth. My southern drawl-talk make it so.

Honestly, though, having been in the position of responsibility many times myself, you really DO have to have your own equation of fair vs. desire/need. The person who whinged was NOT as valuable to you, in the equation, as this person. Nobody has to be OK with that except you. You have your reasons, those reasons + you being the person in charge = everyone else needs to STFU.