Ive got a real case of deja vu!
And sometimes, Ive seen a failure to evolve, and even a tendency to devolve.
It happens year after year in the TV industry.
Credit: Lou Rocco/ABC via Getty Images; Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images; Brooks Kraft/Getty Images; Andrew Lipovsky/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images; Terence Patrick/CBS via Getty Images
Plenty of articles and occasionally declarations of change follow.
Scarier than the Chart is the Thing.
Audiences arent the only ones feeling burned by honorary family members.
A big dysfunctional family where a lot of people never grow up or move out!
But wait: Do families make you pay your dues?
Not if theyre healthy.
But it seemed like a fair tradeoff.
We had the promise of a fulfilling creative career with excitement and charming celebrities!
Theres no doubt you have to truly love it to make it be able to endure it.
Im not talking about any show in particular here.
Because I have friends who work on every show.
Thats just how long Ive been doing this!)
So, here are my Top 5 Tips on How to Run a Show Pretty Good.
Adjust your goals immediately.
Every TV show has goals.
Long-term goals: grow ratings.
Wehaveto make our goal of hiring more inclusive teams more short-term.
Stop hiding behind “experience.”
start to stink like rotten fish.
Have you seen TikTok?
Youre the one who has the real opportunity here to do things differently.
Hire someone who did work-study in their school library or worked at a Barnes & Noble when those existed.
Lunch is a huge and revered part of working in television.
Thats alotof responsibility for a baby who is outnumbered in that house by people with terrible ideas.
That is far beyond a babys pay grade!
It wont work that way.
But thats not even close to being in any new staff members job description.
Nobody ever wants to hear it!
They roll their eyes and say youre too politically correct and so sensitive and no fun.
Theyll help vanquish lazy, tired, stale-ass tropes and create bits for you that sing!
Theyll make your audience feel seen!
And it goes so far beyond the jokes.
Empower your team to challenge all your old ideas on how shows should be run.
If they see something, be the kind of boss they feel safe saying something to.
first of all, I doubt it.
We get it: You hired them before you embarked on this more thoughtful journey of self-reflection.
But if you’re free to do better, so can they.
(But you cant help it, youre a softie!)
First, Im sorry.
Those excuses shouldnt fly in a real family and they dont fly here.
You have to repair any harm thats been done to anyone.
But Im saying it anyway, just in case.
And if you feel like your show needs real help, Im available to consult!
