Jordan Cody Brandon, an actor and cinematographer still in school, works on big-budget commercials. He got promoted on a Macy's set by confidently filling vacant roles, and he tells people to "put yourself through shit and sell yourself high." His advice: study successful people, make mistakes, and stay true to yourself.
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Alright everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host Tyler Wagner as always. Today's sponsor is Authors Unite, and if you want to become a successful author, Authors Unite is the place to go. So head on over to authorsunite.com to check out a free case study that will teach you how to do exactly that. And now let's jump into the episode. Alright guys, alright, we got Jordan Cody Brandon with us.
Welcome to the show, brother.
Thank you so much for having me. This is like super cool.
Of course, dude. So as all of you know, I'm the host Tyler Wagner. This is the Business Blast podcast. I'll tell you a little bit about Jordan before we dive right in. Jordan is an actor, director, and cinematographer working on big budget commercial sets. He's still young and he's still studying school. So welcome again to the show, man, and we can dive into the first one. So thank you for the introduction. Yes, of course.
Very nice.
So the first one I got for you is, what is the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message? French.
Okay, so I think as a high school student already I was labeled one of Macy's commercials' best production crew on set, which I take to heart. And I learned how simple it is. It's you just do the right thing and respect people, and you show people they can trust you. You work with confidence and respect. And like, you know, me being on set, I show I'm not gonna be looking at my phone. I'm gonna be on set. And one of the big major things that happened was I was recently on a Macy's commercial set and the second assistant to the camera had to take off and no one was going to fill in that job. And I told everyone on set, I'm doing it. And I looked everyone, the producers, in the eye. I said, I'm doing it. So they moved me up, and then the first assistant also had to step out, and I told everyone, I'm doing it. So in a matter of, you know, one day, I moved up two positions because I showed confidence and people trusted my skill set. So I'd like to leave this answer with one sentence. Life is almost like a video game with harder levels. It's your job to find your strategy.
Yeah, I love that too. That's sick. Thank you. So my next one for you then is, what is the most valuable piece of information we should know that's within your expertise or industry?
I think, and this was the first advice I ever got, put yourself through shit and sell yourself high. I think it's important, you know, don't be scared to get up on stage if it's awkward for you, to walk up to the head of Mountain Dew, you know, if he's at an event and start a conversation with him and look him in the eye and go on this adventure. I think everyone should sell yourself high and respect yourself, but also trust that you're a major figure in your life. And if you're working hard, that will back it up. So go for the big companies.
And then, uh, what is your best piece of overall business advice? So not necessarily industry-specific.
Confidence. Blast into the world, do things that impress people, make mistakes, study successful people, but also study yourself.
And then you could give— I know, I know you're young, but if you could give even your younger self, so maybe you're the binky or something, one piece of advice, what would that be?
Yeah, it's weird because it's like I'm still my younger self as a teenager. But here's what I say. I always tell myself, you're doing exactly what you should be, and it doesn't matter if there's like a bigger company you want to add on to your resume or a bigger company you want to intern for with film, accounting, whatever your thing is. It doesn't matter. Or maybe you made an embarrassing mistake at school or in life or at your job. You're on a journey and it's going to be hard working and fun.
And then, um, in your opinion, what is the key to happiness?
I feel happy with myself, and people need to learn to make themselves happy. Like, no validation from others or, you know, big credits on your resume, no being the leader and super social at school. Even if you have a million followers, it doesn't matter. Being able to sit down, appreciate what you have, who you are, your personality, what makes you so goddamn special is what should make everyone happy.
Mm-hmm. And then, what is the best book that you've read and what was the number one thing you learned from it?
Yeah, so I'm gonna combine that because I like to read articles, and my favorite quote, it's from a great famous author called Mark Manson who's really into self-improvement, and this is his quote. I love it. "I really don't care if you laugh or run away horrified, but here's who I am. Take it or leave it." Yeah, I love that, dude.
That's awesome.
Yeah, very New York City, like blunt.
Like, this is who I am.
And you should all do that too. Just like, this is who I am. You don't have time to waste.
Yes. Well, listen, dude, thank you for coming on. The last one I got for you, I'm sure our audience wants to know is where can they find and connect with you online?
Oh, sure. Well, wow, thank you. Well, I will say I have an Oscar Award-winning idea coming out soon in a short film. We got the Queen of Portugal starring in it, which is going to be insane. First, like, huge film that he/they, they identify as that, has been in. And you're not going to want to miss that. So definitely check out my official portfolio at jordancodybrandon.com, Instagram, Facebook, all Jordan Cody Brandon. And I just want to leave people with the message of you should be happy with yourself.
Yes, I love it, dude. Thank you again for coming on.
Great. Thank you so much.
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