Kevin Smith's Unconventional Path in 30 Minutes | How He Made His Movies Without Money

You're putting yourself in front of so many people just by going like, I'll give it a shot. And yeah, it might not work. And yeah, and when it doesn't work, some people might be like, fuck you, you tried. But fuck them, try again. Some people get blocked. Everyone gets like a really good idea of like, I want to do something. Sometimes you sit around, watch a movie, listen to podcasts, like, I want to do that. Then they stop because like, I don't know how, I don't have the money. Money is a hurdle that's kind of easy to get over. To just hear how simple it is, sometimes you just need somebody to be like, it's this simple, dude, and give you 3 steps, and suddenly you're like, that's it? I can take it the rest of the way. Getting started is always hardest part. If you're here listening to me talk about this stuff, you are not a film fan, you're a filmmaker. You just haven't made a film yet. Go out and make your film.

He's an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, and podcaster. He rose to prominence for his low-budget comedy film Clerks, in which he acted, directed, and co-produced it. He's also known for his long, humorous Q&A sessions, which are often filmed and distributed for DVD release. He's Kevin Smith, and here's my take on his top 10 rules for success. Rule number 1 is my personal favorite, and make sure to stick around all the way to the end for some special bonus clips. Also, as Kevin is talking, if he says something that really resonates with you, please leave it in the comments below and put quotes around it so other people can be inspired as well. Enjoy!

You can do what's expected, absolutely. And sometimes you'll have the expected or hoped-for result. But there's so many doors into this thing. And I'm not just talking about film, I'm talking about everything that you're interested in life. There are so many fucking doors, and we all look right at the front door and go, how do we get through? There's a massive line. Go in the back door, go to the side window, and dynamite a hole in the wall. You belong in the room too. You don't have to wait to be invited into something. You know, I'm here to tell I'll tell you, nobody will ever invite you into something amazing because they're like, fuck you, it's ours. So if you want to be involved in something and you want to see something that doesn't exist, all you have to do is try. You're putting yourself in front of so many people just by going like, I'll give it a shot. And yeah, it might not work. And yeah, and when it doesn't work, some people might be like, fuck you, you tried. But fuck them. Try again. That's it, man. That's all we're here to do is fuckin' try. Because at the end of this, there's no winner. We all fuckin' lose. Die. So just try, try, try every day before they stick you in the grave. And I'm not talking about moving mountains, I'm talking about all that you sit there and go like, I'm gonna do that one day. Do it tomorrow, do it right now, just give it a shot. Because maybe it takes a day, maybe it takes a week, maybe it takes 5 years, but you don't get there without just giving it that first step. And I get it, the first step's fucking hard. They say, you know, the journey of a million miles begins with a single step. What they don't say is a single step is harder than every other every mile that comes after that. All those miles are easy once you take that first one. But I understand how difficult it is to take the first step. Look at me, I'm a fat man, and I read every day, stop being fat, you're gonna die. And I'm like, I will one day. And I never take that first step, man. And so I continue to be fat. So, but in everything else in life, I can take that first step. So I know what I'm talking about, kids. Like, try, just give it a shot, man. Don't worry what they're saying. I'll clear the mystery for you. Will say everything, dude. You can build a, uh, cathedral and your steeple will break the clouds and someone will down below be yelling, you're doing it wrong. You're like, don't listen to those people. Life moves forward, man. And people that want to tell you you suck are usually behind you. Just keep moving forward and try, try every day. The first piece of advice: don't ask anybody for money, man. I'm looking at the wrong place. They're never going to give me the job if I look at the monitor. But I was playing to her. I was trying to make a connection. HuffPost Live is what it's called.

All right, see, you've done it. Camera 1, go for it.

Don't go to people for money, man. You don't need that much money unless you're making some kind of underwater epic. You don't need to go to somebody else. There are no more gatekeepers. I mean, there are if you want their money, by all means, but then you got to take their notes and stuff. But you don't have to wait for somebody to tell you, "Yes, you may proceed." You don't have to go out there with your hand held out and whatnot. Of course, there's, like, Indiegogo, Kickstarter. You can raise a budget that way. And you're essentially not begging for money. You're preselling all your DVDs and whatnot in advance to help you finance your dream. But don't get that thinking, kind of incorrect thinking out of your head, man. You don't have to wait or ask somebody or approach a financier. You know, I did it on credit cards, a bunch of credit cards that I'd kind of put together. I always feel like— Suze Orman is dying somewhere. Right? She's sitting there going, "I said I was starting my first film." But it's weird. She goes, "I'm starting my first film, but I need money." I'm like, "Well, then you're not starting your first film." Or you can start your first film without needing that money at all. People get blocked. Everyone gets like a really good idea of like, I wanna do something. Sometimes you sit around, watch a movie, listen to podcasts, you're like, I wanna do that. Then they stop 'cause they're like, I don't know how, I don't have the money. Money is a hurdle that's kind of easy to get over, particularly in the age of technology where this magical box right here, or the ones we have in our pockets, will shoot a movie, you can edit a movie, you can upload it to YouTube, all from the same device, all within like an hour or something like that. So when that technology's at your hand, sometimes people are a little afraid about like, well, I don't know how to use it, or, They say that making movies takes money, and of course it does, it takes a little bit of lucre, but not as much as like that should stop somebody from going out to finance their own dream or go out looking for finance. But that's the thing I try to curb, like, don't ask people for money. If you do that, then you just give yourself an excuse to never really take the next step. You're like, "Well, I couldn't find the budget." Like, a lot of people ask me, like, "I was where you were once, can't you help me?" And I was like, "Well, the difference was when I was where you were, I never asked anybody for help. I just did it myself. So it's always better if you can do it yourself. You feel better at the end of the day. And then you're not bugging anybody with your hand out. You don't owe anybody. Nobody's got anything over you. And they're also not telling you like, hey, you know that vision that you've been carrying around your whole life? Change it because there's something about it that bugs me. And since I'm shelling out the dough, you gotta do that sort of thing. First time out especially, don't be, God, my hair looks terrible. First time out especially, don't go looking for money from somebody else, man. Especially that first film of yours because you're trying to get you out there. The most you, you'll ever have a chance to do is when you're making your first flick, man. If you've got a movie fan, you've got a movie maker. Like, there's— I've never met a filmmaker that wasn't a movie buff first. I don't care who it is, whether it's like me or great directors like Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino. They're hardcore movie fans who still imbibe. So I don't think it's possible to be a filmmaker unless you're a film fan. So I always encourage everyone in those Q&As where I'm like, if you're here listening to me talk about this stuff, you are not a film fan, you're a filmmaker. You just haven't made a film yet. Go out and make your film because who knows better how to do this stuff than the people that consume it on a regular basis? And you know, it's fine, like the internet is a distraction that allows people to express themselves about movies, you know, and you can be funny and crappy about like crap on movies and stuff. But it pulls you away from like— there was no internet when I started, so I made a movie. If the internet existed, I probably would have commented on other people's movies. But because it didn't exist, I was like, well, let me try to make one of these movies myself. And now I live in a world where people comment on it. And these— some largely I get very wonderful things said, and then I get a bunch of people saying crappy things as well. But none of that exists without me doing something first, without me making something. So I always like to tell that audience, like, we're not different. I was I sat there watching other people's stuff and I just got to a place where I was like, why them? Why not me? Like, if this counts as a movie, why can't I make a movie and stuff? Which is funny because that's what my movies make people do now. They're like, if Yoko Osiris counts, I'm making a movie. And that's, that's a good call to arms. I'm not even insulted by that. I'm like, good, whatever makes you step forward and try your self-expression. Because the only reason anyone knows my name or my work— and I've been doing this for 22 years, I haven't had to get a real job— is because it started with the first step of going like, why can't I do that? You know, like I see people do it and that's interesting and I like their stories, but I never saw my world represented up on the screen. And that's where I looked for myself. I never found myself in a classroom, never found myself in a church, man. Closest moments I've ever had to finding out who I am have been in art, sitting in a movie theater watching a movie, man. It's the dark mirror. You see yourself reflected in a weird way. In reading and listening to music, watching TV. These were the closest moments where I was like, oh, I think this is who I am and stuff like that. So that's, that's within everybody. I've spent 21 years of my career chasing a better career, chasing somebody else's career, because that's all you have to go by, right? You look at those who have gone before you. So my whole career, I've always aimed for a mark and constantly missed it, like never hit it. So by my own standards, very unsuccessful. But in the process of doing that for 21 years, which I believe is 3 score, 4 more, you know, 1 more score and I'm Gettysburg. If I believe the idea is over that time I established what it is that I do. In my quest to be somebody else like John Hughes, to have the career of a John Hughes, I wound up having the career of a Kevin Smith. "Which to me is like, eh, whatever." But oddly enough, there are a bunch of people that are like, "I'll kill to have your career." And that's really weird and wonderful. So anytime you get a chance to sit down and talk to those cats, you just wanna remind 'em, "Hey, you can have this career, man." Like, I backed into it and lucked into it in a lot of places, but most of it is just persistence and willingness to try stupid shit. A lot of people don't wanna try things that might not work, you know what I'm saying? Everyone wants to try the sure thing. And there is no such thing as the sure thing. And if you're looking at somebody else's work to try to gauge your own, as I have for years, you will constantly feel like a failure. Instead, concentrate on telling your story. Like, this is the thing I'm real big on: your voice is your only currency in this life. That's all you got. The things you see and perceive, the prism through which you process all the information that you take in— that's it. You're the most unique supercomputer on the planet, unique from everybody else. That perspective is valuable, insanely valuable, because nobody else can give it but you. And that's why it's always better to shoot weird or shoot different or shoot original as opposed to shoot what works, like, or go for a successful model, or as I've tried to do, try to be John Hughes or something like that. You'll never succeed that way. If you try using your own voice, you try expressing your own thoughts that nobody else can do, that's your best shot at success. At success, because that's the thing that you bring to the table that nobody else can bring. And if your timing is fantastic, you say the right thing at the right time, you could have a career. So when you get into this business, they tend to like tell you to sheep it up and like take off the edges and make it look like this. Hey, that worked, do that. But always shoot for that thing that you want to do. I remember all the bad and I remember all the good though. That's the important thing. You can't shake the bad. It's like You talk to a hockey player, man, they'll tell you every fucking goal they missed, but they can't remember the ones that they hit. But you remember the shit that you miss on. And you know, it's the negative sticks with us. Negative floats right to the surface because it kind of allows us to open a dialogue with ourselves about incredulity or maybe I'm not good enough. It allows you to kind of like wallow in self-esteem issues and whatnot. We rarely hear the good. We can't hear the good. We're not programmed for it. I can't tell you how many times people have said wonderful things to me in print, in real life, and I couldn't hear it because I'm just listening to this asshole over here tell me how terrible I am at my job. And so, you know, it sticks with you and you have to train yourself. And maybe if you're smart from the jump, you realize before you even start down the path that it doesn't matter what anybody says. The game is always on your stick. I'm sorry I use very trite and tired hockey metaphors. That's where I am in my life. The game is always on your stick and nobody can fucking take it off and tell you differently. There's a dude in the stands who'll tell you you're doing it wrong. They will always tell you that because critics are people that know where they're going, they just don't know how to drive a fucking car. And so of course they'll tell you how to drive the car and you step it away. But don't listen to that. I'm not saying don't listen to critics, critics will fucking kill you. I'm just saying don't listen to anybody that says don't or anybody that's like The negative shit's gonna be there. Try to lend an ear to the positive shit. And that's something I've really had to train and try to do over my lifetime. I don't know why, I'm just predisposed to hear and believe negative. And it's a nice thing when motherfuckers will step up and say beautiful things about the work you do. And that's what you gotta remember. You know, it's like being in a room with this many people who like sit there and group on it and kind of, they want to be there. You know, like we showed this movie in Sundance first time and it was nice but it wasn't like this because at Sundance you got a lot of industry sitting there like this. You can't break through. Amuse me. Exactly. Folded arms, man. So, you know, there you're going to encounter lots of that and sometimes you see it even in Q&A. It's in the audience. You let your eyes go somewhere place else. Find them, like, because that's who you're playing to, you know. And yeah, don't let the— Tony, I do regret how much time I wasted, especially now that I know I'm finishing. I'm like, I feel like Schindler at the end of Schindler's List. So many lives— like, if I just ignored this and did this instead, concentrated on creating rather than whining or bitching or something like that, I had so much more to show from my career. But don't let that trap you, man. Don't let saying shit throw you off your game. They're gonna say shit. And you know what? They're right. They're absolutely right. Everything they say, every horrible thing they say about your work, they're absolutely right. They're not lying. That's how they feel. But make sure you listen to the other people who say all the good shit, who say exactly what you want to know, who say exactly what you're begging to hear, what you dreamed about hearing when you wrote that fucking one line years prior and shit. Don't forget to give them the time of day too. We spend so much time focusing on the bitchers and negative people. Give a lot of attention to the people people that like it, because that's why you're doing it, that's why you're there. I'm not going to do what everybody else does. I'm just going to do what I want to do, because life's too short and I can't live up to other people's expectations. I can only do what I can deliver in this life. So I put that on my wrist to remind me all times that, like, trust in self. Um, you know, I will fuck up. Doesn't mean I'm flawless. I made Cop Out and Jersey Girl. So, you know, you can fuck things up, but you can learn from that. You know, there's no such thing as absolute failure except sitting there and not trying. You know, it's like that's absolute failure. But even if you fail at something, failure is kind of success training because you learn how to do it better the next time. As long as you try again, you're smarter than the average bear. Some people kind of try something, it falls apart, and they walk away. There's a bunch of cats who— like, I get it, they look at it like, this is stupid, why would you waste your opportunities or something. They don't— they seem to think that this is something given by others. Like, they still see it as like you've been given an opportunity. No, nobody gave me jack. I went and created opportunity for myself. Nobody ever shows up at your door, knocks, and says, hey man, you want to tell stories? Here's a bunch of money, go make pretend. I'd never do that. That doesn't happen. You got to make steps toward that thing in the first place. So I spent a lot of time trying to explain to people the difference between like, you know, given an opportunity and creating your world, creating your own opportunity. Because if you create your own opportunities, you're beholden to nobody. Then people can't say things like, you shouldn't do this. I'm like, why? As long as I keep my budgets low, make sure everyone gets their money back and stuff, I can do whatever goofy thing I want. Because I'll tell you right now, I don't want to go to my grave one day being like, I should have made the Walrus movie, and then drop dead. I want to be the guy that's like, can't believe we made that Walrus movie, and then drop dead, you know, a little bit satisfied. Because we're not talking about reshaping the world or big important issues, man. This is all micro, not macro. And stuff, it all begins kind of with you. So, you know, that's about belief. You can't expect a bunch of people out there to believe you are this thing unless you be this thing yourself. We shot this flick, it's called Tusk. It stars this guy Michael Parks who was in this movie Red State I did 3 years ago. Justin Long is the guy he turns into a walrus. And I swear to you, now this all came from a dopey podcast of us going, "Wouldn't it be funny if?" It's hands down the best thing I've ever done. Seriously? And the whole re— I'm not lying, dude. And I know I usually say that on every movie that I've made, but I mean it. The movie looks beautiful. This is the movie that the guy who made Clerks dreamed about making. 'Cause I didn't want to make Clerks. Like, I eventually made Clerks, but what I wanted to make was David Lynch movies. Like, I loved how weird and wonderful David Lynch was, but I didn't have enough talent to do that. I had enough talent to make Clerks. 20 years later, I have enough talent to go for the things that I dreamed about when I was a nascent beginner and stuff. And part of the reason is like, all right, up your game, you know, see how far you can push it. But the other reason is, I got a lot of people who listen to me and watch me and pay attention to the stuff I do. You got a captive audience, man. And what if you want art in your life? You want more people to experience what you've had. And all I did was try. Like, I had this idea about making a movie set in a convenience store, and I tried it and it worked. And life's been like blowjobs and donuts ever since, right? So you want to encourage people to do that. From one woman, by the way. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Not, not that Christian girlfriend. And, um, so you want to encourage others to do that. You want others to to kind of feel that. I'm not saying everyone's gotta be a filmmaker, everyone's gotta make TV, everyone's gotta write books, but why not do a little? Like, you know, people get in this mindset of like, we're the audience, they're the filmmakers, and we'll watch and they'll make. Anybody can do this crap. I've spent 20 years trying to tell people like, pick up a camera, it doesn't take much. Podcast makes it even more of a great equalizer 'cause that requires a cell phone, a laptop. You sit down with your friends, your girlfriend, your boyfriend, your mother. I've sat down with my mother in podcasts. And you just talk. Anybody could do that. That doesn't take talent. But on that podcast, like, there were so many people on Twitter from that episode talking about, it was really interesting to hear you guys building the idea. Like, I didn't know that's how it worked. And that grabbed me because that was me 20 years ago going, how, how do I get from here to there? And here it was, we laid them out a little bit on a blueprint on the podcast. You heard us creating a story. You heard me going like, yeah, you could do this. How simple it was. It was just demystifying the process a little bit. And you do that as kind of like a clarion call to those out there going, look, hear how simple it is now. Like, we showed you how simple it was once to make like Clerks, little black and white movie, pick up a camera, anybody can do this. Now with like this episode of this podcast that turned into this movie Tusk, it's this blueprint for anybody, for the kid, for, for the 13-year-old, for the 45-year-old, for the 60-year-old mother who's like, I always wanted to make a I'm making a movie. To just hear how simple it is. Sometimes you just need somebody to be like, it's this simple, dude, and give you 3 steps and suddenly you're like, that's it? I can take it the rest of the way. Getting started is always the hardest part. And you got a bunch of people listening to you and it's nice that they're the audience and I'm glad they're there to support me, but I wanna give it back. You wanna support them. You wanna be like, as happy as I am, you can do this too. As much as you like watching this shit, making it's even better. Like, go do it. So this Tusk thing has been more about the audience and oddly enough, and not thinking about my career, my standing, where I stand in the film community, whether I've grown as an artist. I let go all that stuff, and all I thought about was like, I just want to inspire one kid to pick up a camera and be like, if that's how you make a movie, I want to do it too. I'm just trying to like secure my future and watch good movies. And the way to do that is to show a bunch of people whose voices are different than anything you've ever heard before, not the same thing you see on TV or movies, to show them how simple it is, to show them that their voice is their currency. The thing that you have to say, that special thing, that story you have to tell nobody else can tell. And you want to encourage people to do that because that's all I did. People go, oh, you've been very fortunate and what a great career you've had. The only thing is I one day sat there, watched enough movies and TV to be like, why not me? Like, they're doing it. Like, what's the difference? And it just took a little bit of like Slacker, Richard Linklater's film Slacker, demystified the process. So for me, with Tusk and this podcast, with this Modcast, the episode that birthed the movie and the whole process of the movie is just a long way of saying, here are your blueprints, go do what I did because it rocks. How does one spin so many plates at once? Well, there's no formula, and to be honest with you, it's a very dangerous pastime. Not as dangerous as, say, juggling chainsaws, but you, uh, can tend to get swamped by your own amount of projects that you float. The amount of boats that you float, man, could come back, turn around like a Royal Navy and sink your fat ass. So basically, you gotta feel what's right for you, man. It helps to have a wonderful a support team around you. I have fantastic people in my life, not the least of which is that dog Shaggy, who make everything I do a lot easier and stuff. I come up with ideas, I want to do this, and other people actually make it happen, implement it. So that helps to have a team. If you don't have a team, you got to figure out what that balance is for yourself. You can't take on too much, but at the same time, you don't want to just do one thing. I like to spin a lot of plates because you put all your eggs in one basket, don't work out. Bored. You've wasted all that time. But the fact of the matter is, back in the day, we used to make a movie and then work on just the movie and wait till the movie was out and then figure out what to do next. And now, you know, it would lead sometimes to like, let's say you made Jersey Girl, you make the movie over the course of a while, it comes out, and then boom, that's it, it's over like in a week or two weeks. So I like to spin as many plates as possible that way. Like, this thing in panning out, or this thing is too, uh, far off in the distance, or This ain't gonna happen the way I want it. Boom, we could shift over to something else. So that's why I do it. But when you do it, be careful. You gotta find the right balance. I wish there was a formula to give you. There's not. It's all up to you. It's inside of you. Just do as much as you can before you get to the point where you're like, I can't take anymore. Don't kill yourself for art. Although if you're gonna kill yourself for anything, art would be the best reason. But never kill yourself in this life. If you're ever gonna kill yourself, try being Batman first. And I go into the emergency room and I was like, Donald Smith. And they're like, I'm sorry, he passed. And they took me into the room. There's my father laying on a gurney, just dead. He still has a tube sticking out of him. They're trying to intubate him or something like that, but just motionless, quiet, no breathing whatsoever. And it was weird. It was, I mean, to say the least, you always know eventually your parents are going to go, but I wasn't ready. I wasn't ready for that moment. And then I walked out and I went outside and had a cigarette. I was still a cigarette smoker in those days, and I was just thinking about being half an orphan or halfway to being an orphan or something like that. My brother comes out and I was like, oh, I can't believe it, right? He goes, yeah, it's pretty tough. And I said, how was it? Because my brother was there. He was staying with my parents. And Donald, without missing a beat, my brother goes, dad died screaming. And I was like, what? And he goes, dad died screaming. I said, what do you mean? It's like, well, he woke up and he was kicking the shit off and screaming about being on fire. And he was so hot and so hot and get him water and screaming. The screaming got louder and louder and it reached a fever pitch and he died. And I don't know how else to say it, but Dad died screaming. And that hit me like a Mack truck. And I remember thinking, oh my God, in this world where even a good man like my old man is going to die screaming, there's no point in not trying to achieve every dream that I have. This is my eventual end. One day, that's it. And, and I really felt like, man, that's like this. I can't— this is my future. We're all probably going to go out screaming. So the best thing to do prior to that is to try to pack that life with as much wonderfulness, fun, productivity. Surround yourself with people that are going to and help you do that. You know, because in this world there's not a lot of support. A lot of negativity, there's a lot of fucking cynicism. Even as I sit here and tell that story about my fucking father dying, I guarantee there's a cynical head in this house, maybe more, sitting there going, who cares, move on, tell a dick joke. The world is full of fucking why, man. You tell people something, they'll tell you why. Throw a rock and you'll hit somebody with why. Like, hey man, I want to make a movie. Why? Why do you think you could do that? Why? Why? Nobody else is doing it. Why are you doing it? There's so much why. You go out and you find why not. You surround yourself with why not. People are just like, why not? Where you're like, hey man, I'm going to try something. Like, all right, why not? Let's give it a shot. People who try to help you do your dreams, make your dreams come true, and you do the same for them. We're all in this together, and it costs nothing to encourage an artist. That's why I get up here for almost 20 years now after the movie, man. Ain't a lot of filmmakers get up after the movie and spend more time than the movie itself talking. But I've been trying to impart one simple lesson for nearly 20 years. Anybody can do this. You know what I'm saying? Like, I wasn't born into a business or the film business or born with a mic in my hands. I have no discernible talent whatsoever, man. I have no connections to the business. We're from New Jersey and stuff. I got lucky. Somebody picked up the movie and boom, I was off and running. And part of that manifests when you're brought into the indie film community. Part of your your job, part of your honor, part of your privilege is to make sure that keeps going, to encourage other people, you know, to tell people it's worth the shot. Just like Wayne Gretzky said, like, you miss 100% of the shots you never take. It's always worth the fucking shot. Now, if you're talking about like, if what your shot is, is you're like, I've always wanted to kill 12 children, Kevin, don't take that shot at all. I'm not talking about that. You know, I'm talking about artsy shit, you know, writing a blog, making some music, making a movie, making a fucking cupcake store, fucking a knitting store, putting together a YouTube clip. Just anything that's just not fucking, oh, we must do this because it's part of my job or this will get money. Some shit you just do just to see if it could be done. Live a why not life, man, because we're all going to die fucking screaming. So make sure when you die screaming, you're totally fulfilled. You're like, I took all the shots, I did it. I went after everything I wanted to. Or at least tried. Take the shot. The shot is always fucking worth taking, whether it's a dopey thing like fucking podcasting or writing a book or fucking writing a blog. Think about the encouragement you get when you encourage an artist. Think about the potential that comes out of it. You tell a dude, "Good job, man." That person maybe one day writes that blog that you meme out to the entire world because it says exactly what you always wanted to say but couldn't yourself. Or they write that fucking song that you play over and over after a loved one fucking dies because it means the world to you. They make that fucking movie that is the one you cling to when everything is going wrong in life. Oh, you pop that in and things aren't bad for 2 hours. All that comes from encouraging an artist. Nothing good comes from discouraging an artist. So for 20 years, I keep coming up here and going, go out and do it. Why the fuck aren't you doing this? It's so fun. You should do it. Take your fucking shot. I took my shot and it's nothing but pussy and donuts, you know? Just so I'm here to tell you, man, give it a shot. Go out and try.

Thank you guys so much for watching. I made this video because The Next Shot asked me to. So if there's a famous entrepreneur that you want me to profile next, leave it down in the comments below and I'll see what I can do. I'd also love to know what did you learn today from Kevin? What is the lesson that is most immediately applicable to your life or to your business? Leave it down in the comments below and I'm gonna join in the discussion. Finally, I want to give a quick shout out to Gaurav Junior. Thank you so much for picking up a copy of my book, Your One Word, and making that funny cartoon to go alongside it. I really appreciate it. So thank you guys again for watching. I believe in you. I hope you continue to believe in yourself and whatever your one word is. Much love. I'll see you soon.

We weren't encouraged to dream. So like now I'm a standing testimony to the possibility of normalcy, having everything they want by simply heading toward it. Like, I have no talent, no discernible talent, no abilities and stuff like that, but I've got will, you know. I don't have skill. I've been told that a zillion times by the critics over and over. I know that I don't have skill, but I have will, and will will take you a lot farther, man. Everyone in this room is a unique, powerful content generator. You all have a million fucking stories to tell that have not been told, and they're different than mine and hers and his and his. Everybody can do this. Like, I'm an absolute chimp. But I've done it for 22 years, man. Anybody can do this. I'm not just saying, like, be a filmmaker. Just self-express. Let them know you were here. Tell them what's here and here. We're all on this together, and we all have the answers to each other's questions and problems. We just have to relate to one another. And the easiest way to do that, man, is to just self-express, whether it's in social media or something like that, which is better for more than just saying, like, well, this movie sucks. Tell people some shit that happened to you, man. Share your story. I always advocate podcasting. Podcasting is responsible for the last 2 movies I made. That might scare you away. Don't let it scare you. Podcasting is for anybody. You sit down, you have the equipment, it's on your phone. You sit down and talk to a friend, talk to a loved one, talk to your fucking self sometimes. You send it to iTunes and boom, you're a broadcaster. No shit. Sit down and record with people that you love. We have this weird world where we know what everybody looks like because we shove cameras in each other's faces and we'll never forget what anybody looks like when they fucking die. But when people die, the first thing you lose is the sound of their voice, man. And we don't run around with tape recorders recording everybody. Voices and stuff. So use that, the decision to self-express, as a reason to sit down and record with people who you love, people who, like, you know, may not be here much longer and stuff. But most importantly, do it to kind of put yourself out there. Let everybody know who you are, man, and share. Like, I'll get something out of it. For years, I've loved this. I promise you, if you self-express in any way, shape, or form, and I'm not saying by best guess, a movie, but those are definitely two options. If you get out there and share who you are with people, this will happen somewhere over the course of your life. This has happened to me multiple times, and it's fucking profoundly moving every time it does. Go out and talk, and just talk. Just share. Talk about your life and stuff. One day, somebody will come up to you and say, "Something you said saved my fucking life," and they will tell you a long anecdote about how some throwaway comment you made made all the difference. Everyone in this room can make all the difference for somebody else. Man, get out there and fucking tell them some shit. And yeah, social media is fun for bagging on things and being like, "Oh, it's a Kardashian." But it's also good for a lot more than that, man. Like, it's fun to come watch stuff. It's way more fun to make it. I implore you all, go out, be the content generators you are, and tell some stories. Thanks for being here, ladies and gentlemen.