March 05th, 2018

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Is that my job???

A handy guide to that slippy burn out slop

Wellbeing in the Arts: A Guide for Producers

So what is Wellbeing in the Arts? And more to the point why does it matter?

According to the World Health Organisation there is no universal definition as it differs depending on groups/cultures. However it does include the cognitive, emotional and behavioural responses to life at a personal level. It can be affected by social economic situations and operates within a spectrum rather than it being something we have or do not have (for example we can have wellbeing at home but not at work).

The Thriving at Work recent government agenda stats that 15% of any workforce suffers from mental health related illness. If ill health impacts our projects it can affect time scales and sometimes the outcome of a piece of work.

Ill health at work can be exacerbated by fluctuations in pay, job security and intense deadlines. All things that affect freelance workers in the arts on a daily basis. Our work is based on the unreliable ephemeral nature of funding along with project to project based work schedules with frequent changes in colleagues and locations. This uncertainty can effect our wellbeing and increase stress.

Question:
How do you look after your wellbeing during projects?
How do you look after your wellbeing in between projects?
Is there anything you can do differently to support yourself?

Boundaries

Boundaries is something that crops up quite a lot when I talk to producers. Having an idea of where your role starts and ends can support your wellbeing at work.

To often on small projects producers can end up fire fighting – taking on all the roles that a larger company would employ someone to do. You may also end up as the emergency phone number for an artist struggling with their Mental Health. Both these things will not be in your job description but can often be assumed as a responsibility.

If we know where our line is, where we expect to stop working we can understand a little further about how to say no. Yet we always need to remember that accepting a boundary ‘crossing’ can result in a slippery slop – stopping and thinking can help - use the handy guide above..

How do we say Yes and when do we risk saying no?

When starting out in the business it is tempting to say YES to everything. Of course we need to expand our C.V.’s, be seen in the industry doing great things and gaining valuable experience. However this can lead to a life of juggling and eventually burn out.

So what is Burn Out?

It’s not just about working long hours…..it is also a sense of cynicism, depression and lethargy often created by a lack of control or feeling out of control (taking on too much). It can also include a feeling we have a lack of social support and no sense of accomplishment when a job is complete.

Burn out is a slippery slop – we may not notice we are on it until it feels like it is too late to climb back up to the top again – which can exacerbate the situation further.







How to support our own Wellbeing in the Arts?
So how do we prevent ourselves from getting to the point of burn out?
How do we prevent our cast and crew getting to this point?

There is also a wonderful message from Tim Mitchum when speaking to a great Wellbeing Collective in Melbourne who hits the nail on the head several times about how we challenge the ‘culture’ within the industry:

https://www.artswellbeingcollective.com.au/resources/message-tim-minchin/

This challenge can start with you.

• Looking after yourself and being clear about what you can and can’t do is important when stepping out to work in a demanding sector where we are taught we ‘should’ be thankful for the work or do it because we love it.
• Modelling clarity and self care can support others to do the same - looking after your wellbeing is often symptomatic to looking after the wellbeing of the project.
• If something feels uncomfortable risk questioning…
o those contracts from agents that offer no breathing space
o those excessive rehearsals schedule
o those unusual booking confirmation contracts which fail to note your request for mental health support for you’re artist.
• Remember if Mental Health is affecting your project you can request support via the access part of your G4A bid.