I knew I could deliver a solid pitch or whip up a decent creative concept in no time at all, with little preparation. So I took on more clients than I should have. When one client dropped me for lack of attention, I networked my way to two new ones. And it wasn’t until a few years in to this turn and burn and churn that I realized this wasn’t a recipe for success.

The old saying goes What would you do if you couldn’t fail? It’s a fine enough question, asking people to dream a little a bigger. Maybe it inspires people to face their fears, or suspend disbelief for long enough to see that something is possible. But I’ll ask you this: What would you do if you couldn’t succeed?

As a producer, you need to be consistently moving tasks and vendors and bookings forward, every chance you have, in order to get the production ready in time. There’s no time to get lost in a doom-scroll session because you didn’t take breaks. 

My favorite place to find locations for videos is through Peerspace. Peerspace is like Airbnb, but for film locations. People can list their homes, studios, bars, offices, or open fields as locations for rent on Peerspace.

I haven’t accomplished as much as my January Self had hoped. There’s a list on the first page of a notebook I keep in my backpack that has a lot of uncrossed-off items.

Lower the barrier to entry. And then remove the ceiling. This is the business model that a video game called Fortnite pioneered, and after a smashing success, countless other games followed. And this is the business model that can help digital creators make more money in the digital age.

I hate voice notes. iMessage has this terrible feature where you can click and hold to send an audio recording. People use it as a way to hide.

I have a friend who is getting into production. He’s gaining the skills to be a good producer. But he hasn’t produced a shoot entirely on his own yet. And therein lies the predicament.

Is it going to work out? Is everything going to be ok? Is this project going to get finished? These are all valid questions, especially when you’re producing a video shoot for the first time. Or the second, third, and even tenth time.

Sending notes to an editor is an integral part of the video-making process, but it’s difficult to convey exactly what’s in your head. Videos are visual, and words only go so far to explain your vision. I’ve found five best practices that help clients get the video they want without exasperating their editors.

One hour, I’m ripping through emails, sending tons of messages, making quick decisions, and pushing the ball over the line. The next hour, I’m moseying through a few things I don’t want to do, checking social media, getting up to eat snacks, and getting distracted by phone calls from friends.

Which came first? The high rate for the quality work?

Confidence is earned, through many dust ups and the dust-offs thereafter.

I realized there’s no such thing as a perfect class. Not every part of every online course will hit home. The important part is to find someone you relate to. Someone who speaks your language.

There was once a man who knew all things. No joke. All things.

Here’s part one of my most expensive freelance mistakes. I made these mistakes so you don’t have to.

I would take a deep breath before freelance meetings and say to myself, just fake it til you make it. If they ask you to do something you don’t know how to do, you can figure it out later. Just tell them you can do it. Don’t lose this client. Don’t screw this up.

If you’re always pushing the envelope, you’re always stressed about whether you can pull it off. You’re never in the moment, because you’ve never done it before.

When we have a problem we look for the right answer. It’s easy to see the world as a binary choice between right and wrong, good and bad, smart and dumb. But anyone who has been faced with a difficult decision knows it’s not that simple.

A mistake many young creators make is announcing “I’m back!” after a period of not posting on social media.