Quote of the Day
"I don't think people talk about the need to really understand the ethics and morals of an organization you're doing business with. If someone doesn't have the kinds of ethics and morals that you have, you probably shouldn't do business with them. Sometimes you have to walk away. There is no client too big where we would do something that we think is inappropriate. There is nothing more important than your personal integrity."
- Tony Anderson of Accounting Firm Ernst & Young in today's Sundays Los Angeles Times Magazine
The quote above is about an Accounting Firm. A business. But it struck me how it really applies to all aspects of life. And that includes Art - such as acting, music, blogging, our whatever else we do here in Hollywood while we are trying to be artistic - and at the same time successful.
And as much as I hate to admit it, Acting is a Business - a huge part of the "Entertainment Business". We talk about being in "The Biz".
"So what do you do?" someone at a party will ask.
"Oh, I'm an actress" - even though my rent payment doesn't come from anything I have acted in recently, - it is still my Career.
Personal Integrity - gee, what does that mean ? Sometimes I wonder if such a thing exists in Hollywood.
People want to know who you are and what you can do for them. But do you know who you are and what you should do for yourself ? Taking care of yourself, making yourself Strong ... so your soul and personality don't get burnt to a crisp by the fires of the Big City.
Its the old line about "being able to look yourself in the mirror". And I don't mean getting Botox and Plastic Surgery.
The internal integrity that goes along with knowing that what you are doing is right, that you are treating other people right, that you are a fair and honest person, and that you have a clear conscience about your Life, your Art, and your Business.
