Several years ago when filming a cattle ranching operation – in the middle of a Colorado winter – the owners told me how they owed their survival to many of their neighbours who rallied with help during difficult times.
It’s the same in thousands of farming communities around the world where co-dependency creates trust, loyalty and unquestioned support in times of need.
Recently I completed a six day film stint in Scotland – covering nearly 1700 miles – across some of the the most stunning scenery in north west Europe.
However, it did not begin well!
A national courier failed to deliver the entire stock of equipment hired for the shoot. My hirer didn’t check their sale and worse, didn’t apologise!
With less than 6 hours before our scheduled filming, my lead cameraman – Phil Gurney - who was working at the International Festival and Fringe in Edinburgh, rallied to help find vital resources.
Jason Trench – who films Channel 4 “Grand Designs” with Kevin MacLeod – dropped his weekend schedule and made the 3 hour journey north, with a load of gear, to film the high profile Oil & Gas Energy Ball with me, that evening. 
The following day I drove to Glasgow to collect extra gear from Progressive Broadcast, for the rest of the weeks’ filming. Rich came into town and opened up the store for me. It was a Sunday morning!
Phil, Jason and Progressive went the extra mile over a weekend when everyone wants and needs some downtime.
And that’s what matters!
In these days of change and uncertainty we all need and rely on each other for support and help.
So, the next time you get the opportunity, try and go the extra mile for a customer, client or friend. You could be amazed at the outcome.
No guesses whose now top of my suppliers list!
I don’t know about you, but I love hands! 
Unlike a book – where the content often doesn’t live up to its cover -hands tend to tell an honest story.
Hand made, hand written, hands on, hands off, hands free, hand shake, a beautiful hand.
Oh yes, and even underhand!
Of course, throughout history, hands have been manicured – literally and metaphorically – in an attempt to hide the scars and blemishes of life and what they actually purport to offer.
A couple of years ago an unfamiliar pair of design agency hands presented me with a relatively modest film contract.
Deep down I didn’t trust the finesse of these hands despite the promises and acceptance of terms and conditions of contract.
So I decided to ignore my intuition, which was – as it transpired – a big mistake!
We produced a remarkable series of films – on time and in budget – for our client – the designer.
His client – a major international oil and gas customer – was absolutely delighted with our films.
However, the designers’ hands were dishonest. 
He refused to honour our contract.
Expensive litigation was pursued and inevitably a lot of money was lost.
Recently, honest, intelligent and sophisticated hands have come my way.
And that has made all the difference!