Today is the start of the first week after school has ended.For myself, I was already living a freelance writer lifestyle before school, so it's partly a return to that only actually getting paid for it. For many of my classmates though, it might be overwhelming thinking about where to start.
I've started by applying to jobs and filing my taxes. I plan on having someone else do my taxes next year as it is getting too complicated for me. Next, I will be developing my schedule. We had an assignment on this in school and it's mostly putting that into my Google calendar where it will pop up and remind me what I should be doing and when I should do it.
Matthew McConaughey has an inspirational video that talks about eliminating all the things that aren't you as a starting place.
We did so much this year. Some of the workshops were about things I thought I'd want to do, but in learning more about them I realized they weren't for me. Lifting is a problem for me due to an old neck injury, so I avoid positions that require a lot of it. At first glance this seems like a negative thing for my future, but it has helped me narrow down the list of options. Script Supervision might be a place for me eventually because I used to manage projects, but I don't want to start in an area that has so much responsibility when there's still so much for me to learn about working in film. One can really mess up a film in this position because they're like the funnel everything must go through. Also, after nearly a decade as a project manager, I'd prefer something slightly more relaxed for a bit.
I know some are drawn to jobs because of the pay scale. I'm not. I don't need a lot of money to be happy. If my expenses are paid, I can afford some martial arts seminars, and go on the odd vacation, I'm happy. It turns out that I don't need a lot of money for that. I've also learned that it's the people I care about and the memories we make together that matter most to me. Money enables us to do more together, but so many fun things are free or almost free. Last year, some of my most enjoyable times involved Pokémon Go and seeing a little boy get super excited about each catch.
This week's theme is Jung. There are quite a few things Carl Jung said about success. One I particularly like is:
"Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes." -- Carl Jung
Like the video above says, figure out who you are and who you want to be, then you'll have a clue of what the next steps are for you. And it's not a race. Some people arrive sooner and others later, neither determines who will be more successful. Success is what you decide it is. You'll make mistakes along the way. Everyone does.
What's next for me?
- Working a flexible part-time transcription gig. It's low paying, but better than nothing.
- Meeting with someone who may give me a job.
- Editing my urban fantasy romance, The Page & The Magician.
- Entering my registered screenplay in contests.
- Sending my screenplay's one-pager to a contact we made in Toronto.
- Feedback on my screenplay by a friend who loves the genre, so I can improve it.
- Extending my 10-minute play to a one-act length.
- Playing video games. Oh, how I've missed these.
- Painting my condo.
- Applying to more jobs.
- Dating.
- Learning to skateboard.
- Starting another screenplay.
- Reactivating my EI.
There is a lot of work ahead for me and I'm excited about it. I'm so excited that I had to sit down and tell myself to relax. I'm eager to get all these projects out into the world and it was stressing me out because there is so much to do.
I took a little breather after the hectic pace of the last couple of months and organized my thoughts. I realized I shouldn't rush anything and just calmly work through the list.
R~