Students in a course I teach (adjunct) repeatedly came to class and spent the first 5 minutes bitching about parking, or the lack thereof. After a few days of this I said, "OK, pop quiz. Who can name the one thing you must have in order to join in this kaffeklatsch concerning the dearth of parking spaces?"

It took them about 10 minutes before one student got that "A-ha!" look and blurted out, "A car!"

I said, "Yes," and just let it sink in until they either felt just a tad of shame. Just a few seconds more, and another student said, "I guess we sound pretty selfish to anyone who takes the bus." Some heads nodded, the point was affirmed.

They stopped complaining about parking.

Cary gave you some great advice in a very firm yet polite fashion. I'm sure many letters will follow that basically say, "Cry me a river." If you're not ready for that "swift kick in the ass" kind of advice, I advise you to stop reading now, and just take Cary's advice.

forgot to clip "either" from my post...-5 points grammar

Some people in the LW's position and mindset find a single, meaningful, rewarding career path that they follow to the end of their days, I suppose. I don't happen to know any of them, but I'm sure it happens. But most drift along in a series of jobs that they find beneath them, and the story continues apace.

So, lacking inspiration towards a particular career, for reasons both external and internal, the short term is probably more of the same for the LW. And financial realities may make the film and media studies idea difficult -- he's already unable to support himself, and is pining for a career that will first require yet another significant outlay of money, with no guarantee of a decent-paying job at the end of the day. Sounds bleak, but it's hardly a death sentence.

Assuming the LW can call upon a work ethic to survive, my advice is to put that intellect to work doing a better job than those around him/her, even in jobs that he considers beneath him. Once he takes on some trappings of life, he'll probably find that a job is a job, and by definition not "beneath him". And by keeping his eyes open and remaining willing to talk to others in his position during these meandering times, a particular idea or personal contact will eventually take hold and he'll do fine. This is what happens. Advising him to follow his dreams is all well and good, but the LW doesn't sound particularly invested even in the media studies thing. So keep working, put on a good face, and take opportunities that promise incremental improvement on his situation -- that's my advice.

1. Work out what you love to do.

2. Find a better paying job that you can do without dying inside.

3. Save up for a year (or whatever amount of time you need) so you have some capital. You have to be tough about this, spend only on neccessities (food clothing shelter) and the occassional good time.

4. After you have the money, go back to the thing you love.

Also keep your eyes open to what is going on in your chosen field. You might be able to find an entry level job that can get you started.

Most importantly, believe in yourself and what you want to do. As Joseph Campbell said "Follow your bliss". I did.

Any thoughts, Cary?

Americans have a large and rising disposable income. What do people do with disposable incomes? They seek entertainment.

The experience economy in the US, which is the economy driven by all forms of "entertainment", including sports, arts and culture, music, film, and video games, is now valued at over $500B annually, and it is growing.

My city is a film production centre outside the US. Here, as in America, crews work day and night shooting films, television shows, and commercials. Others are at work in the video gaming industry, while still others are do sound and recording for the music industry. Lots of cities are like this. Just last night I spoke to a girlfriend who produced a new TV series that debuted to great reviews and was picked up by several networks around the world, none of which I had heard of. You may never see this show, but she employs a huge staff and crew, including 5 writers.

Nobody in my town would think that graduate work in psychology is a safer career option than film and media studies. But it can be a brilliant beginning for a film-maker.

Start by figuring out how someone would succeed at your goal, and then follow your own advice. Remember the advice of Peter Drucker: "The best way to predict the future is to create it." You created the present you are now living. It is up to you to create the future that you want.

Set a goal and make a plan.

Change your context and your paradigm. Find a city with a good film school and an established film base and start again. Living among others who have already learned how to succeed will change your perception of your own chances. You can work in the industry and put yourself through film school. Yours is not a wild dream, it is the rewarding career choice of hundreds of thousands of gifted professionals. Why not you?

Believe in karma. Everything that you have done up until now is for a reason, and you will discover what that was when you find success. Be curious and interested in others. Make friends and keep them--they will do more for you 10 and 20 years from now than you can imagine--as you will do for them.

If you feel like it is too late, remember that in 4 years you will be thirty (which by the way is still very young). By then you could either be working in the industry you love, or still trying to adjust to having given up on a dream too young.

If you choose the latter, you will feel then exactly as you do today, but you will be 30, not 26.