Excellence... It’s such a good thing, but so many people stop at average when excellence is within reach. So when you are excellent at what you do, you really stand out.
Ari Emanuel, Co-CEO of the William Morris Endeavor talent agency gives six insightful principles to live by in the Hollywood industry.
Guest writer Deborah Fraser explores what it means to be truly excellent...
A few years ago, I found myself in a place in life in which I couldn’t drive my car for several months. So a generous friend bought me a good bicycle, for which I was truly grateful. Yes, it got me where I needed to go, and, sure, it got me in pretty good shape, but that bike helped me to do something even more substantial and worthwhile. It got me to slow down.
A couple years ago, I decided to take motorcycle lessons. Okay, I’ll admit it: motorcycle lessons appealed primarily to my over-developed sense of adventure, but in my defense, it’s not a bad skill for an actor to be able to list on his résumé. So I got all geared up and drove my car out to the nearby community college parking lot with visions of me whipping my bike around pylons with Matrix-like precision and ferocity...
We all have those days when we try to tap into our creative juices and come up dry. There are a lot of ways to address that problem, but here's one you may not have thought of: take a nap.
Anything that requires real Courage, by definition, also will run the risk of hitting those occasional pockets where Courage is stolen away, where it is in rare supply, where you find yourself gasping for it like oxygen at high altitudes. Where you are dis-Couraged.
You probably noticed that it’s a brand new year. Although you may poke your head outside and discover it feels about the same, a new year offers the opportunity to contemplate where you’ve been as a creative professional and where you’re going. Like most other people, I like to take this season to think of some good New Year’s resolutions – not only the things I’d like to tackle, but also what I’m leaving behind in the rearview mirror. After all, some baggage belongs in the previous year, right? So let’s start the year correctly. As you’re drafting your resolutions for the New Year, here are a few to consider...
I have a good friend who has what I, as a fan of the cinematic arts, consider to be a near fatal flaw. This friend of mine hates to talk about movie details or plotlines to any degree before he has seen the movie himself. He just doesn’t want to know. Some flimflam about spoiling the experience for him by finding out how any of the story goes. I know you’re thinking the same thing I am – he’s crazy, right?
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about fear and courage. What is this stuff called Courage that we all aspire to, that so inspires us, but in the end, even for the best of us, can be so tantalizingly elusive?
You tell us: Why did you decide to become a creative professional? And how does a person know when he/she is called to Hollywood?
My dear Crazy Friend,
Thanks for your recent note of encouragement! It was good to hear from you, and your encouraging words couldn’t have come at a better time.
I noticed in your letter that perhaps you could use a little encouragement yourself...
Hollywood is known more for its myth than for its reality, at least in the eyes of the general public. For those who know Hollywood, it draws to mind that truism that “all that glitters is not gold.” The substance doesn’t always measure up to the presentation. Once the cameras and spotlights and red carpets have been removed, it isn’t always the nicest place in the world. In fact, Hollywood can be downright ugly at times.
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