Yesterday I spent all day in downtown Raleigh, N.C., working on the short film I wrote. It was a glorious day to shoot — so unseasonably warm and sunny. We spent the day at one of my favorite places: Busy Bee!
Today I find myself still wound up. I hardly needed coffee this morning because I was still so excited. Drank it anyway, of course. Yum.
It was really tough to come down off the high of being on set, producing a short film that I’d written just a few months earlier, and working with such wonderful people all day long in one of my favorite places. Yeah, really tough to calm down after a day like that. (Mind you, it’s also tough to have a lot of high-energy days like that in a row, too. Tough to sustain that type of activity, you know?)
When I got home last night I found myself debriefing about the shoot. What worked well? What could be improved? How can I apply those lessons next time?
Side Note:
The habit of debriefing was instilled at Camp Don Lee over the course of many summers as a camper and then counselor. It’s been tough to break that habit. I always want to debrief after something eventful.
No matter how tired we were after we returned from a sailing / camping trip, we always debriefed. I was annoyed at the time because I just wanted to sleep or shower. Now I truly appreciate that time.
The practice of debriefing after our sailing trips taught me to analyze, seek improvements, give honest feedback, and build a strong team. It taught me that things rarely go smoothly or as expected. But if the team consists of smart, selfless people that can think for themselves and work well under pressure — you can ride out storms together.
And, yes, I still giggle when I imagine a camp counselor miming the removal of swim trunks when I use the word ‘debrief’ — every time.
So when I got home after the shoot last night I wanted to debrief. I found myself thinking through the day, seeking improvements, and looking for feedback from folks that were there. I called my mom on the way home. Then my fella offered feedback as I sat on the cooler in the entry way, too tired to move to a more comfortable seat. I emailed folks to thank them for being there. And I started mentally building a list of things to do differently next time.
There will always been room for improvement. I’m still processing everything that happened leading up to the shoot, and the incredibly long day of the shoot. When I get a list together, I’ll share with you.
My biggest conclusion at this point? Yesterday was a really great day.