Saturday, March 21, 2009

Question 18: How do I get work when so much depends on luck?

I'm answering this question today, because my lucky # is 18 and this is question 18.  Here's what I think about luck:

Luck is another one of those excuses that people use to blame, when they aren't taking action.  "I'm just not lucky." Of course you're not.  You're in your apartment, sitting on your couch, waiting for the phone to ring.  I'm sorry if I sound harsh, but the successful people I know have WORKED REALLY HARD to get to where they are.  To chalk someone's success up to "luck," is unfair. Even people who claim that they "just got lucky," spend ten minutes with me dissecting their career path, to discover that they had far more to do with their own success than luck.  

The only example I can possibly conceive of as lucky is: a girl in Kansas walks across a street, gets hit by a car driven by Peter Berg (I know random, but I dig him), and he promises to give her a speaking role in every film he directs for the rest of their lives IF she doesn't sue him. She agrees, he stays true to his word, and suddenly she has an acting career.  But seriously, how often does that happen?      

Create your own, luck.  Do your research.  Build your relationships.  Get yourself out there.  Put yourself in the right place, and it will become the right time.
*disclaimer: I am in no way suggesting that you jump in front of a hot director's car!!!

For more tips and articles by The Greenlight Coach, visit www.TheGreenlightCoachBlog.com

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