whatever are not our own actions .”
A few examples of how we might apply these ideas to mixing :
1 .) You ’ re mixing and the guitarist taps the wrong pedal and creates a burst of feedback which causes the congregation to turn around and think you did it . Don ’ t spend too much time cursing ( literally or figuratively ) that you wished he or she hadn ’ t done that or trying to gesture over to the embarrassed guitarist along with a “ the guitarist did it !” expression . It already happened and getting everyone clear as to who did it isn ’ t going to help in this moment . The guitarist ’ s foot is not in your control . The congregation ’ s reaction isn ’ t in your control . Don ’ t freak out . This is a great moment to consciously frame your attitude toward the feedback burst in a more positive and productive and ‘ stoic ’ manner . From later on in The Enchiridion , “ Don ’ t demand that things happen as you wish , but wish that they happen as they do happen , and you will go on well .”
2 .) You decided to finish watching the last season of your favorite Netflix series instead of studying the how-to and reference guides for the new console you ’ ll be working on tomorrow AM . Even worse , because you staying up until 3am and didn ’ t set your alarm properly , you arrive juuuust at call time for the gig . In this case , you dropped the ball . You can ’ t blame the worship leader for making such an early call time or send an angry text to the console manufacturer representative for designing their DCA spills differently than the other desk you ’ re more used to . You could blame others and freak out , but that wouldn ’ t be very Stoic of you . The Stoics also were right to point out that this sort of blaming others for your failings can just spiral and make matters worse . The Stoics certainly weren ’ t the only school out there to stress what seems like the best advice for aspiring mix engineers : Prepare in advance for gigs , show up early , and own it . Maybe even more importantly as our Stoic lesson here , make sure to reflect on the unsustainable action of late night Netflix binges before important gigs .
You are in control of your desires — next time grab the console manual and do some reading instead of tuning in to Netflix .
3 .) For the last of our examples , you ’ ve just mixed what you would consider the show of the century . Everything felt so right to you . Nicely balanced and everything was glued together and rich , yet super detailed and full of dynamics . You ’ re sure you would have won a live mix award for your work this fine morning . But then a line forms at FOH of congregants with ideas on how you could have improved the mix . “ It was ok , but too loud .” “ Yeah , pretty weak overall , needed more cowbell .” “ I thought it was actually too loud .” Here is where we can once again turn to the Stoics . From The Enchiridion again , “ When any person harms you , or speaks badly of you , remember that he acts or speaks from a supposition of its being his duty .” This next bit is pretty cool I think : “ Setting out , then , from these principles , you will meekly bear a person who reviles you , for you will say upon every occasion , ‘ It seemed so to him .’” So instead of thinking that these folks are clueless , taking what they say personally ,
totally discounting everything they say , etc ., remember that they are likely trying to be constructive in most cases . Anything we add to the situation beyond just what they are saying is all on us . It seemed to person A that it was too loud overall . Person B wanted more drums . Person C thought it was way too quiet . Fine . Got it . Doesn ’ t mean that I ’ m a bad person or a worthless engineer . Different parts of the room sound different . People have different tastes . It ’ s all good feedback to consider . Acknowledge what they have to say , really listen to what they are sharing with you from a neutral stance and see if there is anything in their feedback that can be helpful . Don ’ t read too much into it . It is highly likely that they are just trying to help . Even in the case that they are really being rude , it is in our control to accept that rudeness and react or not . This is the way of the Stoic .
Jeff Hawley A 20-year music industry veteran — equally at ease behind the console , playing bass guitar , leading marketing teams or designing award-winning audio products . He currently heads up the marketing for Allen & Heath in the US .