How a Pitfall Opened My Eyes to Purpose
Hello everyone,
It’s been a while since I’ve done any writing. A lot has happened so I wanted to take to the time to update you. I don’t know if I mentioned (maybe via social) but I’ve been working two jobs for the past month and counting.
I have a server position at the movie theatre, but I also picked up a contract job as a video editor for a media company. Since I became a content creator with my writing and YouTube videos I thought it would be great to put all those editing skills to good use in the form of monetary payment.
So far the job has been pretty good to me — but the whole ‘waking up at 7am and getting home at 10pm’ has left me feeling burnt out. I thought working really, really, really hard would help offset my financial debt. Things were definitely going in the right direction until…
Friday morning I woke up and found myself in a medical emergency.
One ER trip later and suddenly all the money I had been earning went *POOF*. My medical bills sapped all the hard work I had put in and now financially I’m at -1. This is so frustrating and I became very angry at the American medical system. No fault but my own for a) being uninsured and b) without a job that offers medical benefits.
The former being a constant frustration because the premiums cannot be justified with the high deductibles that accompany a monthly plan. However, health care insurance warrants a whole discussion outside the scope of this article.
The Prologue Prophecy
A week before the ER trip I had a most peculiar encounter serving guests at my restaurant. The couple chatted at the table with their British (or was it Aussie) accents about the show Life of the Party. My usual self tends to feel out a table how casual I can be with my guests and they resonated nicely.
After engaging in idle banter the question of, “so what do y’all do for a living?’ arose. The couple entertained me with their adventures in video game development and after hearing about my foray into content creation with tools like Adobe After Effects, they urged me to put my VFX interest into video games.
Intrigued, I asked all that I could with the limited time we shared that Saturday evening. After hearing the benefits of job security, potential three figure income and medical benefits, all that was needed for me to do was fact-check the information presented.
The following Sunday I delved deep in anything I could learn about video game VFX and confirmed everything the couple said to be true. What a sight for sore eyes!
It was on that day I made a commitment to myself. I would quit playing video games and start making them. And until I get my first job in the games industry I will fuel any down time to learning the craft of VFX.
By the time I found this new path to success I had already committed to many other prospects. I was cast in the feature film Black Easter Resurrection (as an extra); I just got my press pass for DreamHack Austin; I had purchased tickets for the Scarborough Renaissance Festival for a photo shoot.
Top that with 60–70 hour work weeks between two jobs AND now adding additional weight learning the particle system in Unreal Engine 4, it’s no wonder my body broke down.
I tried to do so much in so many directions. Typical Travis.
The Cataclysmic Aftermath
What happens when you stack too many plates on each other? They topple over and crash. KABOOM! This is exactly what happened. And the tipping point, the wake-up call, is attributed to my medical emergency. The ER trip cost me hundreds of dollars being out of work for a mere four days, and now thousands of dollars in bills.
But it had an added hidden benefit. The emergency put my life in perspective. It helped shape my focus on what value and importance I place my time and effort in. I do not have the luxury to travel and explore expensive venues. But I do have access to technology and a vast array of social, technical and creative tools at home through the internet.
If I had to rate where my values are right now, it would look like this:
- Health
- Debt
- Relationships
- Leisure
Remember when we talked about reverse engineering goals to achieve success and happiness? The same premise is applied here.
I know that I have to earn a lot of money to pay for the inevitable surgery coming my way. I also know that even more money is needed to tackle my mounting student loans and credit debt. And the only way to answer that is to get a job that pays WAY more money than my current position.
Even at overtime capacity, the reality of ‘catching up’ on my income deficiency is impossible. On the Media did an episode on Rags to Riches in its series “Busted: America’s Poverty Myths.” In the episode Brooke Gladstone and Jill Lepore examine upward mobility as it pertains to each american having an equal chance to overcome any obstacle and climb the ladder from rags to riches.
At a recent meetup with some Unreal folk, I’ve been reminded on how extraordinary my life has been to where I am today. From my artistic endeavors in acting, my military service overseas in Japan, and my journalistic work in the newspaper, I have accomplished many things.
While I consider where to put my focus in now, I truly believe working as a VFX artist in video games is something I see myself doing for the next 20 years of my life.
It’s very easy to get discouraged from the technical frustrations of problem-solving. But I think the way we handle our failures as learning opportunities is the key to success. Nothing happens overnight and even in three weeks time my practice of ‘total immersion’ in VFX yields so much yet so little.
Like my girlfriend told me — I still need to work to pay the incoming bills. But I need to focus all my attention into mastery of VFX. It may take a whole year to reach proficiency, but as Allan McKay said:
So many people [want] to learn a new skill but they just “don’t have the time”. Invest an hour a day for 90 days allows for a growth spurt. We’ve all heard about the 10,000 hours to learn a new language or master any skill. But there is another way: by total immersion. By fully immersing yourself, you can learn at an accelerated rate.
I believe if I become good at VFX, most of my worries will wash away. The debt, the health concerns, the job satisfaction, the video game joy, it’s all there laid before me. I’m not doing this for anyone else but myself. The resources are there. I just need to put in the time. That’s really the only way.
As for everything else: acting, journalism and playing video games — well that’s all going to have to wait. I may continue to write because its therapeutic and can help to visualize the process-building of the technical art I will be working on. Stay tuned for VFX articles.
On a final note — I realize potential employers outside the VFX industry may read my blog and wonder why I applied for their companies if I am not invested in the long-term. Let me ask you this question: Would you like the opportunity to hire a player with a diverse background whom gives a rich perspective to streamline and innovate your processes? Even a short-term contract of 3–6 months can add immeasurable value to your company growth. Fresh insights can be risky, but without risk there is 0% chance for reward.
Cheers.
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