REPORTS: Offshoot from Are you always completely honest?

[MatthewShiner]

About being completely honest in reports . . . I always like to hear answers to this question . . .

Do you note when you screw up in the report?

[stancial]

Absolutely...sheepishly perhaps, but always.  As was pointed out in the previous thread, it could come back to bite you later if you don't.  Better to get ahead of the game and admit the mistake (kinda like David Letterman) than to pay doubly later for appearing to either ignore it or cover it up.

[missliz]

Definitely. Seems like it'd be more of a problem if I didn't.

[Aerial]

I do.  It doesn't seem fair to me to call out other people's mistakes, and not my own.  Documenting it is great motivation for preventing it from happening again (this of course is true for other people's mistakes as well).

[NomieRae]

I usually do, but mostly because I'm a masochist at heart and would rather call out my own mistakes than get them in notes from a director/gm/etc.

[Britney]

Definitely.  I'll note if I call a cue early/late. If I'm operating the sound and lights and the company knows that, I'll say something like "LX15 went early today due to operator error." If something wasn't pre-set correctly, I'll note that as well.  As was said before; if I'm noting all the mistakes that were made, mine should naturally be included!
I've had one producer say that he found it humorous that I included my own mistakes in the reports, especially since (for that particular company) I was the SM/ASM/Lightboard Op/Soundboard Op.  I told him that since I had so many duties, there would be nothing to put in the report if I never noted anything I did, right or wrong.
Having said that, if something was broken before the show/during intermission/what-have-you and it was fixed, I will also note who fixed/replaced it, even if it was me.  That way there is always a trail of who did what.  Do others do this as well?  I like to note the positive along with the errors (a Q sequence that went perfectly due to the efforts of many different parties, a quick prop/costume fix, etc.)

[CRVerdusco]

I always note my mistakes, as it was said, I would rather call out my mistakes then have someone else call them out.  I think it's also important to record everything; I've seen stage managers not record when they have made mistakes and to me that's lying to the rest of the production team, I have also seen Stage managers blame their mistakes on board ops and other and that is just WRONG.

My thoughts, I'm my biggest critic so I know when I don't do something correctly.

[klcurrie]

absolutely.  why should I not be held to the same standard as everyone else?

[SMrose]

absolutely.  why should I not be held to the same standard as everyone else?

Ditto for me!!!

[KMC]

But the real question is - are those who aren't always honest in their reports going to be honest here?   

[MatthewShiner]

But the real question is - are those who aren't always honest in their reports going to be honest here?   Huh

True . . . very true.

There are many stage managers who would never put a disparaging word about their work in the report.

[Tempest]

I'm more likely to note my own mistakes than others.  At least I have first hand knowledge of what exactly went wrong!

[Laurak29]

Yes. I'd rather cop to it than think of someone else taking the blame. I also note how problems were resolved, and who played a part in the remedy.

[Libby]

As another offshoot:

What is everyone's thoughts on taking responsibility for the SM team as a whole? When I am PSMing I find that I commonly will take the fall for something one of my assistants or PA did. As long as it is a first time offense. Mostly because I feel that saying, "Im sorry, I told my ASM to do that, but she didn't" comes across as petty. Then, following that conversation will pull the offending person aside and ask how the mistake happened (basically see if there is anything that needs changing or if it was just a screwup).