Promises, Promises

Posted by John Wilson, Mar 15 2010, 10:54 AM

There is a song from the 80's by Naked Eyes called Promises, Promises. Here is the chorus:

Of course this is a love song (or more appropriately a falling out of love song), but it works for comics too.

It's no different when you are starting out. Sure, you are working for friends or people that are just starting out. But if you become the guy that is know to be constantly late, or worse, the guy that says he will do the work and doesn't deliver...do you honestly think that your buddy is likely to bring you along when he hits it big? Really? Are you in the market for some lovely swampland?

I realize that life intrudes, stuff happens, etc. etc...believe me I get that more than you could know, but that doesn't matter. Part of being a professional in any industry is that you do not let your personal life intrude on your work if at all possible. When you are self-employed, which is essentially what you are unless you are under contract to a company, this is even more true. You can't let people down just because of your "stuff". Unless you are unconscious or dead, you need to make adjustments to get the job done.

I have been both the promiser who failed and the promisee. For those I let down, you have my apologizes (although there is no excuse); for those who let me down, heed my words:

Bottom line...YOU absolutely, positively, without fail, have to fulfill your commitments. If you promise to do the work, you have to do it. Period. Or you don't get more work. If you can't do it, if you think that there is the slightest chance that you won't be able to do it...THEN DON'T SAY THAT YOU WILL! DON'T MAKE THE PROMISE! IF YOU ALREADY HAVE, COME CLEAN AND ADMIT YOUR MISTAKE EARLY!

It's as simple as that.