Live from Ithaca

I'm actually not in L.A. but in Ithaca - meeting summer and fall '08 students and reuniting with former students. It's so great to see everyone moving on with their work and getting to know others about to start on the L.A. adventure. The one constant seems to be -- what will I do when a graduate; how do I navigate the real world?

The best advice I can give is what I said at a panel at FLEFF (the Finger Lakes Film Festival, though most of you know that, right?) - which is to work hard, dig down deep and BE YOURSELF. If you're a writer it means bringing "you" to everything you write. Not autobiography but you need to find a way to somehow personalize what you write. If you're studying or doing a job -- how do you add your own personal spin to it? What about the subject particularly interests you? If you say nothing interests you, you might not be digging deep enough or thinking hard enough about it. Don't just skim the surface but try to imagine how you, and perhaps only you, see this. This might help all of us to look at this subject in a different way.

If it's a job (even something seemingly mindless or part-time, you say?) how will you specifically make this job exciting for you, and not simply "phone it in?" Perhaps the people you work with would appreciate someone who can not only accomplish the work but add something they haven't seen before? (and trust me, they will). It's a given that you never know what can happen as a result of your efforts, large and small. You never know who is watching or who you will re-meet years later. (this is particularly true of the entertainment industry). The world runs on the cause and effect principal (even me, who only took earth science in high school, knows that).

If after all this, you're still not "feeling it" - well, this might not be the area of study, the job or the project for you. That's okay. But don't give up without challenging yourself. You KNOW you can usually redouble your efforts. I mean, we all can, right? (That might even be one reason I'm blogging from Ithaca).

See you back in the Big Orange soon. - S.