Overcoming Limiting Beliefs (and Lack of Experience) to Break Into Scripted Television | with Marcella Garcia

When editor Marcella Garcia originally reached out to me in January because she was stuck in the wrong place in her career and wanted to make a seemingly impossible transition into scripted entertainment, she did not expect to be sending me this message just six months later (in the Optimizer Slack community):

Like Marcella, when people come to me for help, they commonly describe themselves as feeling stuck, overwhelmed, burned out, and ready to change. They are burdened with limiting beliefs that convince them they “can’t change,” and they have no idea what the path looks like to get where they want to go next. Whether that sounds like personal growth jargon to you or not is irrelevant - what really matters are the results.

Marcella is a shining example of the results that are possible when you put in the work. Growing up in San Antonio, Texas, Marcella didn't see a lot of other Mexican-American women becoming Hollywood film and television editors. Unconsciously this lack of representation held her back and even limited her dreams of what might be possible for her own career. She worked as a short form editor on digital lifestyle content for Fortune 500 magazine brands, but it wasn't until she mentored young women in high school that she realized she wanted more from her career.

This led her to join the Optimizer coaching and mentorship program, and six months later the rest is history. In our conversation you'll hear how Marcella overcame her anxious thoughts, faced her fears, and discovered how much more she's capable of achieving. You’ll also learn how she created a very clear (and very doable) path that has not only led Marcella to her first job as an assistant editor in scripted television, she's now mentoring other young women to pursue their passions in film and television becoming the representation she never had.

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Here's What You'll Learn:

• Marcella's history in editing and what brought her to the Optimizer community in January.
• The fears that held her back and made her doubt what she was capable of becoming.
• The challenges of being a Mexican American woman in editing.
• What led to Marcella ‘finding her why’ that has kept her motivated to keep pursuing her dreams.
• The story behind Marcella's limiting beliefs and how she discovered her true passion in scripted film and television.
• How she dealt with the obstacle and fear of saying no to opportunities that weren't right.
• The importance of always providing value to others even when it means not getting what you think you want right away.
• KEY TAKEAWAY:  We’re playing a game of chess not checkers.
• The factors that changed for Marcella to get her unlocked from her limiting beliefs.
• Marcella's ‘Tendency’ and how she learned to deal with analysis paralysis.
• Learning your secondary tendency and how to manage it.
• Discovering how to pay attention to what you want and building awareness to patterns and habits that have been programmed since childhood.
• How being vulnerable in the Optimizer Community helped her get a job as a scripted AE.
• The incredible story of how Marcella nailed her interview to get the job she wanted.
• Marcella's advice for anyone wanting to start out on this journey who feels stuck and unsure of where to start.

Useful Resources Mentioned:

Optimizer Coaching Program

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Guest Bio:

Marcella is currently an assistant editor within the world of scripted television. Her desire to create, connect and collaborate with others to tell unique, impactful stories is what drives her to continuously grow within the film and television industry. Prior to becoming a scripted television assistant editor Marcella has worked as an editor for digital lifestyle content for Fortune 500 magazine brands and assisted on United Skates, an Emmy nominated documentary film.

If you ask her what her greatest achievements have been over the past few years, she will say overcoming her own fears and limiting beliefs. This has allowed her to continuously reach her goals which has only fueled her to begin mentoring young, creative Mexican-American women from her hometown of San Antonio, Texas. By sharing her experience she hopes to inspire others.

When she's not doing what she loves, she is drinking far too many Matcha lattes and biking around town.

Show Credits:

This episode was edited by Chris Orsi, and the show notes were prepared by Debby Germino and published by Glen McNiel.

The original music in the opening and closing of the show is courtesy of Joe Trapanese (who is quite possibly one of the most talented composers on the face of the planet).