Just Do It.

It's Presidents' Day so we closed the office today. In the meantime, I'm in SFO waiting to board my plane back home to JFK. I'm scheduled to arrive at midnight so I'm sure I'll be wide awake for work tomorrow AM! ;)

Yesterday, my brother and I were having an apres ski beer (of course) and we started talking about work. Without getting into the boring details, the gist was the following: although I'm currently making far less money than I did in my 20's, I am a much happier person. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about building the NY Latino Film Festival and Cinedulce so Calixto and I, our staff and our filmmakers can all make money doing what we love. BUT, I chose to follow a different, non-traditional career path. I decided to pursue the entrepreneurial route and there are sacrifices associated with that decision... many sacrifices. But, the emotional ROI (return on investment) - the satisfaction of trying to build something new and unique, the challenges and rewards, the sense of independence, not knowing what new each day may bring - far outweigh what I hope are short-term financial sacrifices. It was a really interesting discussion because both of my brothers are also entrepreneurial. But, the reality is, there are no guarantees. There is no crystal ball. You just sort of wake up every day, believe in what you're doing and do it. It's kind of hard to explain. It just sort of feels right. For anyone who has the bug, I'd advise the following: consider the short and potentially long-term sacrifices, think about how you would feel if you made those sacrifices and then failed (on financial terms only - I believe just trying is a sign of strength and success); if you're still intrigued and excited about the idea of trying to build your own venture, then, in the words of the wise Nike ad, "Just Do It."

Liz.
(P.L.H.H.)
www.Cinedulce.com