entertainment industry coach question 579: I had a stranger I reached out to on FB tell me not to contact her there and gave me her email.

The question continued: "Now I'm embarrassed because I made a request of her on Facebook, when I didn't really know her and obviously it bothered her. What should I do?"

Sometimes I just want to shake some of you! I don't want to sound harsh... okay, maybe I do, because this is a competitive business and you have to get over yourself. Seriously, let's break this down.

1. You reached out to a stranger on Facebook and made some kind of request.

2. The stranger responded to you.

3. Not only did the stranger respond to you, but she gave you her personal email and told you how she preferred to be contacted.

4. SHE INVITED YOU TO EMAIL HER

What is the problem? What are you embarrassed about? WHERE ON EARTH DID YOU GET THAT YOU BOTHERED HER? I don't know about you, but I don't give my email address and welcome further contact to people who bother me.

What should you do? Grow a pair, and email her!

Seriously, people. Stop reading into things and act like professionals who want to make it in this business!

ps: while I was bothered by this question, I'll get over it in about 2 minutes, so feel free to email me more questions in the future.

disclaimer: this blog post was written before I had my coffee... oh wait, I don't drink coffee.

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entertainment industry coach question 578:Do you suggest books on being an entrepreneur?

The question read: You referred to Business Tools, and books written by people like Richard Bronson. Are there any specific books or courses (next to yours of course) that you may recommend that help with building confidence, a presence, advice on being an entrepreneur?

What's unique about what I do, is I spend $20,000/year to get all of the business tools that entrepreneurs use and then translate it into language that artists, craftspeople, and technicians, can relate to. So, yes, there are many courses out there for entrepreneurs. I am personally in Ali Brown's MPC Elite program, I've also worked with and recommend Star Ladin, for branding as well as business for heart-centered entrepreneurs.

When it comes to books, I like biographies on people like Richard Branson, Warren Buffet, as well as "Mommy Millionaire." I've read so many books on being an entrepreneur that have different areas of focus; social media, branding, client care, confidence building, etc. that I would recommend Robert Finkelstein's book recommendation section (because I can't remember them all).

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entertainment industry coach question 577: While I target my 10 contacts should I continue to mass email the other hundreds of companies out there?

That is a question that only you can answer. To make that decision, ask yourself these questions:

1. How much time out of your week does the mass mailing take?

2. What are the results of your mass mailings?

3. If the answer to number 2 is "low results," does the time you spend on the mailings warrant continuing with this "cold-call" method, or would your time be better spent on focused work and relationship building?

I know what I would do, but only you can make that decision for your business.

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entertainment industry coach question 576:What are the attributes of being fearless?

The whole question read: You mentioned that most people take 2-5 years to build a foundation, unless you're fearless. What specifically do you mean by fearless? What is an attribute of that?

When I talk about the timeline of building a foundation, I'm referring to over 1000 people whom I coached one-on-one over a 7 year period. Based on their results, I saw how many careers began taking off after 2 years of focused business building work, and those who struggled more but never gave up began seeing the payoff at the 5 year point.

Then there were the exceptions; "the fearless ones." These were the people who had simply needed me to give them the tools, a plan, and strategies for achieving their goals. The fearless people simply went for it. I didn't hear any excuses about "why they couldn't or shouldn't do something," they had no fear about asking contacts for help or making requests of them, they had no fear around networking or getting mentors, and they were all about taking action. The more I could give them to do, the better... and they had the results of those actions quickly.

Now, that said, who knows if they were completely "fearless," the point is, if they felt the fear, they acted in spite of it. To give an example of how quickly the "fearless" got results, I had multiple experiences of people setting up appointments with me with the goal of getting work, and just by doing the pre-work (and fully committing to the task at 100%) they got work before our meeting and had to cancel.

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entertainment industry coach question 575: In our lecture at AFI, you talked about an accountability team. Can you elaborate?

An accountability team is a group of like-minded people, who are just as focused on your success as their own. You set goals and everyone on the team is aware of each others' goals and helps where they can and hold you accountable for the things you say you're going to do.

You can present it to people as an accountability team, or a mastermind group, or whatever name you choose. The people in the group should be focused, self-motivated, and do-ers.

You may need a leader, or a tool to keep you on track. I recommend my book And...Action! because it has 52 chapters of proven tools, strategies, and mindsets, that your team can work on together to build a strong business foundation.

Some groups break it down even further to have accountability partners within the group whom they check in with 5 days/week.

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entertainment industry coach question 574: I'm in a new city and out of work, what should I do?

Here's how the conversation started on Facebook, and my answer follows...

KB:It's been 5 months since I've worked, came all the way from San Francisco to Louisiana because this is where the industry is right now, and even joined the union, and still can't find work!

Me: When you moved to Louisiana, did you have contacts there who could hire you? Just because there is work in a location doesn't mean that you will get hired, because people have to know you, like you, and trust you before they bring you on to their million dollar set. Their jobs, reputation, and lots of money is on the line. If you don't know the people who can hire you well, and plan to stay there, I would suggest getting a supplemental income job and focusing on building relationships with people who can hire you.

KB: Thank for your quick response. I did not have any connections when I got here 5 months ago, but now I have several. From set medics, Teamsters, sound, and electricians. I teamed up with people that I have certifications and licenses to work with. I'm two weeks away from being voted on to be part of the union, after months of establishing residency and submitting all paperwork. Wow! What a lot of work! I have been maintaining all contacts and trying to network like crazy. I think once I'm in the union, things should start to break. Is there anything else I can do in the mean time?

Okay, the first thing I noticed in the response was the word "several." It's all a numbers game. What you can be doing in the mean time is turning "several" into 50... minimum! I know that may sound like a lot, but it's just the tip of the iceberg. You don't have to be in the union to reach out to Union members, so why wait two weeks. People are going to have to get to know you before they hire you anyway, so you may as well start the process immediately. Have your contacts who are set medics, Teamsters, sound, etc., invite you for set visits so you can meet new crews face to face.

Remember, as you are getting to know people, resist the urge to ask for work when you meet for the first time. Instead, ask questions about the "work climate" and being new in town, smart strategies for generating work in that market. This way people will know you're looking for work without you putting them on the spot or worse... putting them off.

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entertainment industry coach question 573: What should I do to get into the Acting Profession?

The question read, "Well, I have Been trying to built up my Acting Career, tried agencies, they are not helpful. So my question is, what should I do to get in to the Acting Profession? Honestly, I don't know where to start?...."

I checked his facebook page and he lives in Hollywood, CA, so the first thing I would suggest is getting into a reputable acting school and/or joining the Actors Network, because you want to get into a community where people at all levels can give you advice.

1. You will need to build your credits and turns those credits into a reel.

2. You will need headshots.

3. You have to create relationships with other actors, casting directors, producers, directors, and literally every other classification in the industry (because when you find like minded people they can connect you directly to the people who can hire you).

4. You have to hone your craft.

5. You have to create a long term and short term plan for the business side of you acting career.

In addition, I suggest reading blog posts 1-572 and get some tips and advice from me.

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