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Because I Can

AllenCrawley

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That reminds me, I know I am not "there" yet but my friends all know I will be and work hard to get there. I always get "yo, someday we should be business partners" or "hey, ill go in half with you on a project." Basically, they want me to do all the work and them reap the benefits. There are friends who help me unconditionally and I do not forget them or their help. It is amusing to hear sometimes.

I have a friend that came to me with a "great idea" for a website, proposed a 50/50 partnership. However, he said he didn't have the time to work on it or any cash to invest in having it developed. I guess he thought the idea alone was worth the equity position, lol.
 
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Vigilante

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Fact : I average 2-3 partnership inquiries per month.

Fact : I have exactly zero partners.
 

Jake

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Fuente makes a great cigar! I love the hemingway line.
They make a great watch box as well.

news_image.3030633.jpg


Coolest watch box ever
 

oddball

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I have a friend that came to me with a "great idea" for a website, proposed a 50/50 partnership. However, he said he didn't have the time to work on it or any cash to invest in having it developed. I guess he thought the idea alone was worth the equity position, lol.

I usually get the "I'll put up half the money for 50%, but I basically won't help with anything else." Even I, with little business experience, can see the idea not working after applying a few techniques learned from this community.

Fact : I average 2-3 partnership inquiries per month.

Fact : I have exactly zero partners.

They need you, you don't need them.
I tried partnering on 1 project, most likely never again. Unless they bring something really good to the table.
 
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The-J

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I have a friend that came to me with a "great idea" for a website, proposed a 50/50 partnership. However, he said he didn't have the time to work on it or any cash to invest in having it developed. I guess he thought the idea alone was worth the equity position, lol.

Obvious Slowlaner is obvious
 

santa

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Great article posted by chickenhawk in another thread, that has some relevance to some of the (now expanding) themes in this great thread;

I Will Not Read Your F*cking Script - New York - News - Runnin' Scared

... said:
But I will not read your F*cking script.

At this point, you should walk away, firm in your conviction that I'm a d!ck. But if you're interested in growing as a human being and recognizing that it is, in fact, you who are the dick in this situation, please read on.

Yes. That's right. I called you a d!ck. Because you created this situation. You put me in this spot where my only option is to acquiesce to your demands or be the bad guy. That, my friend, is the very definition of a dick move.

.


Comments section
... said:
I'm a software engineer by day (27 years), writer by night/weekends (9 scripts - 1 produced) and people ask me all the time to fix their Windows systems.

I used to help people because I want to be a nice guy and I know more than 99% of the people on the planet about technology, but after a while I got sick and tired of dealing with doing free work on my own (limited) time.

My new response to that request is "Get a Mac."

I too have become a d!ck. And you dear public/friends/family have made me such.

... said:
the other John B. misses the point. Professional writers, even ones breaking in, act like professional writers. you can turn them down and you are not being a dick because they understand you've determined there is nothing in it for you as a professional to read their material. they don't feel you owe it to them as a friend. they believe that sooner or later someone will be impressed with them enough as a person -- with their intelligence, dedication, knowledge of the film biz or what have you -- to invest a bit of time to find out if their writing is equally impressive. Huge difference between that and asking me to read your script, via my mother, because you happen to be her hairdresser.

... said:
He's writing so bluntly as a contrast to the fact that he has to be polite to people who are endlessly asking him to effectively be their script editor for free. It's a fair point, viscerally made. And the reality is that most people can't write and a lot of people who are trying to write, just don't get the message. .......

Anyway, I found the article therapeutic. I've been professional comedy writer for about ten years and people do ask me to read their stuff - but I live in Britain where people are a lot less pushy. So it doesn't happen that often. And sometimes I offer. And sometimes I don't.

Edited, I couldn't resist adding two more;
... said:
I'm an attorney who has clients in the film industry. I also moonlight as a writer and producer. No, I'm not going to give you my real name because I enjoy my privacy and don't want you bothering me. To that extent, I understand the point of this article.

That said, Josh Olson is a self-important windbag who thinks far more of himself than he should...

Having worked in law and film, I think I'm qualified to assess Mr. Olson's analogy. There are people in both fields who will callously dismiss you if you dare to ask them for advice, which I believe stems from nothing more than their own deep rooted insecurity. There are many more good, decent and hardworking people who will help you if you go about approaching them in the correct way.

Step one, don't solicit advice in the manner described by Mr. Olson. Step two, don't solicit advice from someone like Mr. Olson. People like Josh Olson only care about themselves.


... said:
I too have learned the hard way that people not to "help" others in this way. The morning a major project was due, I discovered I had to re-do my parts for a score. We were to rehearse our pieces with a major jazz artist that afternoon (the artist was doing a week-long residency at our school). Well, my roommate needed her score and parts printed NOWNOWNOW because her printer wasn't "cooperating." It wound up sucking up 45 minutes of my time - time I should have been spending proofreading my parts against my score. Instead, I ran out of time, wound up with major mistakes in my parts, and embarrassed my professor.

What I've found with people like her - too late - is that it's a habit. Once you've been inconveniencing other people for a while, it becomes something you expect and to which you even feel entitled. But you know what? You're not.

So if you're one of those people who has no problem eating up others' time with your "it'll only take a few minutes," you're a dick. Why? Not just because you think nothing of inconveniencing someone else, but because you wouldn't bother taking the time to find the other options that are right at your fingertips. There are other options to getting your script read. Google is your friend here, folks.
(Tons of interesting stuff in the comments too, but I'll leave it there)
 

MJ DeMarco

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Great article posted by chickenhawk in another thread, that has some relevance to some of the (now expanding) themes in this great thread;

OMG, legendary.

You are not owed a read from a professional, even if you think you have an in, and even if you think it's not a huge imposition. It's not your choice to make. This needs to be clear--when you ask a professional for their take on your material, you're not just asking them to take an hour or two out of their life, you're asking them to give you--gratis--the acquired knowledge, insight, and skill of years of work. It is no different than asking your friend the house painter to paint your living room during his off hours.
 
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The-J

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Hah. I remember when I used to fix computers for people, a girl from school came to my door and asked me to fix her computer and was surprised when I wouldn't do it for free.

I wanted to laugh in her face. But I'm not *that* mean.
 

theDarkness

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Huge difference between that and asking me to read your script, via my mother, because you happen to be her hairdresser.

Haha, mothers' hairdressers must be the default source of shitty manuscripts. I've had that exact thing happen to me.

I've found that 99% of those who ask for free edits aren't at the stage where a good edit can even help them. Because an edit implies that the current manuscript is even workable, and most writers don't get to that point. They would be better served by stamping "Read more books, write more words, work more hours, and throw this away" across every page than they would be by a thoughtful, in-depth edit. There's no skipping process, dammit.
 
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nzerinto

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Whoa, no idea how I missed this thread either....awesome post Vig.

I think I've come a long way. About 10 years ago your post would've insulted me, and I would've thought you were an absolute dickhead, not worthy of any more of my time. Funny thing is that would've been the best outcome for you!

Now your statement makes so much sense, the tables are turned, and I'm thinking how "needy" the person asking is, and how they bring absolutely no value to the equation at all.

Thank you for taking the time to post that Vigilante!

Edit: I see I'm not the only Torontonian up at 3am today...!
 

Vigilante

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True story :::

So I was sitting on a remote beach on Oahu on the Hawaiian Islands, ready to watch a surf competition. The competition happens once a year, by private invitation. Only 24 surfers are invited (pros) and they get 24 hour notice when the conditions are perfect. We happened to be staying a few minutes down the road, and timing was lucky.

As I am sitting there in my floppy hat and shades --- sun chair buried deep in the sand --- the only billionaire I know personally in the world sat down next to me and said hello. I marveled at the fact that he was there - small world (there were probably only 50 spectators total there... because the competition literally came up overnight.) And he says "listen... this level of competition only happens once a year with these conditions." We chatted a while. I bet nobody else on the beach even knew who this guy was. That's the way he would want it. He probably flew in on a G6 to catch the waves and the watch the competition (my speculation.. he said nothing of the sort.) He looked like your average tourist/surfer. I know he has a place near there that he visits frequently... but the fact is he was there. On that day. To catch the best of the waves of Hawaii, on the best day to be there.

And I thought to myself ...

"...because he can."

p.s. the money is self made, by his family working together... in this generation.
 

Kak

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I wish I could fit the phrase on a license plate.


This is easily one of my top 5 favorite threads.
 

Barry

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How did I miss this thread:smx4: Time to read through!
 

Barry

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Darn! This thread just light a fire under my a$$, S U C K S that I had to choose between getting started (Currently Operating An Import Business From China to Jamaica) and Attending B & P. Really Can't wait to meet you guys in person. I'm definately definately going to turn it up! Awesome Post Vig!
 

CEBenz

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I agree with MJ about this being a gold thread. I recently got a virtual swift kick in the butt from another well known forum member. I needed it and I appreciate him doling it out. Did I feel like an idiot? Yes. But I understood exactly what he was saying and I'll never forget that lesson.
 
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Vigilante

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Life is stranger than fiction.

An unemployed friend asked me today what my job was, because "pretty much all he sees me doing is posting videos of my baby on Facebook."

:)

Let that comment soak in.
 

MJ DeMarco

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An unemployed friend asked me today what my job was, because "pretty much all he sees me doing is posting videos of my baby on Facebook."

Such a short statement is profound.

Think about it.

The implication being: If one has a job, one does not have time for family.
 

Vigilante

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My wife had an equally interesting point. The more you expose your life to people, the more vulnerable you become to their assumptions.
 

buckmajor

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My approach respects her ability to make decisions for herself. She doesn't need to know things about my personal life, and I don't need to know about hers. She asks a question she gets a simple no-BS answer. If she lingers I make it clear that she has overstayed her welcome.

Your approach needlessly injects yourself into her personal life, makes judgments regarding her lifestyle, and sets yourself up as someone trying to "convert" her into this other way of thinking. If you know her well enough maybe that's fine--because you can make that judgement call and try to help a friend--but in general I find it's better to respect a person's agency.
Interesting opinion! You have stated this in a positive way ;)
 
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Yussef

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I thought you guys and gals might get a kick out of a quick "fast lane" exchange I had today.

I stopped by my office, which is about a 9 iron away from Best Buy's corporate office.

Someone stopped by my office while I was there, and asked me if I would help them on something. Something that they... as an employee of someone else's company... was tasked with accomplishing. Could I have done it? Yep. Could they do it without my (uncompensated) help? Yep.

"Sorry. I'm leaving in 5 minutes and can't help you." I said.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"Home" I said.

"At noon? Why?" she asked.

"Because I can. That's the difference between you and me."

She knew exactly what I was talking about.

She looked at the decanter of Jim Beam Black that I keep on a shelf in my office.

"Why do you have that here?" she asked.

"Because I can. That's the difference between you and me. That decanter represents my ability to do what ever the hell I want. And you can't. And that's freedom to me." (I seldom if ever drink from that decanter, by the way. It's more symbolic for me than practical. But I can...)

She left, and went back to the cubicle that had been assigned to her by her employer.

I left, and went home and played with my 7 month old baby.

You could come back to the office 5 years from now... and either she or someone exactly like her will still be occupying that cubicle.

Blaze your own path.

I need to know where to mail your pimp cup.

BD61800-2.jpg
 

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