——— 6 ———

Life Will Not Go According to Plan If You Have No Plan

There’s a dry cleaners about ten minutes from where I live, and they have a marquee out in front. But instead of displaying something like, “Tuesday’s Special—Shirts Laundered & Ironed—99¢ ea.,” they display words of wisdom. It was always interesting to drive by and read the platitude-of-the-week. Then one day, a few years ago, I was driving by, and the marquee read, Life will not go according to plan if you have no plan. To me, this wasn’t the usual fortune cookie type of advice; it really struck a chord. Oh, I had been to seminars and read books that touted the importance of setting goals, but until this moment, I hadn’t personally related this advice to my life. How often and for how many years had I let circumstances dictate my jobs and my career? Too long. And how often was I disappointed over an outcome I could have had more control over? Too many times. How often had I sat down and really made a plan for myself? Seldom. Why? Because in such an unpredictable business, I didn’t know I could. For someone who considers herself to be fairly intelligent, I’m not sure why it took driving by a wordsof-wisdom-touting dry cleaners to make me understand that even in this industry, there is power in planning and setting goals.

Finding Your Passion

Before you choose your goals and decide the direction you’re heading, find your passion and define your dream. The road to get almost anywhere in this industry is laden with potholes, detours, traffic jams and rough terrain, so find a destination that excites you, or it won’t have been worth the journey.

Take a few minutes, find a quiet place to sit, and ask yourself: “What it is that makes me want to jump out of bed in the morning?”

“What do I love reading about, watching, talking about?”

“What makes my toes curl and my adrenaline surge?”

“What would I be willing to give up sleep for?”

“What am I good at and love doing?”

“Whom do I envy and why?”

“What motivates me?”

“What’s my favorite thing to do when I have some free time?”

“What do I dream of doing some day?”

“If I could be anywhere right now, doing anything, where would that be?”

“Do I dream of being famous or well-known or am I more of a behind-the-scenes kind of person?”

And let’s not forget monetary considerations:

“Is having a steady paycheck important to me?”

“Does the thought of making at least a six-figure income excite me?”

“Do I see myself living in a big house and driving an expensive car?”

“Is doing something I love more important than making more money doing something else?”

“What would I want to do with my life if making money wasn’t an issue?”

The answers to these questions should give you a fairly good indication of what you’re passionate about and what’s important to you. Once identified, think of these insights as your personal GPS system or the driving force that’s going to keep you moving in the right direction.

Know Where You’re Going and How You’re Going to Get There

Just wanting to be in the entertainment industry isn’t enough. You need to know what you want to do in the industry and which facet of the business is going to be the best fit for you. These are questions only you can answer, but evaluating your responses to the above-listed questions will help. So will realistically researching your career options and soliciting the advice of those who currently occupy the positions you covet. Also keep in mind that you can change your mind at any time. You can change your mind ten times if you’d like. But right now—today—you should have a decisive goal and direction.

Once you have a goal, a destination, the next step is figuring out how you’re going to get there. Just beware that you’ll probably be starting at the bottom of the ladder and working your way up; and there’s no definitive way of knowing exactly how long it’s going to take to progress from one rung to the next. So be patient while you continue to learn, perfect your craft and skills and work your way up. The most important thing is being on the right ladder.

A lot has been said and written about choosing the right career path. I’ve known individuals who have progressed up certain suggested paths. Some make it all the way, and others don’t. And some who make it to the top arrive via alternate routes. There are no guarantees here, nor is anything impossible. You can only give it your best shot and take the route most likely to get you where you want to go.

Common sense plays a big role here. Just think about it . . . if you want to be a writer, working in a production office isn’t going to help you much. If you want to be a literary manager, it wouldn’t pay for you to take the test to get into the Assistant Director’s Training Program. And if you want to be a casting director, being a script reader isn’t where you belong. Be realistic.

• If you want to be a director: Start off as a set PA or become an assistant to a director. And if you possibly can, make your own film (low-low-low budget if need be, and even if it’s only 20 minutes long), so you can shop your talent. Many actors move into directing. I’ve known some first assistant directors and script supervisors who have as well, although those routes are not quite as common.
• For actors: All you can do is practice your craft whenever and wherever possible and put yourself in situations that will create opportunities for you to meet producers, directors, casting directors, agents and managers. Take classes and workshops, join local theatre groups, work with kids who are learning to act, network with other actors and offer to create monologues and read lines with each other. Spend as much time immersed in your craft as possible and stay visible.
• If you want to be a (creative) producer: Start out as a PA, an assistant to a producer, a writer or a script reader, story editor, etc. (via the development track). You might also get some basic production and/or development experience under your belt, form your own company, option and sell a marketable project and attach yourself as a co-producer the first time out. Once you’ve established some credibility, you can move into a producer capacity.
• If you want to become a production manager or line producer: Get into the DGA by way of the Assistant Director’s Training Program or by working the designated number of days as a second assistant director on non-union shows. Then work your way up the ranks of second AD, first A.D., UPM and so on. It’s not the easiest route, but you can also work your way up via the production office starting with a job as a production secretary, then assistant production coordinator, production coordinator, production supervisor, non-union production manager and finally, line producer.
• The post production route: The best place to start is as an apprentice in an editing room; also, as an assistant to a post supervisor or  post producer or at an entry-level job at a post production facility.
• If you want to be an agent: You’ll probably be starting in an agency mailroom or as an assistant to an agent.
• If you want to write: Start out as a script reader, a development assistant, an assistant to a writer or a script doctor, or get a nine-to-five job, so you have your evenings and weekends free to write. Continue to take screenwriting courses and join a writers support group.

Sometimes you need to possess certain skills and talents before you can land specific jobs. For instance, you wouldn’t be hired as a composer if you didn’t have the talent to write a musical score. You wouldn’t be hired as even an assistant hair stylist unless you already had the training and ability to cut and style hair. And you wouldn’t be hired as a script supervisor if you weren’t already proficient at that job. But in most instances, you can start out as an intern, mailroom clerk, PA, assistant, apprentice or receptionist, in any department or at any company and work your way up. A beginner in an accounting department starts out as a file clerk but could eventually become a production accountant. An apprentice editor who makes the lab runs and picks up the bagels in the morning could be a highly sought-after editor one day. A second assistant cameraman who loads film magazines, orders raw stock and tallies camera report totals could one day become a well-known and very well-paid director of photography. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing as much as where you’re doing it. Again—it’s all about being on the right ladder.

Setting Goals

When you commit to an ultimate career goal, you need to be specific. Instead of just, “My goal is to become a line producer,” how about, “My goal is to become a line producer on major feature films with at least a $20 million budget, and I will be working on at least two films a year?” Better that way, huh?

Once you’ve targeted your ultimate career goal, you’ll need to define the smaller goals essential to reaching the big one. Keeping with the example of the line producer objective, here’s the checklist you might prepare for yourself:

□  Apply for the Assistant Director’s Training Program Test.

□  Collect required days on non-union shows or complete training program (if accepted).

□  Become established as a second assistant director.Become  established as a first assistant director.

□  Become established as a unit production manager.Become  established as a line producer.

□  Work exclusively on feature films with budgets in excess of $20 million.

□  Consistently work on at least two features a year.

Or your checklist might look something like:

□  Establish a production entity.

□  Find at least three marketable properties to option.

□  Sell at least one of those projects.

□  Co-produce my first show.

□  Sell a subsequent property.

□  Become established as a producer.

Or as simple as:

□  Mailroom

□  Assistant’s Desk

□  Junior Agent

□  Agent

Try tacking this onto your checklist:

In one month, I will be _______________________________________.

In six months, I will be _______________________________________.

In one year, I will be _________________________________________.

In five years, I will be ________________________________________.

In ten years, I will be ________________________________________.

I’m a big advocate for writing out goals. Besides, clearly defined goals that are written down are generally reached more often than those that aren’t. And I’m not talking about writing your goals on a pad of paper or on the computer where they’ll rarely been seen.I’m talking about index cards, 5×7 pieces of card stock or checklists that you can tack onto a bulletin board, the side of your computer monitor, on your office door, wall or refrigerator door—anywhere you’ll see them every day. I hand print mine using a thick, black felt-tip pen. Committing to a goal and writing it down is empowering. Keeping it in front of you keeps you focused.

Keeping Yourself on Track

When it comes to certain aspects in my life, I’m very undisciplined. Sound familiar? If you know you need to write so many pages, make so many calls or set up so many meetings each day or each month, and it’s not happening, one way to keep yourself on track is by creating a support system for yourself. Get together with a friend or two who are all in similar situations and working toward specific goals. Start by defining your ultimate goals and then brainstorm until you can come up with a consensus as to what it’ll realistically take to reach them. Set some quantifiable (and again, realistic) daily, weekly and monthly goals for yourselves and work out a system to check in with each other on a regular basis, so you can report on your progress. Define your biggest stumbling blocks as well, so you can brainstorm on effective ways around them. It’s helpful having buddies you can call when you’re stuck, overwhelmed, depressed or frustrated, because they understand and will help you get up and running again. There’s no doubt that it’s always easier to succeed within a nurturing, supportive environment, and having friends who are as invested in your progress as you are in theirs is the best—much preferable to going it alone. Plus just the fact of having to account to others on your progress is motivating.

If you’re not able to assemble a personal support team, you can still keep a record of your progress. And whether you’re in this alone or with a team, the chart on the next page should prove helpful. Using your own headings, of course, you can chart your accomplishments by the day (coming up with a weekly total), by the week (adding up to a monthly total) or by the month (tracking a yearly total). This one happens to track weekly accomplishments and monthly totals.

The chart is more effective when kept in conjunction with a support group, but if you don’t have the personal support, use the chart anyway. If you’re not keeping up your end, it won’t take long to notice the correlation between low numbers, fewer accomplishments and a career that isn’t moving as rapidly as you had hoped. It’ll provide some incentive for you to stay on track. No matter how it’s derived, the added incentive will generate results, and results will help you reach your goals faster.

Managing Your Time

Another large part of keeping yourself on track has to do with effective time management skills. Have you ever had one of those days (or several) where you do a little of this and a little of that and don’t really get much accomplished? All of us have at one time or another, but if it happens too often, you’re not using your time as efficiently as you could. If you don’t manage your day properly and set boundaries for yourself, your productivity will fly out the window. The trick is to schedule your time carefully—all your time, not just meetings, coffee dates and massages.

Start by making a list of everything you want to accomplish in any given week (you can do this by the day, too, if that works better for you). Include everything (work, pleasure and household duties): writing, going to class, making calls, social functions, setting up and going to meetings, writing and answering e-mails, reading, rehearsing, exercising, going to work, networking lunches and coffee dates, going to movies, watching TV, time with your family and friends, shopping, laundry, grocery shopping, etc. Then put your list in order of priority and indicate how much time you’ll realistically need for each item on the list. There will be weeks when you have to spend a lot more time on certain items than you normally would, but that will just depend on what’s going on in your life and at work at any one time. If you’re like me and almost everyone else I know, you’ll never have enough time for everything you want to accomplish, which is why you’re arranging the list by priority. Okay, now take a week’s worth of day planner pages that are broken down by the hour and start slotting in the items from your list—the most important ones first. Schedule in as much as you can from your list, giving yourself the time needed for each activity and then adding some extra time to that (allowing for unexpected developments). If everything won’t fit, perhaps you should think about getting up earlier in the morning or staying up a little later at night. If you’re already doing that, and you still can’t squeeze it all in, then you’ll have to drop some of those nonessential activities, at least until your priorities change. You might also consider scheduling the more personal tasks during the early morning or evening hours or on weekends—during nonbusiness hours.

If you’re having difficulty scheduling your days, pick a few items from your list and ask yourself, “What’s the worst that can happen if this doesn’t get done on this day or during this week?” If the answer is that you’ll have to reschedule a coffee date for the following week or eat leftovers for dinner for the third night in a row, the world won’t come to an end. But if it means you won’t be turning in your script on time or won’t be prepared for a big pitch meeting—that’s not good. So be sure to schedule in the most essential items first.

When you’ve scheduled time to be with your family or friends or time just to relax, give yourself that time and thoroughly enjoy it without thinking about all the other work you have to do. It’s amazing how guiltless you can feel taking the time to have some fun once you’ve scheduled it in. And when it’s time to get back down to business, use that time productively. Unless it’s specifically related to the work you’re doing, don’t stop for long chats on the phone, incessantly check your e-mail or fixate on all the other things you’d rather be doing. As difficult as this is for me, sometimes I have to refrain from answering the phone all together, and just let the messages go to voice mail. As someone who has prided herself on being a skillful multitasker and someone who wants to do it all, even I have had to learn to say “no” more than I’d like, just because there aren’t enough hours in any one day for everything I’d like to do. And when I try to do too much, too many important things don’t get done at all or don’t get done well. So I’ve learned to be more discriminating with my time, prioritize my “to do” list and schedule my days. I get a lot more accomplished this way, and you will, too.

Should you find yourself veering away from your goals due to family matters, vacations, illness, moving, whatever—that’s normal and perfectly okay. Just get back to business and back on track as soon as you can.

Your Vision and Mission

Another way to keep your goals in front of you is by creating your own personal vision and mission statements. Businesses, organizations and institutions do it every day. It lets employees, stockholders, customers and the public know what they stand for, what their goals and intentions are and how they intend to realize their objectives. These powerful statements are effective tools that can be used by individuals as well.

A vision statement expresses your optimal goal. It’s a short, succinct and inspiring statement of what you intend to become and to achieve at some point in the future.

Where do you see yourself being five years from now? In choosing a direction, you should have a mental image (“vision”) of the possible and desirable future you see for yourself. What are the major elements of your vision? What are the key qualities? Sit quietly for a few moments and think about some of those same questions posed to you earlier in this chapter. Think about what excites you, what inspires you, what would give your life meaning, in which direction you see yourself moving. Record your ideas and combine them into a single statement. That’s your vision.

A mission statement provides an overview as to how you’re going to achieve your vision. It should elicit a positive emotional response, make you feel more challenged and committed, direct you toward building on your strengths, aid in screening major decisions, address the trends and opportunities in your area of interest, and meaningfully differentiate you from your competitors. After your vision statement, add your mission statement. It shouldn’t be more than a few paragraphs long.

Here is an example:

Vision Statement: In five years I will be a successful and sought-after producer.

Mission Statement: For the past seven years, while working as a unit publicist on major motion pictures, I have endeavored to establish solid working relationships with top industry producers, directors, writers, actors, agents and managers, as well as studio development, publicity and marketing executives. I’m tightly plugged in to the press and have developed the keenest of networking skills. And while spending countless hours on film sets, I continue to watch and learn and understand the role of the producer.

I have recently begun searching for properties to option—well-written screenplays that are both compelling and commercial. Armed with an excellent reputation and unparalleled access to the industry’s top talent, I will be in a position to package and sell my projects, either on my own or in conjunction with an established, high-profile producer. My relationships will serve me well in assembling a quality crew. And my ability to work well with actors, studio executives and the media alike will be a tremendous asset. Lastly, my understanding of the entire filmmaking process will be a great asset as a producer. After my first film has been released and deemed a success, I will be in good standing to continue the process. Starting with the second film, however, I will no longer have to attach myself to an established producer, because I will then have the credibility to get into any door in town.

Being in the Right Place at the Right Time

Having a goal and a plan is powerful, but let me add one more ingredient into this potent mix, and that is making sure you’re prepared for the opportunities that come your way. I’m sure you’ve heard the expression, “Something good is going to happen. I can feel it. It’s just around the corner.” To that I say, “If you place yourself at the right intersection, you’re more likely to be in the right spot when luck gets there.” You have to be ready for the breaks that come your way, even if they don’t seem like breaks at the time. The way you do that is to continually put yourself out there, whether it’s at networking functions, volunteering to help out for free or just shining at whatever it is you’re doing. The more you do, the more people you meet, the more likely you are to be at the right place at the right time. Here are a few examples:

I worked with Robert on two different shows. He had a background of working on low-budget films and documentaries. On the first picture we did together, he was the director’s assistant, and on the second, he helped out in the production office and procured our stock footage. Somewhere along the way, he was asked to work for free one weekend as an assistant director on a very, very, very low-budget film, which he gladly did. Someone on that project noticed his abilities. It was that person who later recommended him to be the production manager on another film, this one with a slightly larger than minuscule budget. Having accepted the job, Robert then asked another co-worker of ours, Susan, to be his production coordinator. While on that project, one of the investors took notice of both Robert and Susan, and ultimately offered both of them terrific positions with his new production company. So Robert went from being a barely paid, incredibly overworked production manager on an ultra-low-budget film one day to a production executive the next, all as an indirect result of having worked for free one weekend.

Lachlan was new to Los Angeles when he signed up for my USC summer class. That was where he learned about Film Industry Network. Knowing he had to start networking, he began attending meetings. It was only the second meeting he came to when he found himself sitting next to a very warm, friendly woman named Missy. They introduced themselves to each other, and Lachlan soon learned that Missy was about to line produce a small film. Missy found out that Lachlan had a financial background. Jump to the tag line, and Lachlan not only ended up working on Missy’s film, but he was also able to line up jobs for some of his classmates as well.

A bright college grad, Bob started his career as an office assistant for an independent production company, spending much of his day making coffee for board room meetings. He had heard there was an opening for an Office PA on one of the company’s TV movies, so he interviewed for the job and got it. Once there, Bob came in early and stayed later than necessary. While efficiently handling his job, he learned everything he could, helped everyone he could and read everything he could get his hands on. He was soon anticipating the needs of his supervisors, keeping one step ahead of the workload and becoming indispensable. When that show was over, the company moved him onto another production, where his next job was to assist the production accountant. He learned that position quickly; and it’s a good thing, because eventually the accountant had to leave the show, and Bob was asked to replace him. It was while working as a production accountant that an associate producer was needed on short notice. He was already there, had proved to be both bright and a quick study, and had captured the eye of a top company executive. So Bob was asked to fill those shoes as well. He eventually became a producer, and then a producing partner in another prominent production company. One would say this might never have happened if Bob wasn’t so bright, and others could say he was lucky to be in the right place at the right time. My take is that when the positions opened up, he was hard to ignore because he was bright and because he had made such an extraordinary effort to learn, to help out whenever he could and to support his co-workers. He was ready for the opportunities that came his way.

Jackie applied for a job as a writers’ assistant on a television series but was told the position had been taken. She asked if she could come in for a short meeting anyway, so the woman who did the hiring could get to know her, just in case another position should open up at a later time. The woman reluctantly allowed her to come in, and then found herself so taken with Jackie, she recommended her the very next day to a friend who just had happened to call looking for an assistant to work for a group of writers on another TV series. Jackie got the job!

The moral of the story: You never know where an opportunity is going to come from or who’s going to be the one to notice your potential and give you that pivotal break. It could be someone you worked with three projects ago or someone you just met at a seminar.

The combination of knowing what you want, having a plan to get there and being ready for anything that comes your way creates an incredibly powerful catalyst for realizing your dreams.