When was the last time you asked yourself that question?
Was it this morning? If not, why not?
What's holding us back?
Who are we trying to please, other than this goal?
Are we all afraid it might not be good enough?
Or would we prefer to watch other people make stuff, every time we turn on the TV?
Just some questions.
Want to create some cool stuff? Of course you do.
Here are the steps:
So do you want to commit to do this with me? The first person who comments below - and who is in - will get some #FindtheHour swag and some other coolness down the line. I'll also be posting at least 3-4 times a week letting you know how to make it easier - and will look to you for ideas as well. Let's make it happen.
Need some inspiration? Hell, I do.
Create to this:
Enjoy.
This is Day 40 of my '100 Days of LinkedIn', which is 100 posts on content creation and the movie business. Call me crazy.
In most movies, there is a moment in the story about half-way through where the plan just might work.
In business, this happens all the time. You win the big account and all seems right with world.
Until...
Things change... and the bad guys close in. You snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
Your answer to this is where Academy Awards are won and lost. And where businesses rise or fall.
With all that's going on in the world of business, politics, and on the streets of the inner cities, the real revolution isn't so much a radical approach of new ideas as it is a radical embrace of civility. The simple act of respecting one another enough to show common decency and grace has vanished, a tremendous casualty.
That perhaps is where our deepest thinking needs to happen. Around regaining our ability of discourse.
It's obvious that businesses like Wells Fargo have lost their way. Politicians disrespect any ideas but their own. Law enforcement and 'the people' push the edges around each other, often at deadly consequence.
Our differences aren't what we need to smooth over. That's the good stuff.
Our approach to how we communicate, how quickly we pull the trigger, how we respond to an idea that's different than our own: that's what needs to be examined.
Ask forgiveness. Give forgiveness. That might be a great place to start.
This is Day 39 of my '100 Days of LinkedIn', which is 100 posts on content creation and the movie business. First I post it here, then I post it there. Call me crazy.
If you haven't read my post about how the structure of a good movie is similar to that of a good business and maybe even a good life - you might want to start here.
Right now, we'll take a look at FUN AND GAMES, which usually occur within 30-45 pages/minutes of a movie - and how this might relate to what you're up to.
This is when the bad baseball team gets the new coach, has some initial fumbles, but then goes on an immediate winning streak. Or when Indiana Jones finds the first real clues to where the Ark is.
Or, in the case of the BELVEDERE SALES LEADS, I start closing deals. I start making real money for a change, and maybe buy myself a Porsche and a house on the beach. Hey, I'm King of the World.
Or, maybe it's when you start to see big orders rolling in. You ride around the office on your hoverboard giving your people high fives.
In business - this is the initial run of success. But as we all know, sustainability is the ultimate goal. Not the one-off moment of champagne and Black Label Vodka with Kanye.
Because, again as we all know, those things lead to hangovers. And the very old saying:
This too shall pass.
There's a hurricane out there somewhere.
This is Day 38 of my '100 Days of LinkedIn', which is 100 posts on content creation and the movie business. First I post it here, then I post it there. Call me crazy.
If you haven't read my post about how the structure of a good movie is similar to that of a good business and maybe even a good life - you may want to start here.
Right now, we'll take a look at the TURNING POINT, which usually occurs within the first 20-30 pages/minutes of a movie - and how this might relate to what you're up to.
By page 30: The Turning Point - our hero (you) is thrust into the NEW WORLD.
Pretend for a moment that you're working your hapless job under the fluorescent lights of another eternity. When suddenly your co-worker Jack hands you the legendary BELVEDERE LEADS. These leads, it has been said, can only lead to more sales and untold riches.
The catch?
They cost $10k. But the ROI on that promises to be so much more. We're talking happiness.
The other catch?
You're broke. Barely paying rent. The only thing of real value you have is your Mother's diamond ring she left you just as she passed away from cancer. A shitty death.
So after much debate, you sell the ring. You get the money. You get the leads. And now...
You have entered the New World. Everything is set for you to go on your journey and grab the golden ring...
If only it were that simple.
Some of us never sell that ring (which in itself might propel it's own journey). Or move away from the ordinary world. Take the chance.
So sad.
Go make your business your life and your life a movie. It can be done.
I've spent a good part of the last two weeks watching the Olympics. It's been a terrific study in how to reach millions of people: high drama, great production values, lots of various platforms.
But what about the person who has a huge idea but a small budget? How do they get heard?
Lately, I've been giving a fair amount of thought to this and a concept I'll call Microcasting. Too many people measure success by audience size, views and retweets, but what if you took a different approach and delivered your content to just your most passionate audience, however small? Kevin Kelly says you need only 1,000 True Fans to be successful, so what if your strategy was less about ‘broadcast' and more about ‘microcast' to tap into your niche audience to effect change?
To that end, I was lucky enough to be invited to be part of a potential panel for SXSW with Hanson Hosein, Gillian Sheldon, and Liv Faris to discuss just this. Our session is called Microcast: The Future of Fan Engagement, and will outline a step-by-step approach to real ROI for brands and causes, and discuss actionable ways of making a powerful impact even with shrinking budgets and ever-changing algorithms. Our belief is that by thinking about the ‘small game’, you can really set yourself apart on the path to true audience engagement and growth.
Want to help get us into SXSW? Give us an upvote at: http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/67954
Even if you don't have access to Michael Phelps before he leaps into the history books again - you can make a big difference here. Thanks for your time.
As some you may know, I just got back from a journey with Jim Pidgeon and Diego Castello working on a documentary about The Power of Dreams. The documentary features Forrest Fenn, who 6 years ago hid a treasure in the rockies worth 2 million dollars to get people off their couches and 'out into the world'.
His philosophy is simple: push the edges.
Hearing him talk about that - hearing how he pushed the edges throughout his life - was an amazing experience. An experience that explores the fine lines between curiosity, obsession, and lunacy.
Making a movie, writing a book, singing a new song - this is lunacy. You are risking it all and putting it out there. You are exploring and pushing on the corners of your own big world.
For me, this isn't always easy. I love the routine. The easier path. The tried and true. Certainty.
But certainty is our greatest illusion. And creativity our greatest truth.
What am I searching for? That point of contact between horizon and the road you are standing on.
What do you think? Tell me your dreams.
Some of you may know that I have started a #FindtheHour movement - currently a movement of one. What this movement is about:
How to get started:
So do you want to commit to do this with me? The first person who comments below - and who is in - will get some #FindtheHour swag and some other coolness down the line. I'll also be posting at least 3-4 times a week letting you know how to make it easier - and will look to you for ideas as well. Let's make it happen.
Don't Break the Chain - Let's Get a Streak Going.
There are really only two questions:
Are you a Buyer?
Or, are you a Seller?
If you're creating content like I am (commercials, scripts, movies TBD), then you're most likely on the selling side of the equation. Pitching. Trying like hell to communicate value.
In this era of noise and static and infinite content, it can appear a challenging place to be. Buyers (the people usually with the money) can appear to hold all the cards.
But if you remember you have something buyers need (and if you really do), it is possible to flip the conversation. To get Buyers to have to sell you. Reframing the conversation is important and possible.
Especially if you stop treating yourself like a commodity. Because you are truly not everyone else.
Make sure that last sentence sinks in.
BTW: if you are neither a Seller or a Buyer, you're not really in the game. 'Artists' sometime pretend to live in this space, but not the pros. The pros embrace.
What's nice about the weekends? So many things.
A chance to regroup. Reset. Reconnect with family, friends. Take a pause. Reflect.
And damn straight, put on your dancing shoes.
But it's also a great time to look at the week ahead and make dates with yourself. 1 hour time blocks each day where you can #FindTheHour and focus solely on the work that matters to you.
If you schedule it now, today, you have something to aspire to.
Every Sunday night at 5:00 I've got an alarm that goes off reminding me of this. It's some of the most important work I do all week.
My current streak. Squares represent Days I've missed. Oh well. Get back on the horse.
Want to let me buy you coffee? Email me.
I made it 15 days doing #FindTheHour before I broke. 15 days of finding that ONE HOUR in my day where I could work on what I'm most passionate about (for me, it's writing, for you....?). The result of that 15 days is I'm 25 pages into a script.
A stack of pretty good pages (not perfect, never perfect) that wouldn't exist otherwise.
But what happened the 16th day? Life interrupted. Surprises happened at work. Family jumped in, . And sometimes you just have to embrace that. Savor it. And make that your hour's mission.
The way back?
Start again. Reset. Get back on the horse that threw ya.
Find The Hour. So much harder than it sounds. But once you gain momentum....
Oyster Dome, Bellingham WA
George Clooney has a great story. He was moving out to LA and his dad asks him, "Great, but if things don't work out, what's your Plan B?"
To which he replied "I don't have a Plan B. If I did, I'd fall back on it."
When you're the world's most handsome man - this is great advice. For most of the rest of us, a PLAN B is often the real dream we're looking for.
PLAN A = Your Day Job. Maybe you like it, maybe you don't.
PLAN B = Your true passion. This is what you'd be doing if you somehow didn't have all those other obligations you've managed to wrap yourself in.
That's what #FindTheHour is all about (#FTH). It's the beginning, a first step, in the transformation. Making your PLAN B, the thrill of your life, your bread and butter.
For me - it's about getting paid to write more. Yeah, I do okay now, but there is more to be had.
So for 14 days now, I've kept the streak alive of #FTH. The results? I'll get to that in tomorrow's post. Let's just say it's a start. And a heck of a lot more if I hadn't begun #FTH in the first place.
Day 13 of #FindtheHour
There is one great way to look back 3 months from now and say:
"I made that"
or...
"I did this."
The secret is Starting - which really isn't much of a secret at all. But it can be hard for us mere mortals, and there's lots of excuses, and we all invent ways to avoid doing the work.
But imagine if you did the work...
That's what #FindTheHour is all about. It's reframing the day so you can work on the One Thing that makes you the most excited. That you've dreamed of doing.
So that 3 months from now, you have something to show for it. And maybe that something is the first act of a play, or a painting, or you've finally learned about something you always wanted to learn about. It's not about creating content so much as it is about being who you are.
One hour a day is a lot. Especially once you start stringing some of these days together. It's not for the faint of heart. It's tough as hell when 9:00 at night rolls around and you haven't taken the time.
But 3 months from now, even 3 hours from now, you may find yourself loving it. I am.
Let me buy you a cup of coffee.
#FindTheHour
