The Reality of Rejection

In the last seven months, I have applied for more than 100 jobs. 100! From all those applications, I have landed ten interviews. So many people come to California because it is the land of opportunity. Well, let’s just say that time has passed. Los Angeles has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country at 12.4% and remember that only includes people who are collecting unemployment. I hate blaming the economy because it feels like a coup out, but in reality every industry has been hurt by the recession. Sometimes I dream about being born a mere three years earlier, and how this wouldn’t even be a problem. Back to reality though, I was born in 1987, and I graduated into the worst economy since the late 1980s. (F)un-employment has lost its luster over the past few months. All I want is a job in the entertainment industry. You would think after being met with such an overwhelming amount of rejection, I would give up, but I’m not ready to give up. It’s hard to get a job in the entertainment industry or even a foot in the door. Well my light knocking on the door is now a pounding.

In college I didn’t get the internship I wanted on the first try. I took another internship that turned out to be a great learning experience. The next year I reapplied to my dream internship and landed the position. This was a great lesson in perseverance. If I hadn’t had this experience, I am not sure I would still be living in Los Angeles. There is only so much rejection one person can take until you begin to doubt yourself. Doubt can start as a small seed planted by one person. When you have more than 100 seeds planted, it can grow rapidly and become overbearing. Even though I have encountered more rejection than I have ever faced in my life, I refuse to doubt my passions or myself. I am passionate about the entertainment industry whether it takes me down the developmental production path or to a talent agency. I love Los Angeles and can’t imagine living anywhere else. I can only see myself living in two other cities, New York and Chicago, but I ruled both out a long time ago since I am not exactly a lover of the cold. I have faith in myself that things will turn around and all this will only make me a better person and employee in the end.