25. How to Keep Pushing When You're Broke, Tired, and Talented as Hell

You're doing yourself no justice and you will just be spinning in circles. I've done it too many times. And guess what? You get dizzy, you don't feel good, you want to throw up. The pit in your stomach is deep. And I don't want that for you. I don't want that for me. This is it. This is the raw truth if you want to thrive and earn an income as a creative. My wife says this intro sounds like a conspiracy mystery. So I'll stop that voice and tell you, this show is for you to get you on the track you want for your life. I'm going to share encouraging educational content, hopefully entertaining, that will help you direct your life.

Welcome to another episode of Direct Your Life. My name is Tony Suriano.

You are a creative, first off, but there's a difference between creatives and creatives that are striving to make a living an income for this life through their creativity. Welcome in, I'm Tony Suriano, your creative coach today. And before I even start, I want to share a time, one of many, where I was struggling to make income as a creative, and I felt like I was giving up if I got a side job or a side gig that wasn't really in alignment. Because every creative wants To make a living doing what they love. And when they just don't have that at the moment, you can feel like a failure. You can feel like, why am I even going for this? It's not working out. I've tried so many things. Now I have to get a side job that I don't even like just to, just to get by. That can feel daunting. That can feel deadening inside. But I want to share a few things with you today, some awareness practices that can actually help you when you need to do that instead of break you down when you need to do that. But this reminds me of one of the many struggles I've had over my life as a creative. So let's go back to 2015. I was just getting some film directing jobs Paying my rent for a few years now, or then. And then there was just this point where I had no clients. I didn't know how to go over here and grab clients. I didn't know how to go over here and create new opportunities. By the way, that's still hard and it's still practice and I'm still learning. So what happened was I realized I'm running out of money. What am I gonna do? And I also have a low overhead rent and I still can't make rent. What do I do? So I had to bite my tongue, swallow my pride, and get a job. I didn't want to be indoors. I didn't want to be stuck in some office. So I thought, okay, what option do I have? Valet. Let me be a valet. So I got hired as a valet and I did that for 3 months. I enjoyed it because I had the right mindset of, okay, I'm outside, I'm doing a little jogging to the car, I'm staying in shape, it's in a nice place, you get to drive nice vehicles, meet people in the film industry, in the music industry, and it was fun. But definitely getting into it in the beginning, I did feel a little bit like a failure. Why can't I make a living as a filmmaker, as a creative? Is this what I have to do? How many years am I going to do this? I don't know. But I quickly got out of that mindset, and actually, instead of feeling like a bailout, I started using it as a bridge. And I remember I was writing one of my first features. The first 2 I collaborated with some people, but this 3rd one was all me. And I realized, oh my gosh, I, I'm starting to write Every day I was just writing up until the point I had to leave, and I had this new fuel, and I just kept going through pages and pages, and I felt alive. I felt like there was— oh, this, this deadline. I wasn't just waiting or emailing to get some filmmaking jobs and then, oh, you know what, let me write a little bit. Because I used to feel guilty when I wrote and no income's coming in. I still do. If I'm writing and I don't have the right income then my fuel for creativity is actually low. So by getting that valet job, I just fueled the creativity and I had some security. And I am a person that I'm okay with uncertainty, adventure, see what happens. But also, I'm human, and one of the needs is certainty. And financial security is important because it allows you to fuel the creativity. And in my case, I was able to go and write and feel good and then say, oh, I have my job later, let me go to the job. Started 3 PM, ended at 11 PM, so it worked for my schedule. And it started to be cool, it started to be fun. And guess what? About 2 months in I was approached by someone, and this someone walked up to me and said, "You're not a valet. You're a concierge. Are you interested in going over to that bigger condominium and being one of my concierge? Concierge, however you pronounce it." And I said, "But of course!" And that's how I transitioned from being a valet into a concierge. for another few months, and that helped me because I made more money, the hours were similar, and I was still able to write and do what I needed for my script. So I felt more alive, I was getting momentum. And here's the real key— this is something I love— it's all about momentum over pride. Because if you start letting your ego tap into the pride thing too much, You won't get that side job, and eventually reality is going to bite you in the butt, and then you won't be able to pay rent. You're gonna have to move, go to some smaller place, and it's just a downward, backward thing you got going. So if you can relate to this, then listen up, and I'll repeat that: momentum over pride. Some security Over stress because that fuels creativity. And then the first thing is bridge over bailout. And this valet job and the concierge job was this bridge. And towards the end of that concierge experience, I actually grabbed a pretty decent filmmaking job, and it allowed me to gain more money and part ways with the valet and concierge. And I never went back to being a valet or concierge, and I continued in my filmmaking journey. And sure, there was another time I had to grab a side gig. I don't even remember what it was, but that's what it is in some of those beginning years. You have to go all in in your creative endeavor, but you also have to fuel it. You have to have a bridge, and you have to be open to the new possibilities, the new people you'll meet. And speaking of people, this is important. We need to ask more. Be bold. Ask and ye shall receive. I know that was hard for me in my beginnings, and still sometimes I overthink. Sometimes I don't want to bother people. But guess what? You have value. I have value. And our skills, our value. Our work ethic is something to offer people, so we must ask. We must ask them to shift us, help us, connect us with other people. And this is something I've been working on the most the last several years because, yeah, you want to skill up, you want to be ready to serve that creative task, that creative project. But you could be the best, the best artist in the world, but if you don't have a relationship that connects you to the right person that can help you out so you can serve them, then you're doing yourself no justice and you will just be spinning in circles. I've done it too many times. And guess what? You get dizzy, you don't feel good, you want to throw up. The pit in your stomach is deep. And I don't want that for you. I don't want that for me. This is the day today. If you're experiencing the struggle as an artist, as a creative, you need to ask. You need to send out the email. You also need to get a side job here and there. That's just part of it. It's not a bailout. It's a breakthrough because it tests you to see, are you willing To continue and gather some funds so you can continue what you truly care about, what truly matters to you. This is it. This is the raw truth. If you want to thrive and earn an income as a creative so you can actually take bigger steps and keep going forward instead of stepping back And letting it crumble because of your pride. What is it going to be for you? Are you going to swallow your pride and get that momentum, get a little security, bridge that gap? I don't even want to give you the other option. You know the other option, and you know how you will feel years from now if you go to the other option and just dim your light. So brighten your light. Shine it everywhere. Be bold, be proud, but swallow your pride and enjoy the journey. Take the bridge, get a little security, and stay creative. That's my challenge for you. What could you do this week that can serve you? Whether it's asking someone something bold, whether it's getting a side gig or maybe even a full-time job for 2 months. And then you're out, and then you have a little cushion, and then you can get maybe a 2 to 3 day week job while you're feeding your creative endeavor. That's it. I hope you enjoyed this episode.

It was a short one.

Now get out there and direct your life. That's it for this episode.

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