Packing up and starting over does have advantages. Photo provided by rms519 - CCSA
What would you do if you were asked to take a lower position at a new job? God has asked that of me and I’m the better for it. I’m moving from a volunteer technical director position to a sound guy at another church. Here is the short version of what it’s been like…
Not long ago, I found myself wanting to work at a bigger church with a bigger tech crew. God had other plans. I wanted to work on advanced mixing systems and work with a larger crew. God wanted me to help a small church.
And so it happened. God recently placed my family at a small church. I’m not stepping in as a technical director. I’m stepping in as another sound guy. I’ve had bouts of “Really, God? Really?” However, those have passed and I’ve found it was the right move for several reasons as I’ll soon explain.
The downside of taking the lesser role
Oh, I’ll be honest; the first thing I did was think about what I was losing. Here is the short-list:
- Position of leadership. I would miss being the person that got the phone calls and the emails when problems came up. I would miss walking into the sanctuary and being the one people turn to for help and suggestions.
- My team. I would miss having my own team, my family. It’s great to be a sound guy on a team but there is a great feeling when you can say “that’s my team.“
And then of course there was a smidgen of fear. “What if their TD doesn’t like me? What if they micro-manage my mix?” The unknowns are always a little daunting.
The upside of the lesser role
The upside came down to one thing; less responsibility. As much as I love the added responsibility, it will be nice for a while to let some of it go. No more phone calls or emails about fixing things. No more scheduling responsibility.
The Real Benefits
Comparing the above upsides and downsides, it would be easy to say I’m losing ground. It’s hard going from the role of the technical director to being in any other position. And while it might be hard, at this time, it’s good.
It’s good for me to move out of the leadership role, for now, for several reasons;
- Less responsibility. Right now, I’m in the position where I’m on-call and could end up working on any given Sunday. While the call of technical artistry puts us in great positions of responsibility where we can enjoy using our skills, for a person with a family, it does mean we aren’t worshiping along side of them during the service.
- A new mentor relationship. Right now, I’m the guy with the most experience at my old church. Therefore, when it comes to looking for guidance then I’m limited to the online world. At the new church, I already have someone who has much more experience and wisdom than me. He and I worked a Saturday outdoor event together and I found a great respectful relationship.
- I can focus on serving. This is where my experience comes into play. The new church is at a place where they need another sound guy and they also need someone with some experience and wisdom as to how to take their production up a few notches. They have a good crew but career constraints really hamper their growth. It’s an all-volunteer crew. Coming in as a sound guy, I can provide a lot of what they need without the added responsibility of overseeing all audio and video production.
As of Now
Lately, I’ve been splitting my time between the two churches. In August, that comes to an end and I turn in my church keys at my old church. I have mixed a handful of times at the new church and they have been great experiences. But then comes the question I occasionally ask myself, “When can I move back to the technical director role?” Maybe it’s in His plans that I eventually do that at the new church. Maybe He is preparing me for working at a bigger church? All I can do is follow the path He sets before me and do the best I can in whatever role He has placed me.
The Take Away
I’m not sure I have a take away for you. This is my story and I hope there is some nugget of wisdom you can take from it. Moving out of a position of leadership is hard. And please know when I said I was moving to a “lesser role” that I wasn’t slighting the role of the sound tech. That’s still my favorite job. It’s a hugely important job. I was merely using that phrasing to explain the change.
Now that I think about it, I do have a take away for anyone who is planning on working behind the mixer at a new church; take a few hours to familiarize yourself with their system. On my calendar is a block of time for doing a brief inventory of all stage equipment (microphones, DI boxes, etc.), explore the system setup (how everything is wired together), and read up on the manuals for equipment in which I’m not familiar.
Viva the sound tech!
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I'm Chris Huff and I've been working behind a mixer for over twenty years. Since 2008, I've been helping other sound techs learn all about the art of church audio through behindthemixer.com.
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Thanks for sharing Chris. I think you are setting a good example here for us all.
Chris, know exactly how you feel. Just went through the same thing myself, except I voluntarily stepped down as TD. We have just started doing live video feeds, streaming and much more. Our video guy does it for a living and is more qualified so I nominated him as the leader. I’m still staying on as the audio guy and I am also mentoring him as I have been in the faith much longer than he. This may be what God has called you to do at your new position. Just because you are now serving under someone else doesn’t mean you can’t mentor him the ways of the Kingdom. Go forward in your new position with a servants heart and watch God open new doors that you have never dreamed of.
Chris, great words man. Reverse mentoring…I hadn’t thought of it that way.
I’ve lived through exactly what you are describing except that at the new church they wouldn’t let me mix for the first year. I operated two, remote control video cameras that served the overflow and the parents room.
It was quite a takedown from being the TD of a fairly large church that had recently completed a building upgrade with lots of new AV equipment but it was time for me to move on. I took advantage of the new schedule by getting involved in another ministry serving the homeless in our city which was a great learning experience.
Eventually they asked me to do more in tech and about a year ago they hired me, full-time to oversee the tech and other aspects of the weekend services. I also help oversee the homeless ministry so those interim worlds have become one.
Enjoy your break in leadership and take advantage of the time to do things that you may not have tried before. You never know what God is doing with you to prepare you for the next phase of your life.
BobPal, I loved what you wrote about doing things you had not done before. I hadn’t thought of that. Gives me something to consider.
Chris. Congratulations on your new position. The Lord as you already know has his hands on you and your family’s life. Remember, you are chosen to be where you are in the Lord and where ever you are needed in His kingdom. You have an anointed skill and has helped more people than you can ever imagine. Continue to be blessed in the positions that have been given to you as you are led by our maker.
God Bless.
Doug, thanks for your kind and encouraging words!
I heard that!!!!!!!!
I have to admit, sometimes I do get a little jealous of the other guy that has a paid tech job at a church. But I also know that my church cannot afford this (right now) and I know they need help and its my job to do what I can to help them.
Oh your welcome. I forgot to say that Birthday card REALLY made my day. I am Ok with being an invisible part of the worship team, but that LOL’s comment REALLY made my day. You sometimes wonder if anybody is really drawn closer to the Lord or even saved hinging on what you did. I’ll never know in this life of course but I do know my efforts make the church friendlier and less threatening. And that MAY make the difference about whether or not somebody even comes in and are therfore under the influence of the Gospel.
Larry and M-J, thanks for the comments. I wasn’t sure this article would resonate with anyone and therefore almost didn’t write it. Glad I did.
Hahaha, nic post!
I’ve been there 2, praying for a bigger church with already a good team, but God called me for another church.
When I came in the first time, I didn’t know if I had to go crying, screeming or jelling out of church….
the sound was so so so terribly bad, I couldn’t understand any spoken word.
God realy set me there to change that, and now we are grown in 3 years from nearly 45 to 150 members.
Great things are happening, and I feel blessed to be there.
It’s going a lot better now.
Thank the Lord for He IS Good!!
But, we have to listen, so God can use us!
I did almost the same thing. I was a sound guy in a LARGE church but God called me to a much smaller church where I am the tech diety. I loved working the large board (64 channels and we used them all!) But I ended up designing/installing a new 32 channel soundcraft GB2, Audacy for recording, A two screen power point system and a projector to go with it and another two screener to run “enlighten”. 3 Windows 2003 servers upstairs with all the networking garbage. An Amp rack back stage, and I get to keep it all working! And I’m having a ball!
On my birthday I got a card from a LOL who said “Thanks for bringing the church into the 21st century.
Starting Over: Moving from Tech Director to Sound Guy: Packing up and starting over does have ad… http://t.co/IICrUoEI #behindthemixer