135. 1040 Aversion

"Do it now!" - Lena Stevens, The Power Path

I am working on my taxes today. I know...SUPER EXCITING, right?  

Hold on...Wait!...Don't click away yet...keep reading...you know you LOVE hearing all about how much taxes suck...Misery loves company! 

So, I know that most people aren't even going to be THINKING about their taxes until April or so, but I have to get them done suuuuuper early this year because I need to file the FAFSA. And I've gotta get ready to submit all the financial aid paperwork for grad school (should I happen to receive an offer for admission).

I am sooooooo resistant to doing all this financial-number-crunching and paper-pushing. It's one of my top 5 least favorite things to do in the world. And I would avoid it at all costs...if it wasn't required by LAW to file taxes every year. 

Sigh. I don't mind contributing some of my income to the good of our society, but does the process of filing the paperwork have to be so freakin' complex? Just sayin'...

It's gotta get done though, so...

In motivating oneself to sit down and tackle a project that one would rather NOT do...What are the tricks that you use to help you get through it?

Here are some of mine:

1. Set aside a BIG chunk of time. (Rushing only stresses me out MORE.)

2. Taxes are always better with red wine. ;-)

3. Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. (It's not going to be perfect, so do it well enough to get the job done. But don't stress if you can't find EVERY receipt and can't deduct EVERY expense. Besides, if you discover a mistake later...you can always fix it by filing an amendment to your taxes. No worries.)

4. Get the help you need. (I have an AWESOME tax professional that helps me with my taxes every year. She specializes in the unique financial situations of actors and performers. She's a great resource for all my questions. And she always does a fantastic job and is very reliable. Love her! But before she was recommended to me, I always used TurboTax...which was a great tool too.)

5. Focus on how great you're going to feel when it's all DONE. (Though I may be banging my head against the wall right now, muttering expletives under my breath and sighing in frustration every 10 minutes...I know that when this thing is alllll done and I've got it all signed and finished and can look forward to a nice refund from the government about to be direct-deposited into my account...THAT will feel AWESOME.)

6. Think of the future benefit. (If I DO get accepted to grad school this year...and am able to get a good, solid financial-aid package from the grad school of my dreams...Well, then I will look back on this day of tax-return-preparation-torture...and I will be VERY HAPPY with myself that I took this time to get it DONE. It will be a HUGE pay-off in the end...I hope.)

7. Be grateful you're an "adult" now. (Sorry, if this one doesn't apply to you yet. It will someday. You have something awesome to look forward to. Trust and believe...Since I'm 30, I no longer have to submit my parents' financial info for the FAFSA. In undergrad, that used to be the bane of my existence. Nagging people to get stuff done is NOT my fave. I am very happy that, at least now, I don't have to deal with motivating my PARENTS to complete their tax returns early too. I just have to motivate myself.)

8. Keep starting. (When I hit a roadblock or a tough moment where I just want to throw all my receipts into the air and shoot them with a flame-thrower...I take a deep breath and think. "Okay, I'll just start from here." And for some reason, that allows me to keep going. Can't really pin-point exactly WHY that works for me, but it does.)

It's so strange to be doing alllllll this work sooooo early and not knowing if I'm even going to need it. But, on the other hand, even if I don't get accepted to grad school this year...I will still need to file my taxes...so it's gotta get done at some point...might as well be now, right?

Getting into grad school will be AWESOME!!!!!...Paying for grad school?.... Hmmmmm...that's going to be...challenging.

Since there haven't been any millionaires sending anonymous contributions to my Paypal account offering to finance my future education and no corporate sponsorship agreements have been signed...I'll have to go through all the normal channels to try to secure some financial support and make my grad school aspirations a REALITY.

So I'll have to stop blogging and get back to it...Here I go...

"TAXES...YOU ARE NO MATCH FOR ME! I WILL DEFEAT YOU! WHERE HAVE YOU HIDDEN MY CALCULATOR?! DON'T MAKE ME PULL OUT THE FLAME-THROWER! WHAH HA HA HA HA!"

;-P

Anyhoo,...HAPPY TAXES to all ya'll filing the FAFSA this year...and commiserating with my 1040 aversion.

Best wishes to all...

May your federal return be hefty and your estimated family contribution be minuscule.

Loves,

V

"Perhaps the hardest linear process to let go of is the accounting part of the mind that links the amount of money you have in the bank to what is possible. Get rid of this limiting process, be practical but don't base your goals and commitments on something as powerless as money. Practice seeing money as an energy and play with increasing that energy instead of counting dollars." - Lena Stevens, The Power Path

105. Lose That "Starving Artist" Mentality

"When you can hit on what (your clients) want, hope for and dream...price is a mere triviality." - Ramit Sethi 

I promised in yesterday's post that I would share a great resource with you today...and I like to keep my promises. So here goes...

What can a NY Times bestselling author and a professional photographer teach you about building a sustainable career as an actor?

How 'bout some incredible BUSINESS STRATEGIES for artists, freelancers, entrepreneurs and even 9-5ers!?!

Meet Ramit Sethi and Chase Jarvis. Ramit is a New York Times bestselling author of I Will Teach You To Be Rich and a graduate of Stanford University. Chase is a (self-taught) visionary photographer, director, and fine artist with a consistent ambition to break down the barriers between new and traditional media, fine and commercial art.

Now, for those of you who are artists of some kind... if you are NOT interested in actually making MONEY from the fruits of your labor, then don't even bother wasting your time watching the video embedded below.

However, if any of these things spark some excitement in your tummy... WATCH THE VIDEO... And take notes. Seriously.

Some of the highlights...
A. Lose that "starving artist" mentality
B. How to make your clients "revere" your work
C. Don't try to be "better," try to be different
D. The Briefcase Technique (Explained around 33:15 in the video. If you're pressed for time and can't watch the WHOLE thing. Just watch that section.)
E. How to nail an interview

Sooooo much of this stuff can make a HUGE difference in your ability to actually MAKE A LIVING doing your art. And you don't need an MBA, you just need some tools. Anyone can master this stuff. It's not brain surgery.

As much as we artists hate to admit it to ourselves...show business is a BUSINESS and there are ways to play that game that make it easier to be successful. And by successful, I mean being able to pay your bills with your art...and also a vacation to Tahiti. Nice, right? Now that's motivation.

"How we do anything is how we do everything." - Tim Ferris

How you approach the business of your art also represents how you approach your art. You may not see it that way. But other people probably will. So make sure you are projecting the kind of message you hope to present. And if you don't know how to do something...find an expert resource...a person...a book...a video...a class...whatevs.

This is the information age. We have the internet. There are no excuses. Our access to information is unlimited. Our only limitations are the ones we place on ourselves.

Don't ignore the business aspect of the business. Because what you don't know about the market CAN hurt you...and your ability to earn a sustainable living...I know this from PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. Bleh! Being a starving artist sucks and I do not recommend it.

So take a moment to assess what your weak areas are in the "business" side of the business and find a resource to improve that area of your work. Your pocket-book will thank you. Your 65 year old self that would love to RETIRE some day will thank you...(Let's get serious. Most actors would love to drop dead on stage and never retire.) Your creative-self will thank you...for being able to provide some support for those "avant-garde" projects that won't make you a dime and cost you a pretty penny, but you looooooove and MUST DO.

Having money is not bad. It gives us choices. Without it we lead veeeery limited lives.

Besides business can be fun! Especially after you get passed the awkward learning part and actually start to do it WELL. Also, it's worth taking a look at what people in other industries are doing to THRIVE and build sustainable business models. We can allllll learn from each other.

We create art because we LoVE it, but we all gotta eat.

Make that dollar,
V

"It takes half your life before you discover life is a do-it-yourself project." - Napoleon Hill, Think And Grow Rich

11. =IF(logical test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false])

Okay, guys… Am totally about to geek-out on you this morning…

But I seriously woke up thinking about how the “=IF” function in Excel applies to my life. This is a true statement.

Excel is about as “math-y” as I get. Really it’s just a big, fancy calculator on a grid.

The way functions work in Excel seems magical to me. And I love magic.

So my subconscious is making magical calculations in my sleep? 

So be it.

Let me explain… Stay with me now... 

The “=IF” function in Excel checks whether a condition is met in a certain cell and then, in another cell, returns one value if that condition is “True,” and returns another value if that condition is “False.”

I do this to test my beliefs.

In Excel…

=IF(logical test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false])

In my head…

=IF(I am powerful beyond all measure, [I should believe this statement and live my life as if I am a powerful person that can make an impact for good in the world], [I should disbelieve this statement and live my life shrinking in fear, feeling powerless and focusing only on my own weakness and self-protection])

Hmmmm? Which value would I rather choose? The [value_if_true] or the [value_if_false]?

TRUE! Clearly serves me better. No question.

And this function can and has applied to soooo many areas of my life…

Relationships…

=IF(I deserve to have a loving relationship that brings joy and growth into my life every day, [I should believe this statement and take great care in allowing someone into my life who will love me unconditionally and will allow me to love him unconditionally and I will not settle for anything less], [I should disbelieve this statement and fearfully cling to any relationship, even if it negatively affects my life, because I am lucky to have someone, anyone paying attention to me and the thought of being alone scares the crap out of me])

Finances…

=IF(My time is valuable and I am capable of supporting myself financially on my own, [I should believe this statement and know the specific amount of money I need to make in order to live the lifestyle that feels best for me and continue to search for work until I find a job that will give me that amount of compensation so that I will never have to stress-out about how I will be able to afford to pay my bills], [I should disbelieve this statement and take the first job that comes my way even though it really doesn’t pay me enough to be able to survive but it’s better than nothing and looking for a new job is scary and takes effort so I’ll just stay with this one that really doesn’t serve me because I don’t feel confident that it is actually possible to get paid the amount of money I need to be making anyway])

My Body…

=IF(I have a healthy/sexy/beautiful body that I feel great in, [I should believe this statement and make healthy food and exercise choices every single moment to continue to support the health and longevity of my body because I am strong enough to take responsibility for my own choices and my body is a precious gift that I have been given and I love myself and I enjoy the feeling of satisfaction that I get from taking great care of it], [I should disbelieve this statement and know that no matter what I do I will never be able to feel great in my body so it doesn’t matter that I eat unhealthy because changing my behavior with food is too hard for me and I can’t make it a priority to exercise because I don’t have time and even when I do exercise it never actually makes me feel any better anyway so there is no point in trying because I am just going to fail and feel worse])

Applying to Grad School...

=IF(I am worthy of acceptance to the graduate school of my choice, [I should believe this statement and fearlessly move forward and apply myself doing everything I can to prepare the best way I know how to become the kind of student that I would respect and admire and want to be in class with because I am dedicated and talented and passionate and have gifts to contribute to the world and it would be a shame for me to waste my life away sitting behind a computer for the next 30-50 years], [I should disbelieve this statement and give up trying because I have failed twice already and that must mean that I am not talented enough to get in and maybe I'm not actually any good at acting anyway and trying a third time and failing will be so devastating and embarrassing that I may spontaneously-combust and I will forever be known as that loser who tried and failed three times and then burst into flames of inadequacy and it's dumb to follow your dreams anyway because dreamers are silly people that delude themselves into believing things that are never going to happen and though other people are sometimes lucky and get into those schools I will never ever be accepted and I shouldn't even try])

Yup. 

Jump into my head, people! Ha!

I love the “=IF” function. Who knew it would be so applicable in non-math too?!

And it definitely helps to write out the false statement. Because it always sounds so silly when you read what you’ve written and you know that it’s SOOOO clearly false, but sometimes it sounds true in your head.

Disempower the false!!! Write it out!

Essentially, I ask myself… If this is true, what else is true?

Annnnd… as I am able to make tiny changes to improve one area of my life… those skills, that confidence, that momentum can lead to improvements in the other areas of my life as well.

Do your own logical test. What’s your “=IF” Function?

(Geekiness. Done. Close parentheses.)

((((Love))))

Virginia

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.' We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

(Williamson, Marianne. A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles", Harper Collins, 1992. From Chapter 7, Section 3])