Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Don't Quit Your Day Job - Or Do... Eventually!


I got tagged in the following Facebook Post by a friend today:

RATS!!! I just got called for BCG work on “SHOW NAME” tomorrow, but I'm already booked with an interview and training for a new job. I know BCG work isn't a huge deal, but it IS a step closer to doing what I want to do. Industry peeps, how and when is it appropriate to bow out of other work last minute to pursue the dream? I don't want to burn any bridges. Help!

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So of course, I asked if I could use this question in a new blog post, (she agreed – obviously!) since this is a quandary many artists face.

It doesn’t matter which side of the camera/curtain you work on, which city you live in or which of the arts your pursuing.  This is a serious question that deserves more than just a comment on her Facebook page – so let’s talk DAY JOBS…


1)   It’s pretty impossible to pursue a career in the arts if you are completely homeless.  You are expected to show up clean to STUNNING at jobs, interviews and auditions – especially in the performing arts.  But you have to at least smell good and your clothes should never look like you slept in them – at least not until you wrap!  This means that you need a home…
2)   Homes require MONEY.  The recent economic crash led lots of people to ‘down scale’ their lives.  My friends have eliminated financial redundancies like landlines, cable TV and in some cases even Internet because so many wireless plans offer portable hotspots through smart phones.  But you can only scale back so far before it limits your ability to be hired!
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3)   Work in the arts – even CREW jobs like Sound Design, Production Assistants and Lighting gigs ebb and flow.  Many of these jobs are short term at best and frequently hire educated professionals on a day-to-day basis.  If you live in a good market and you hustle hard, you could average 3 – 4 working days per week – maybe…
4)   Jobs in the arts – especially if they are entry level – tend to pay right around minimum wage – just for longer hours than you’d work at your typical Micky D’s…  The work times also vary widely and shift from day to day making it pretty impossible to try to work multiple jobs in the same 24-hour span.

So what does all this mean?

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One of my writing teachers told us the best thing we could do would be to marry someone rich who would be okay with supporting us.  Chris Hardwick – I’m still waiting for you to call me!  (Our children would the cutest little blue-eyed geeks you could imagine…sigh)

In the interim, however, many of us find it necessary to take “day jobs,” which run the gambit from waiting tables, to nanny-ing to cleaning houses to becoming a professional fluffer… (and if you don’t know what that is PLEASE don’t look it up!)

Three of my friends recently made that leap of faith by leaving shift jobs in favor of freelancing in order to make their schedules more flexible for their art. 

I’m not telling the girl who asked me this question to walk away from a brand new paying job that she’s obviously gone to some trouble to apply for.  But if you don’t show up for those first few days/weeks of training, you might end up terminated before you’re able to cash that first paycheck.

So you have to make a choice.  Here’s what I advise:

1)   NEVER Lie – It’s a terrible habit to develop. It reflects poorly on your work ethic and you never
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know when one boss might know another.  The world is much smaller than you think.  But-but… I’m an ACTOR! you say.  “I make people believe fantasy for a living.  It’s what I do!”  For a paying audience? Yes. For people depending on you be somewhere and do something? NO.  In the words of Eric Cartman, “Not cool…”

2)   Let Your Shift Boss Know Your Story – Everyone knows somebody with a dream. And most of us have dreams of our own at one point or another.  You might be surprised by how supportive a supervisor can be.  Work hard at your shift job. Show them how lucky they are to have you.  Build relationships with your coworkers, and discuss with your boss the best possible ways you can “play hooky” without leaving the company in the lurch.  Maybe you’ll find out Tuesdays are really slow, so it’s no biggie if you call in on a Monday night to ditch out.

3)   If Your Boss is NOT Supportive, FIND ANOTHER JOB – I’m serious. Life is too short to spend it pleasing anyone other than YOU.  You’ll find something else that’s more flexible with people who are more supportive.  Just keep looking.

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4)   Keep Pursuing Your Art Every Available Moment – Here’s what happens when you don’t: your cool job with nice people, a supportive boss and/or your supportive spouse eventually become prison wardens keeping you from your dreams.  You’ll blow a fuse, say or do something terrible that you’ll never be able to take back, and burn all those proverbial bridges you are currently worried about.  What’s worse?  By the time that happens – you won’t even CARE!  Because you’ll have had it.  So you work Tuesday – Saturday?  Make sure you’re booking gigs every Sunday and Monday.  Sleep when you’re rich and famous!

5)   Don’t Get Too Comfortable – Your day job pays $800/week?  Awesome. Live on $500.  Or $400.  Don’t go on cruises.  Don’t go to fancy shows and pricey bars. Don’t get hooked on upscale clothes, shoes or cosmetics.  Because when you start spending every dollar you make every week – and it’s super easy to do – you get trapped in the lifestyle of that paycheck.  So now you “CAN’T” leave your day job unless, you know, you get offered a leading role on Law and Order SVU – which will never happen, because you can’t miss a day of work to audition, workshop or get set experience because if you do, you won’t be able to afford that set of custom gels every other week at that cute salon that brings you ‘complimentary’ mimosas…

6)   Save Money and Make an Exit Strategy – Remind yourself DAILY that your day job is only temporary.  Continue to set goals daily and weekly as an artist. Remind yourself that you ‘don’t belong’ in the office, or with your coworkers.  If you become ‘one of them,’ you truly run the risk of losing yourself in the process. Stash some cash in savings or at least pay off any debts/loans you have. That way, when you take your leap, you’ll be able to live off of less money from day one.
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7)   Do the Math – All opportunities are not created equal.  If you’ve already played a Brooklyn Hipster Pedestrian three times in a month, maybe it’s okay to tell Casting that you’re already booked for the day they want to use you. (NOT a lie if you’re booked to work at your actual JOB!) That way, next week when you’re offered a featured spot at SAG scale because you can ride a unicycle, you don’t feel guilty taking THAT day off, and your boss will be happy to give it to you. (PS – Whenever refusing a casting, ALWAYS SAY you’re already BOOKED on another job.  And then, of course say, thank you!)

8)   Set Specific Goals and Stick to Them (Within Reason) – Nothing pushes you harder than putting goals in writing and reviewing them daily.  I put sticky notes on my mirror.  That way, when I’m checking out that fine ass in my ‘first change,’ I’m also reminding myself that I’m working toward a SAG speaking role by the end of February.  If I don’t land it until March 3rd, I’m not going to flog myself or give up on my dreams.  But make a plan.  How long before you want to be following your career goals full time?  Six months? Eighteen?  Get out a calendar, a pen and some PAPER.  (I’m serious about the pen and PAPER.  It really makes a difference.) Do a little math.  Need to pay off a student loan?  Can you at least pay off enough to refi at a lower payment in ten months?  Well, write down the steps and dates to accomplish them by.  And most importantly, decide when this job’s expiration date is.  Don’t say – “when something better comes along.”  You’ll spend your life waiting instead of LIVING.

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So no, it’s probably not worth blowing off your training for your new job just to work background on a network TV show tomorrow – unless of course, you’ve decided while reading this to just throw caution to the wind entirely and ditch the day job altogether!  But if you think this shift job can be a port in a financial storm for a bit, then by all means, hunker down – but don’t loose sight of the bigger picture.

And remember – everything CAN happen for a reason!  Maybe by saying no, thank you to “NAME OF SHOW,” tonight, when you’re free in a few weeks, you’ll get a chance at working it again in a more featured capacity that you’d have missed out on if you worked it tomorrow!  Stranger things have happened – like “blizzards” for example! Hope this helps!

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