Here at the JLA office we are ALWAYS hard at work. Whether we’re reading through potential scripts, having conference calls with producers or prepping for my next role, my team is relentless. I am so blessed to have such a dedicated team working with me and I really do thank God every day for bringing such devoted and enthusiastic individuals into my life. Not only do they believe in me but I also believe in them and know that we are working together as a team toward a common goal!
This past year has been a whirlwind to say the least! There is never a dull moment and there never seems to be a spare minute. My team and I have learned that while planning is great and important, it’s more important to be able to switch gears when an opportunity presents itself but even MORE important to remain organized and keep the communications flowing through it all. By creating and maintaining a strong foundation, my team and I are able to handle anything that comes our way!
I am at a very exciting point in my career where opportunities are starting to present themselves more and more often. It is sometimes difficult to not lose yourself in these situations where everything seems to be happening so fast. I have learned to always try to take a step back when in the midst of these situations to make sure that I am seeing everything clearly. That is another reason that I am so blessed to be part of a team that is there to offer clarity in more chaotic times!
Part of this clarity comes from having organization and structure in place. As is true with most things in life, without a solid foundation it is difficult to grow to our full potential. By keeping an organized system in place with open communication, I find my team is able to work most efficiently. By understanding everyone’s strengths, we are able to tackle each task most effectively to get the best results.
This is not to say that we are perfect by any means! We do, however, try our best to always learn from our mistakes so that we can avoid making the same mistakes twice. When something doesn’t go to plan and we get knocked down, we take that opportunity to reflect on what happened and why and then we get back on our horse and try again!
No matter what industry you’re in, keep in mind that we are all human and we all will continue to make mistakes, no matter how much we may try. What is important is that we are brave enough to say what we are feeling when we have something on our minds because the longer we let it fester, the more it affects us and those around us. This applies to our personal lives too! When you have an issue in the workplace it is sometimes easy to bring those issues home with you if they are not handled right away.
I have had a few situations where I had something on my mind that I let fester as opposed to sucking it up and addressing the situation head on. Not only did it affect my work, but it also affected those around me. When I finally got to the point where I felt the need to bring up what was on my mind, more times than not, I found that the other people involved were also feeling similar anxieties. This is why it is so important to just be brave and address the situations as soon as you realize them. We all have things going on in our lives that may bother us at times, and that won’t change. What is important is to throw these things on the table so that it can all be sorted.
I have mentioned that here at the JLA Office we are all perfectionists. We want to be the best we can be in everything but sometimes we can get carried away. We’re all human. We’re not perfect. We all make mistakes and will continue to make mistakes… and that’s okay. When you’re striving for the best, sometimes you’ll fall short and your end result will still be great. Will it be up to your standards? Not always. Does that mean your efforts were wasted? Absolutely not because we can learn something from everything we do. Think about it – everything happens for a reason and if you reflect on the past, you have learned something and taken something away from even your worst experiences. Quite frankly, from my toughest life experiences I have taken away the most valuable life lessons.
I will be the first to admit that I am not perfect and I can’t expect others to be perfect. We can’t always be “on.” Sometimes we won’t be able to perform at 100% and those around us will struggle at times as well. Being part of a team is about being able to realize when someone is having a tough time, whether with work or other things in their lives, and helping them through to the best of your ability.
I am still learning to not harp on the small mishaps because we all have them. Even though I consider myself to be a perfectionist, I have to work hard to not let small inconsistencies bother me. I have very high standards for my team and myself but just because I don’t believe something is up to my standards does not mean it’s not still great! That is what is so wonderful about being part of a collaborative team: we get multiple versions of greatness! Keep your eye on the big picture and you’ll see that sometimes the little mishaps add to the overall greatness of what you’re looking to accomplish!
Something else I’ve learned is that it is important to not let the small things escalate. I find that by keeping open communication with my team, we are able to catch any issues that we encounter in their early stages, which make them much easier for us to tackle! It’s crazy to think about how many issues arise from simple miscommunications or misunderstandings! No matter what industry you’re part of, make sure that your team has an excellent communication strategy in place. It will save you so many headaches down the road!
Here at the JLA Office we all pride ourselves on being “work horses!” We’re all perfectionists and we’re all working toward a common goal as a team. It’s so great to be able to trust your team and know that at any moment we are all doing our part to get us to the place we know we’re destined to be! Hard work pays off and by keeping an organized work environment with open communication, it makes that ladder a lot easier to climb! I wish you all the best of luck in your ventures, both big and small! Remember to live in the moment and remember how blessed we are to be alive on this big blue marble with a great life ahead of us. Each day and each experience is a gift! XO