Managing confidence

In 1935 David Niven was embarking on a new career. He had just been signed by legendary Hollywood producer Sam Goldwyn. Niven was an unknown and Goldwyn did not sign unknowns - well, not until he signed Niven.

Niven's first major scene was in Rose Marie. His performance was so bad that he was replaced by another actor. Niven only discovered the switch when he took a friend to see the movie and was shocked to find another actor playing his scene.

His next scene was playing Leo in A Feather in Her Hat. Leo was to burst into a party and, for three unbroken minutes, enliven the whole affair with jokes, repartee and kisses.

There were more than 100 extras in the scene and a terrified Niven hadn't slept all night from worrying.

A measure of his nervousness was that he was shaking so badly that a seamstress had to do up his flies with a button hook.

When Niven finally burst through the door into the party, he tripped over and bumped into a veteran actress. He then spilled someone's drink and for the next three minutes got all of his lines mixed up.

At the end of the ordeal, to his astonishment, his performance was received with rapturous applause from everyone on the set.

The director, Al Santell came over smiling and complimented Niven on the scene telling him the acting was just perfect. Now they had the scene in the can, they would shoot another one for luxury, and this time without the stumble at the beginning.

Of standing outside the door for a second time, waiting to burst in to play the scene again, Niven says:

"I couldn't wait. This is easy, this is fun! I sailed through the second take, loving every minute of it, completely relaxed."

At the end of the day, Niven learned the truth. Santell had spoken to the whole set before Niven's appearance saying, "The boy who's playing Leo - this is his first big scene in a picture and we've all got to help him loosen up. After the first take, however bad he is, I want you all to applaud then I'll put some film in the camera."

In Niven's words, "Santell is in my private Hall of Fame."

I like to ask my managers whether they think their own workplace performance merits a position in any of their staff's private Halls of Fame. Do you think yours does?

If you are in a Hall of Fame, you will know that your staff will willingly shift mountains for you.