Big Dreams call for Healthier Habits
Here are two tweets that identified the tone of my week.
The first:
“Bigger dreams call for healthier habits and healthier habits require more self-discipline.”
Discipline is difficult. It’s something I talk about a lot on this blog and it doesn’t seem like it’ll stop anytime soon since it’s something I struggle with. Most recently, I set a goal that I wanted to be sober from January 1st to February 13th (which is my birthday). I made it to January 13th before going out to dinner with a friend and having a few sips of her cocktail. I smoked a little weed after that and just like that, I’m back to day 2 of sobriety after my 13-day streak went up in smoke. Pun intended.
Now, I don’t have a problem with alcohol. Nor do I have a problem with smoking weed. I set the challenge to try and instill more discipline in my life and to try and see if I could do it. To say the least, it’s difficult to conquer temptations. But what I learned the last 13 days was that eventually sticking to discipline feels better than whatever temptation you give in for. And that’s the point when things start to flip. Eventually, the decision to not eat the bag of cookies feels better than eating the bag.
Yet at the same time, discipline is like any other skill or attribute or a new thing to be learned. It takes time. And chances that you fail are high. It’s not recommended that if you’ve never bench pressed before, to throw up 300lbs on the bar. It is recommended, however, to exercise. And that if you do want to one-day bench 300lbs, start with a weight that’s appropriate then work your way up. So, my first rep was 13 days. I took 2 days of ‘failure’ and am now back on a 2-day rep. I’ve adjusted my goal now to go until January 28th. Which is when I’ll go watch the Phoenix Suns play the Minnesota Timberwolves. Got to have a beer at an NBA game right?
The Second:
“Screenwriters in WGAW (Writers Guild Association) who declared income in 2020: 2055.
Active Players in the NFL: 2080
If you want to make a living as a screenwriter in LA, then you’re essentially saying you should be in the NFL of screenwriting.”
The first disclaimer about this information is that this strictly pertains to feature film screenwriters within the Hollywood system. Meaning, the 5000 or so television writers that exist across the different mediums, are not counted. Regardless, the point stands that this shit is difficult. And it is competitive. I never understood aspirational writers who don’t write every day. Because if your dream was to play in the NFL, and if you weren’t working towards that goal every day, whether it be through working out, film study, training, practice, etc, then you damn well know that someone else is. And despite what anyone says, there are only 53 slots on an NFL roster. And there are only so many seats available in a writers room too.
Take care of yourself along the way, the journey is long and a journey it is, but don’t let days pass by where you don’t write just because you’re not in the mood to write. That’d be a terrible strategy to make it to the league. And that’d be a terrible strategy if you wanted to make it in Hollywood. That’s my 2 cents on that.
I’ll talk to you all on Monday.
Sincerely,
Solomon
P.S) I watched a movie called ‘The House’ earlier this week on Netflix. Here’s a link to the trailer. I’d recommend giving it a watch. I’ve been thinking about it for the last few days.
