Organize Your Life for Hollywood Success!

Whether you’re trying to cram a writing session in-between pitch meetings, or cram in a sandwich as you Zoom with your producer over lunch - being a creative professional is a constant juggling act. Which means it doesn’t matter if you’re a writer, director, producer, assistant, actor, or even a PA — a little organization can make all the difference.

And I’m not just talking about time management and “cleaning your space”. Organizing your life for success is also about organizing your thoughts, actions and, yes, sometimes, even your emotions. 

Here are 11 tips to help you get organized so you can move faster towards your Hollywood goals:

1. Find what motives you

It’s easy to get caught up in the Hollywood hustle and lose sight of the reason you’re doing it in the first place. So, what’s your main motivation? What drives you to keep fighting your way up the Hollywood ladder? What makes you happy as an artist? If you have no idea where you want to end up, it’s easy to get lost (and, sadly, get lazy). If you have an ultimate goal in mind, you have a much better chance of staying on task, and eventually reaching it. 

2. Set (and respect) deadlines

Setting deadlines not only gives your workflow a sense of organization, it gives you goals to shoot for. Try to establish ambitious yet reasonable deadlines and make a habit of sticking to them. You’ll feel good about yourself when you do!

3. Learn to delegate

Whether you’re lucky enough to have an assistant or not, you’re not meant to do everything. Find ways to spend more time doing what you do best and delegate the rest. Need to create a dynamic pitch deck but have no clue where to start? Great, find a graphic designer (or a very nice graphic savvy friend) instead. Worried about social media marketing for your next film? Hire someone. I’m not saying break the bank on outsourcing, but I am reminding you that time is money… and can affect your mental health for the better.

4. Clean your space

It’s an ‘organizational cliche’ for a reason. If you want to have both physical and mental space, you need to work in distraction-free environments and follow a clear schedule. So — clean your room, clean your desk, clean your schedule. I just organized and cleaned out my super cluttered office bookshelves I’ve looked at them for the past 3 years and vowed to do it. Then one Saturday afternoon I bit the bullet and did it. The whole thing only took an hour… and I’d been putting it off for 3 years! Makes me feel good every time I look at them. Now you do something you’ve been putting off.

5. Make planning a habit

There’s no need to go overboard, but a bit of planning can save a lot of wasted time. Start with broad-strokes monthly planning. Then break that down into weekly goals. From there create a daily to-do list that helps you tackle your weekly goals in bite sized chunks. Again, don’t plan so much that you become a task-robot, but plan enough that it helps you work smarter not harder. I write out my daily to-do lists in different colors. Just for fun.

6. Try this procrastination trick

One way to “cure” procrastination is to trick your mind. I’m a big fan of the Pomodoro technique and have adapted it a bit.  All you do is set a timer for 30-minutes, commit to working until the timer goes off, and then take a five minute break. If you feel overwhelmed by a project, or are just having an off day, I promise this works. You’ll be surprised how fast 30 minutes flies by (and if it doesn’t - great, you slogged through 30 minutes - which is a lot better than zero minutes). I always tell people I wrote my book, Hollywood Game Plan, in 30-minute increments 

7. Make space

This doesn’t mean becoming a minimalist (although some folks find minimalism helps them feel more organized), I’m talking about making space in your schedule. It’s easy to give away every second of your day to others and forget yourself (and your main motivation that you’re working towards!). If something interferes with your goals or self-care, just say, “NO”.This might mean less time on social media, declining a social obligation that you don’t need to (or want to) be at, or not answering a text or picking up a phone call you don’t need to respond to right now. Make space and time for you.

8. Backup everything

Scripts, photos, contracts, websites, videos - just do it. Trust me, you’ll never regret it.

9. Learn to disconnect

If you’re constantly working to further your career (no matter how organized you are) you’re eventually going to burn out. Make time each day to disconnect from your laptop and phone and take a break. Read a good book, do a 15 minute yoga video, take the time to cook dinner (or walk to get your favorite takeout). This includes disconnecting each month to practice a bit of self-care (which doesn’t have to mean mani/pedi’s - it’s whatever fills your cup. Maybe a pottery class, a Saturday at the beach, or anyplace in nature that makes you feel peaceful).

10. Make time for introspection

A well-organized life that serves you and your career usually needs some “re-evaluation” as you grow, expand, and move closer to what you want in life. So practice regular introspection. Once a day (or even once a week) sit, breathe, get quiet and reflect on any recent accomplishments, needs, problems, emotions, and goals. I do TM 20-minutes a day (most days). Journaling what comes up can be a great way to access your subconscious and tangibly figure out what needs to change in your mindset and/or your schedule.

11. The early bird…

Another ‘organizational cliche,’ but in my opinion early risers really do get a jump on the rest of us. If you’re not a confirmed night owl, think about if you went to bed just half an hour earlier, and woke up a half an hour earlier what more could you get done in your day? That half hour a day could change your whole week, month, and year! The days I wake up at 6:30am, I get so much done.

What do you do to stay organized? Let me know @CaroleKirsch!

Also, for my guide on presenting your best self, check out my FREE e-book, “Tell Your Story in 60 Seconds”.