3 Things Marsai Martin’s Story Teaches Us About Entrepreneurship
Big lessons from a small, hard-working woman
If you’ve followed entertainment at all, you probably know about Marsai Martin, the NAACP Image Award-winning actress best known for her role as Diane Johnson on the hit ABC comedy Black-ish. She is extremely talented and has played a considerable number of roles since starting her career at the age of five! What’s even more remarkable than her career beginnings is where she is now.
At the age of 14, she is about to become the youngest executive producer in Hollywood history for her most recent venture, Little, starring the actress alongside Issa Rae and Regina Hall. At the age of 11, she pitched the movie, set to hit theaters in April, to Universal Pictures with the help of Kenya Barris, executive producer of Black-ish and screenwriter Tracy Oliver.
For just a moment, let’s disregard this young lady’s incredible bravery and the importance of her story for young people and people of color thinking about a career in film. Instead, let’s think about how Martin’s role in the conception of Little teaches us a lot about entrepreneurship.
1). Age ain’t nothing but a number.
Seriously, if you have a great idea and you want to start a business, go for it! It doesn’t matter if you’re 15 or 55, you can make it happen.
If you’re a teenager and feel as if you’re too young to start a business, look to Martin who started acting at age 5 or Mikaila Ulmer, the 13-year-old girl who launched Me & The Bees Lemonade at the age of four. With help from her family and Shark Tank’s Daymond John, Ulmer sold 300,000 bottles of lemonade in 2016 at stores in 20 states.
If you’re getting up there in age and feel as if you don’t have time left to make moves, look at the example of Ernestine Shepherd, one of the oldest female bodybuilders in the world. At age 81, she teaches bodybuilding classes for adults and seniors. Interestingly, she didn’t “set foot into a gym” until age 56. This shows that a late start doesn’t mean you can’t reach your goal.
2). Grind, grind, and then grind some more.
Marsai Martin has been putting in that work for years now to make her dream a reality. She has made appearances on Black-ish, Lemonade Mafia, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and An American Girl Story while doing voice-overs for Elena of Avalor, Goldie and Bear, and The Mr. Peabody and Sherman show.
How much time have you put in to execute the dream or idea you have in mind? Eric Thomas PhD, one of the most renowned motivational speakers in America, is known for his motto, “When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you’ll be successful.”
His quote speaks of an intense focus on the task at hand. When you’re drowning, all you want to do is get a breath of fresh air. Apply a similar mentality to developing the idea you have and it is likely that you will turn that seed of thought into a fully grown business plan.
3). Grow who you know.
In other words, network! It is essential to gain and maintain relationships. Marsai Martin was able to get the right pitch down for her film because she had friends in high places. Her idea would not have gained traction otherwise.
Martin needed to have famous friends like Kenya Barris with connections to major film studios but we may not need to search that high. At the root, networking is about exchanging information for a mutual benefit.
Thus, you can network with the friend you sit next to in math class. Sure, they may not be a CEO, but they might know a good amount about software, the best places to shop for materials, or the best companies that are active in an industry you find fascinating.
At the end of the day…
You can reach your goal! Just be patient, work hard, and make friends like there is no tomorrow. No matter how old you are, embrace your inner Marsai!
