We connected with some of the most resilient folks in the community and one of the most insightful questions we had an opportunity to ask centered around whether there was ever a time they almost gave up. Highlighting some of the responses below.
Steve Deering
I wouldn’t say I was tempted to give up, but the post 2020 time was trying for us all. The industry has been going through some enormous changes ever since. Strikes, fires, AI. All of this is shaking up the movie business in ways we couldn’t expect. However, I was able to persist by just rearranging my mindset. Read more >>>
Paul Neri
About five years ago, everything in my life fell apart at once. I went through a painful breakup — my first real love — and a few months later I was in a motorcycle accident that left me with a fractured wrist and a torn meniscus. I couldn’t work, I couldn’t walk normally, and I had no idea how I was going to pay rent. Read more >>>
Krystal Sastre
Yes. [When everything I thought defined me started to fall apart — relationships, career, my sense of identity. I felt my life falling apart when my relationships, career, and sense of self, you know the things that I thought defined me. I felt like I was standing in the middle of my own life, but nothing around me felt like mine anymore. Read more >>>
EFFY HAN
Was there ever a time I almost gave up? Honestly — yes, more than once. LA is not an easy city to live in, and the entertainment industry is not an easy one to survive in. Read more >>>
Martina Robles Gallegos
I believe there have been more times in my life I almost gave up, especially what I’ve been going through for the last twenty-five plus years living in what I thought was part of my ‘American Dream’ I worked so hard to get, my own home that has become an absolute nightmare, with abusive neighbors left and right; neighbors who’ve been stealing my property and utilities to engage in illegal activities nobody ever did anything about, and neighbors who’ve sent me to ER for things they’re responsible for but don’t care. Read more >>>
Jeremy Nevil
I’ve almost ‘given up’ as in ‘wanted to die’ multiple times throughout life due to various health issues that affected my body, mind, and finances every day. BUT, I’m still here, and I’m glad to be here. Chronic pain is just so miserable sometimes, and a lot of people sadly don’t ‘make it’. Read more >>>
Tim Finnegan
There was one time that I almost gave up on my dream of living in LA when things didn’t go as planned when I first moved to LA. I didn’t live in the best two apartments/houses and I had to move out right away. Read more >>>
Lillian Krovoza
What’s the difference between giving up and redefining success? When I was younger I thought for SURE I was going to play Coachella. Coachella 2018 I remember thinking. And then 2018 came around and I thought well maybe Coachella 2020. And then 2022. And then… am I ever going to play Coachella? Read more >>>
Brendice Hines
After the birth of my second child, I found myself overwhelmed, overworked, and on the verge of giving up on my business. Money was tight, and I could barely keep things going. With nothing left to lose, I took my last $100 and invested it back into my business. Read more >>>
Jesse Vilinsky
There were a few times honestly. When I graduated college, I thought I wanted to be an on-camera actor. But when I got out on my own, and had bills to pay, and every door seemed closed shut, or too hard to figure out how to open, I really tried to rationalize if there was anything else I could see myself doing. Read more >>>
JANAE THOMAS
Yes, there was a time when I almost gave up. When I first moved to Los Angeles, I had years of experience in the bar, lounge, and club industry, including staff management. My thought was simple: move to Hollywood, get hired at one of the top clubs, and of course I’d make it. I had the look, the experience, the résumé, why not? Read more >>>
Jay Abdo
There were so many moments in my life when I felt like giving up. I ended up in Los Angeles as a refugee, and the immigration system didn’t even grant my wife a work permit. In my fifties, I had to take any job I could find just to pay for food and rent. Read more >>>
Michael Ursu
Perhaps in the beginning, but I was never, EVER fond of a ‘Plan B.’ Even when I was trying to make it in music with composing and playing shows. Sure, I had a day job back then – so grateful to be full-time now – but I don’t think the most talented rise to the top. Read more >>>
Jhair Guerrero
Yes, there were moments when I felt close to giving up—especially in the early stages of my career when resources were limited and opportunities felt scarce. But those challenges taught me resilience and reinforced my passion for photography. Every obstacle became a lesson that shaped the artist and professional I am today. Read more >>>
Michelle McSwain
I actually have ‘given up’ before and it was one of the best decisions of my life. After spending eight years working on a tech start-up focused on photography, with several investors and experiencing massive ups and downs, my partners and I finally decided to stop/dissolve the business. Read more >>>
JoJo Williams
In my career I have faced many health issues that have limited how I provide services as a bodyworker and business owner. I am diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury and lymphedema to my right leg. The health issues have at many times caused me to almost give up. Read more >>>
Vivian Ahn
Many times — honestly, every day I think about giving up. It wasn’t just rejection, it was self-doubt: Am I good enough? Do I even have the talent? Am I pretty enough? Maybe I’m not working hard enough? Watching classmates succeed while I struggled made me question myself even more. Read more >>>
Darrell Jamaal Thomas
There have definitely been times where I thought about giving up. Being an entrepreneur is one of the hardest things you can do, because at the end of the day you’re solving problems and often doing it on your own. Just like the gym — I go five or six times a week — it’s about showing up, even when it’s tough. Read more >>>
Cameron Mitchell
I don’t know what I’d do if I gave up! I’ve never had a Plan B, never had a backup plan. I’ve been writing all my life, and in the last twelve years here in LA there’s never been a question of ‘what if.’ I’m lucky that I’ve been able to have as much opportunity as I have had. Read more >>>
Linda Ruiz Peña
I did give up in a sense. There’s often a negative connotation around that phrase yet I feel giving something up can give space for something expansive. I’ve always been someone who makes a plan, lines up the tasks, and sees it through. That approach has served me well in many areas of my life. Read more >>>
