What Is The Mindset Needed To Be A Successful Commercial Director w/ Ryan Booth

Have you ever wondered what it takes to be a commercial director? If I told you that it takes a lot of losing would you still be interested? Today's guest has honed the perfect mindset for turning his rejections into personal wins and his career has been taking off ever since.

There's a good chance many of you have heard of Ryan Booth. He's a prolific young filmmaker who has worked as a DP and director on commercials for some of the country's biggest brands. These days, Ryan wears many different hats. As a Brooklyn-based Texan, he directs commercials, pitches documentary series and TV shows, and develops his own features.

In this candid chat, Ryan shares his journey into the world of directing commercials. Getting to where he is today took a lot of focus and determination, as well as a realization of where his true priorities lie. We talk about the power that lies in having other people on board your team who are just as dedicated to getting the project done as you. As someone with talent and experience in so many different areas, Ryan has had to learn how and when to focus his efforts, which has been the key to his continuing success.

How do you pick yourself up after rejection? Leave a comment and let me know on the episode page!

In this episode

Realizing where your time is best spent when you have many different priorities at once
The dangers of multitasking and knowing when you need help moving from one task to the next
How to deal with the bids you lose after you've spent so much time preparing them
Finding the ideal work-life balance through trial, error, and reflection

Quotes

"I've realized that my lofty ideas will never happen without the dedicated effort of producers." [12:50]

"I do plenty of detailed mundane boring stuff, but when I'm directing a commercial that's not my job. My job is to steer the ship. It is to cast the vision. It is to execute that vision. Getting in the weeds is really problematic." [16:35]

"To pitch well, I have to put myself fully into the project. To do that, I have to be vulnerable to the fact that I will likely lose more than I win." [20:45]

"Putting your heart into what you make in my opinion is the only long-term viable way to do this for a living." [25:34]