This is a difficult article to publish, but it is very important! The message of this letter is simple: stop asking people to hire you. IN ORDER TO. Not only is it not an effective way to enter the industry, it is a surefire way to alienate the very people who can help you.
Does this sound contradictory? Completely against the concept of “taking the initiative”? Let me explain.
If you have little or no credit (and little or no income), you know the frustration / panic of not knowing how you are going to break through the doors of the entertainment industry and get both recognition for your passion and a paycheck for your bills. That is a fact, and that is completely valid and understandable.
But take a moment before asking the next person you just met to hire you to envision the same scenario OUTSIDE the entertainment industry. If you have just met the senior partner of a law firm and have no law firm work experience or law degree, would you open and / or close the conversation with an application to be hired? I hope not! Because if he did, the director of that firm would not be impressed by his passion for law. They would be puzzled by your lack of understanding of how one is hired to work at a law firm. They may also feel a bit annoyed at your lack of respect for what they do, believing that someone with no experience deserves some of your hard-earned income. And finally, they may really like you and appreciate your enthusiasm for their field, but they already have a long list of entry-level applicants with whom they already have a relationship and who will be offering the next vacancy.
Notice the “entry level” rating on that sentence. That’s because if you approach the director of a law firm with no experience or title and ask him to hire you as a lawyer, well, you are crazy and deserve the look of outrage that you are about to see on his face. But, you know now. In fact, you would never dream of asking a senior partner at a law firm to hire you as an attorney if you had no qualifying background to do so!
Now, if you understand that legal limit, but approach employment differently in the entertainment industry, you are setting yourself up to fail. It is imperative that you enter this field recognizing and respecting it as a real business. Your passion for medicine won’t earn you a place in the operating room if you don’t have a degree, and your passion for Hollywood won’t earn you a position in this industry if you have nothing to contribute other than your passion. And why should it? Why would you demand to be paid a lot of money as a surgeon if you have no idea how to perform surgery … and why would you demand to be paid dollars as a filmmaker if you have no idea how to make movies?
Now I know you could be saying, “I can make movies!” “I know how to write a script!” “I know how to produce a television show!” “I know how to act!” May I ask you, for a moment, to consider that if you haven’t already done one of these things, professionally, and have regularly paid your bills in doing so … that there is something, indeed, a lot … done you still don’t know?
Still with me? Okay, now, what if your approach to the industry became “What do I need to learn to be successful here?” instead of “How much can I get out of this as quickly as possible so that my dreams will come true immediately?” What if you slow down a bit and decide to learn before jumping?
As soon as your energy turns to “What do I need to learn?” Instead of “What do I want to win?”, your experience in this game will change. QUICK!
This is my suggestion for the next time you meet someone you are dying to work for. Don’t tip the balance of exchange by becoming a “supplicant,” someone with their hand outstretched for a job. And don’t end your reunion possibilities by pretending you know or have done more than you have. Instead, talk to that person passionately about what they do! People in the industry work the most ridiculous hours you can imagine, just like you. And they do it because they are obsessed with what they do. Let them talk. Learn from what they know. Buy them a cup of coffee or a glass of wine. THANKS FOR YOUR TIME. And walk away from that exchange without asking for anything additional in return.
I mean something “additional”. Information is money in this industry and in all others. Someone’s precious time and pearls of wisdom are worth a lot to you if you listen and learn. Don’t add to that generous gift by asking them for money too!
If you find a connection between a talented person and yourself, this is one person you need to follow up with later and ask if they can give you something back on the RETURN. This is the person you want to VOLUNTEER for. Now that you know what they do, find out what skills, contacts and assistance you can offer them. And here’s the key: don’t offer to do something for them that helps make their dreams come true; offer to help them achieve one of their own goals. Because once you do that, you will have called the trade and the ball will be in their court now to want to help you! And if you come in and do some amazing volunteer work, trust me, they will want to help you.
I can’t count the number of times I’ve had this conversation with people new to the industry. However, I CAN count the number of times they sent me a thank you note and asked for a job, despite everything I just told them. Do you think I hired them? Of course not! They couldn’t follow the simple and gratuitous advice I had just given them; I knew they might once again think they knew better than I did when I gave them instructions to do something at work at my company! Why would I take that risk when I already have a long list of people that I hope to help move forward?
On the other hand, the only … and I mean ONE … person who followed me and offered to work for free for a week (on a massive show) to go from music videos to TV production. …. well, we hired her at the end of the first day. She was so good.
Not you?