Loyalty is a rare trait in Hollywood, so when I see it, it’s something to behold and to remind yourself that it still exists, even when you’ve been backstabbed or passed over.
I was reminded of this last Sunday when I watched Adam Sandler accept the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor…
Although I watched it for laughs, the show had its tender moments and gave me hope that the entertainment industry CAN contain people of integrity.
Check out the picture below of Sandler and his SNL castmates. He pretty much still works with all of them! Chris Rock, Dana Carvey, Rob Schneider, Kevin Nealon, Tim Meadows, and David Spade were all there to present, roast and celebrate alongside Sandler's other long time friends and co-stars Jennifer Aniston, Steve Buscemi, Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore.
First of all, working in the entertainment industry can definitely take its toll. One of Sandler’s friends mentioned how he sometimes goes into a funk and says how it may be time to hang up his shingle and that maybe he’s too old and it’s all over. The cycles of feast or famine affect even prolific movie stars and filmmakers like Sandler (although he most likely has savings and investments to last his lifetime, if he ever did stop working).
However, watching Sandler’s friends joke about how he’s helped half of the Kennedy Center qualify for their SAG health insurance shows how generous he is with his friends and how he’s not in the scarcity mentality that there’s only enough for one person. He’s not competing with his fellow SNL cohorts and comedians. Instead, he keeps making movies with the same group of friends.
He is loyal, and his friends reciprocate by also being loyal to him. It’s also a reminder that when you’re on top, to cultivate a community of people who are also loyal to you, instead of always chasing the “popular” kids. Sandler doesn’t care about who’s popular and who’s not.
Sure he’s worked with a lot of “big-name” people like Salma Hayek, Jennifer Aniston and Drew Barrymore, but it seems he’s also interested in them, not because of their celebrity status but also because of their comedic talent and, almost more importantly, their qualities as a human beings.
Finally, what also struck me about Sandler was how he talked about his parents’ wholehearted belief in him and how that translated to how much faith he had in himself. Even before he got on SNL, he would tell his friends how the “Sandman” was going to be HUGE!
I know this belief system is paramount to his successes.
When we have a foundation for believing in ourselves, it makes manifesting our dreams that much easier.
So you may be saying to yourself, is that’s why I’m not achieving the success I want to have in my acting, writing, producing, directing, painting, or music career? And if I don’t have that foundation, what do I do?
Well, it’s time to create that foundation. Sure it’s much easier if you had it when you were a kid, but I don’t think it’s ever too late.
👉 You can work with a coach who can not only coach you on how to create the foundation but also lend you their belief in you and your abilities before you 100% belief for yourself. A good coach will do that for you.
👉 You can also work with a therapist or a trauma-informed coach and uncover those childhood traumas that are still unconsciously running the show and stealthily sabotaging you to keep you small (and seemingly protected).
👉 You can also create your own support system with a chosen family of friends and colleagues who believe in you and your work and who are there to lift you up when you’re down and celebrate you when you’re making those dreams happen.
If you had parents who 100% believed in you and your dreams, share in the comments what they did to help you believe in yourself. If you didn’t have that in childhood, what are you committed to create as a foundation for yourself, so that you can believe that it’s possible? Let me know in the comments too. And if you want to borrow my belief in you or work through what may be holding you back, let me know too. Send me an email. I believe in you and your abilities and want to be the wind beneath your wings, to guide you to soar to your greatest heights.
With Love, Belief & Gratitude,
