I was born on August 24th, 1993. The moment I came out of the wound, I had no idea what a "calling", purpose, or career was. The moment I was formed in my mother's womb is when the phone started ringing. Recently, I've been doing research on Oprah Winfrey, and she talks about finding your "calling" or purpose. My "calling" was on the other line. I had no idea where I was. A hospital? What's a hospital? I was a newborn that had no care in the world. A newborn that was crying so that my hunger would be fulfilled. Fast forward 29 years, and that physical hunger has grown together with my hunger to be successful in the Entertainment Industry.

As the last week of my Mastery: Personal Development and Leadership class comes to an end. I plan for the future and ponder how these three out of twelve courses will advance my Entertainment business career. These three courses are Entertainment Business Finance, Digital Marketing, and Entertainment Media Publishing and Distribution.

First, let's talk about finances. I have always wanted to raise finances for projects and Parable Kingdom LLC, but I hesitated about which fundraising platform I would use, and if I should ask people for money. I didn't want to use a GoFundMe page. No shade thrown towards people that use GoFundMe, but I've always felt that I should sit down and negotiate the funds for a project, or at least communicate with the investor, donor, or philanthropist. I like the traditional way of doing things. I enjoy the face-to-face interaction.

I enjoy getting to know the person who is helping me build a legacy or a masterpiece. I plan to apply Entertainment Business Finance course knowledge to my real-world experiences by using financial principles. I have always heard the advice, "Raise money for your projects. Don't use your own money." I will write proposals that can be sent out to potential sponsors. I will apply my financial knowledge to my personal life. I see myself and my business growing exponentially due to financial wisdom and the development of financial decision-making skills.

Next, we'll talk about digital marketing. My social media presence is mediocre for my company's page, and it can always improve. I am working on my profiles so that people see me working in my calling and know who I am professionally. I believe that a digital marketing plan will grow my followers, show which social media platforms to use, improve content creation, and help target the right demographics.

When I hear Entertainment Media Publishing and Distribution, I think about using a distribution plan to distribute my films, music, books, and podcasts. I can also use a distribution plan to negotiate deals with distribution companies. This class will help my defense mechanisms kick in when it comes to piracy and scams. Knowing the issues in the industry will enhance my awareness of fake deals and people using my work when they do not have permission to use it.

My long-term goals for my career are to have my own television network that broadcasts motion pictures (films & TV shows), music videos, interviews with entrepreneurs & different types of artists, and sports. A short-term goal that I have is to begin producing a feature film three months after graduation. To accomplish these goals, I plan to use my assigned career advisor at Full Sail University to help me find jobs that give me experience to help me on my journey. I will also begin to research the process of distributing feature films to movie theaters. While in the process of accomplishing those steps, I will prepare to make a plan on how to release content properly and in a timely fashion. I will begin to focus on finding investors or philanthropists who will fund my project.

Last but not least, I will continue to study networks and moguls that inspire me. Full Sail career advisors have connections that will help me be involved with the Grammy association. I will use my professional learning network by observing the moves they make, their knowledge and wisdom, and their resilience and grit to look past haters, doubters, and naysayers. To accomplish these goals, I will be a traditional project manager and a project leader. According to Project Management: Art or Science?

As a traditional project manager, I must focus on short-term goals and follow an endless series of internal processes to the letter. As a project leader, I must think and act like an owner of the company, recognize the importance of long-term goals, have vision, and be committed to succeed (Amatulli & Hauserman, 2007, p. 40).