Thought For Day - Luck

"I've found that luck is quite predictable. If you want more luck,
take more chances. Be more active. Show up more often."

— Brian Tracy:

Sunday's Eclectic Music Videos # 2 - House of the Rising Sun

Sunday's Eclectic Music Videos # 1 - Nina Simone

Saturday's Motivational Video - Tony Robbins in Rome

Thought For Day - Success

Success

To laugh often and much;
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a
redeemed social condition;
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded.

Often attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson, it is an adaptation of a poem published in 1905 by Bessie Stanley. No version of it has been found in Emerson's writings.

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day comes, by statute, once a year; to the honest man it comes as frequently as the heart of gratitude will allow. ~Edward Sandford Martin

Thanks Michael Lloyd

I'm spending Thanksgiving with my Cousin Pat Gavin's family. He passed away in October and is very deeply missed. I'm thankful for reconnecting with him a year ago after 40 years apart and thankful for the time we spent together and now to be part of his family. I am thankful for all my family and friends this Thanksgiving and all the blessings in my life.
So I say Thank You, Thank You , Thank You this Thanksgiving..........

Thought For Day - Move the Mountain

"The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones."

William Faulkner

Thanks Robert Allen

Thought For Day - Only the Miserable Can Create Misery

"The reason some people are hurtful is they are hurt-FULL. Only the miserable can create misery, have mercy for them. "

Sean Stephenson

Great insight and so true.

Thought For Day - The Turtle Effect

"The Turtle Effect was taught to me by my mother when I was a young girl. She told me that I could achieve anything I wanted to as long as I remembered to have a soft inside, a hard shell, and be sure to stick my neck out."

Nikki Stone Olympic Gold Winner - Motivational Speaker

http://olympianstone.wordpress.com/2009/11/04/under-pressure-–-not-just-another-day-at-the-office/

Thanksgiving Week - Make a Contribution

This Thanksgiving as you spend time with family and friends take the time to remember the true spirit of Thanksgiving. Take the time to be grateful for all you have and make some time to give to others and to yourself by giving the gift of self.

Here are four ways you can contribute this week / holiday season or create your own act of contribution.




"Everyone has the need to contribute. It is one of the six human needs. If you give from your heart,
it will come back to you tenfold." -- Anthony Robbins

The International Basket Brigade is built on a simple notion: one small act of generosity on the part of one caring person can transform the lives of hundreds. It takes only one light to dispel the darkness, and even just one basket or a few, to bring hope! A Basket Brigade takes place when one individual prepares one basket to personally deliver to a needy family or individual.

What began more than 30 years ago as Tony's individual effort to feed families in need, has now grown into the Anthony Robbins Foundation's International Basket Brigade, providing baskets of food and household items for an estimated 2 million people annually in countries all over the world. Throughout the year International Basket Brigade volunteers deliver food, clothing, and hope to those who need it most. The Foundation would be honored to have you become a part of this truly wonderful event.

http://www.anthonyrobbinsfoundation.org/arf/inter_bb.php

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http://www.opgratitude.com/

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http://www.feedthechildren.org/site/PageServer?pagename=dotorg_homepage


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Touch the Life of a Teen. Give them the Gift of Success.

http://www.successfoundation.org/

Sunday's Eclectic Music Videos # 2 -Sacrifice

Sunday's Eclectic Music Videos # 1 - It's Not Easy

Saturday's Motivational Video - John Wooden

Thought For Day - Fess Up

"More people would learn from their mistakes if they weren't so busy denying them."

Harold J. Smith

Thought For Day - Re-examine

Re-examine all you have been told... Dismiss what insults your Soul."

Walt Whitman

Thought For Day - Real Leaders

"Real leaders are not people who can point out what's wrong. Anyone can do that. Real leaders are people who can make things better."

Goldsmith

Thought For Day - The Main Thing

"The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing."

— Stephen Covey

Thought For Day - Character

"Character is not made in a crisis, it is only exhibited."

--Robert Freeman

Personal Ramblings - Filmmaking

I'm reposting a great article from Suzanne Lyons Newsletter. Check out her websites and newsletter.

http://www.suzannelyons.net/

http://www.snowfallfilms.com/







TEN STEPS TO SUCCESS IN HOLLYWOOD
(Or any Business)


1. SET A GOAL - Do a one year goal. For example, "By December 1st, 2010 I will _________________________ _________________________________________. Then break it down into monthly milestones: January 1st, February 1st, March 1st, etc.

2. DESIGN YOUR PITCH - Do a FANTASTIC logline for your project or yourself depending on whether or not you are selling your script or yourself. Then prepare a two minute pitch to expand on the logline. If you are pitching yourself be sure to design your pitch drawing from highlights from your career and your personal life. I usually make a list of 5 to 10 highlights from my career and personal life and then I choose the ones I want to use in my pitch. As producers you should always have a great pitch ready that is about you because you will constantly be enrolling people in YOU, whether they be financiers, agents, directors, etc.

3. CREATE A DISPLAY OF WHO YOU KNOW (MAP OF RELATIONSHIPS) - Categorize the names of everyone you know in the industry, ie. producers, writers, casting directors, directors, entertainment attorneys, etc. Call everyone on your Map and tell them what you're up to.

4. NETWORK - Continue to expand your Map. Network, Network, Network. Get out there and meet people. Sometimes to push myself a little I will set a goal like "I will meet 10 new people this month". See my October Newsletter for some great tips on Networking and creating Relationships.

5. MAKE REQUESTS AND OFFERS - Make requests (not favors) of people on your Map. For example, "I'm really committed to meeting 3 new directors for my film project. Do you know any directors you could introduce or refer me to." Also, end every call and conversation with "Is there anything I can do for you". We all to often forget to do this and it means a lot to the person on the other end of the phone.

6. CREATE A HITLIST - Target who you need to talk to or meet with. RESEARCH. Read the trades. Make a list of 10 to 20 names and start calling. This could be one of the requests that you make to people on your Map. For example, "I am looking to set up a meeting with John Doe, Casting Director. He is on my Hitlist as someone I really want to meet. I know you have worked with him before and was wondering if I could use you name when I called him."

7. BRAINSTORMING - Get ideas outside of what you alone can come up with. So often we try to do it alone and it's crazy. In the Flash Forward workshops over the years we had a built in one-hour exercise called "Brainstorming" where we divided into teams of six or eight people and then divide up the time equally. Then one person would state what they needed and then they would be quiet and just listen and take notes as everyone threw ideas at them. They were not allowed to comment on the ideas at all. They just wrote everything down and then took from the ideas what they wanted. It was extremely successful.

8. KEEP STATS - I know this doesn't sound like fun and we all get a bit squeamish when we think about statistics. However, it is such a great wake up call to what actions you are really taking as opposed to what you are just talking about. Make a list of 3 to 5 categories you want to track and then add up the actions you have taken on a weekly basic. In the workshops I have led I always include this as part of the program. People are always shocked at how few calls they have made compared to what they thought they had. Categories could include: Number of production companies contacted about my project; number of meetings set; number of auditions; number of scripts sent out; number of new relationship made, etc.

9. GET A MENTOR - No matter what level you are at. Make it easy for them. Request only a little of their time over a very specific period of time. For example, three ten-minute conversations over the next four weeks, or a half-hour coffee meeting, or a lunch together. Also, please be prepared with your questions ready and it is important that you generate the conversation. It is not your mentor's job to generate it. Remember it is a business relationship so always acknowledge them for their time.

10. CREATE A SUPPORT STRUCTURE FOR YOURSELF - It is extremely important to be held accountable for your promises! We're only human after all and sometimes when the going gets tough the tough get going. Don't let that happen. Be held accountable for your word and your actions. Every Tuesday morning a group of 6 of us get together to talk about our goals and what actions we are going to take that week. On Friday we email in what we have done so far, and what is still left to do before we meet the next Tuesday. It really helps keep us focused and on target, and the coaching and brainstorming we do with each other is priceless.

A BONUS TIP: HAVE FUN AND ACKNOWLEDGE YOURSELF DAILY! We are here to have fun (no matter what business you're in) so keep that in mind at all times. The more you take on having every action, every milestone and every goal as FUN, the more people will want to play with you and the more you will attract into your life everything you want. Also, don't wait for others to acknowledge you. Acknowledge yourself. In the Launching the Future workshop I lead I include a page where people list what they want to be acknowledged for, just to get them in the habit of acknowledgment.

Sunday's Eclectic Music Videos # 1 - Happy Birthday