The Answer?

I copy this post from the web www.blog.edwardsuhadi.com.
The title of the post is : Stepping Up.



Stepping Up

by Edward Suhadi





I just finished watching Step Up Revolution.



It was breath-taking and mind-blowing. I just wanted to shout all along the movie and shake my tushy off.




The dance and cinematography gimmicks are cool, but what’s really touch me deep is the dancers.



You see, I’m always close to the the dancing world. I think it is mainly because I dated a dancer for seven years in my younger years, so I can see their world up close and know what is really happening.



Dancers are one of the most passionate, determined and idealistic people. Their profession basically summed up what passion is.



I admire them. I really do.



A lot of us don’t realize this, but for every three minute dance performance we see, there are people that come to the studio for weeks just to practice and practice and get it right.



I know first hand on what it feels like coming to practice three times a week, going through traffic, amidst office deadlines, amidst exhaustion, choreographing, memorizing, working out the details, doing it over and over and over and saying “five, six, seven, eight” over and over and over and over and over and over… Just for a three minute performance.



I sometimes think, up until now, “Are you people crazy? All these? For three minutes? Some of the audience is barely looking.”



Can you imagine how many sweaty exhausting hours of practice they gave just for being that little dot in the frame corner for two seconds? But they love it, they don’t care. I know, I’ve been there. Once the music is on, they just. dont. care.

And they definately don’t do it for the money. There’s no money in dancing. Even in a society where dancing is much more appriciated, it is quite hard to make a decent life based on dancing alone.



But they keep doing it. They keep dancing.



Because they love it. And that’s enough.



It doesn’t pay as much as the office job or the usual carreer path their friends are taking or their parents are approving, but they keep on dancing. Against what is established. Following their heart. Pursuing the dream. Not many people are like that nowadays. Not many.



I feel related to them, seeing these dancers jumping around like rabbits from my dark theater seat.



My company too have lost sales and clients based on some idealistic terms and ideas that we have in place starting this year, but that’s okay, since we are now building the clientele with the right fit for our company. It might be not popular, yet, but we keep on going, we keep on ‘dancing’.



I feel like saying to the dancers on the screen, “I feel you man. I feel you.”



But of course to create great, idealistic mind-blowing projects, ‘the dancers’ have to learn how to sell it, how to make a sustainable carreer around these things that they love.



I love this expression ‘Passion and Profit’: It won’t be profitable if it wasn’t passionate, but without profit, it won’t last very long. The two have to exist together.



The passionate people have to learn how to bring the business side to their craft, and the businessmen have to learn to take risks by supporting these people.



Heck, all the genre-defining greats started out like that. Nobody wanted to touch Harry Potter, The Matrix, The Lord of The Rings. Too idealistic. Nobody has done this before. But somewhere along the way, there were producers and publishers that stepped up to take the risk. Passionate projects backed by good money. Bada-boom. Big bada-boom.



That’s why I always whisper a silent prayer if I saw a passion project/business, while also trying to support them the way I can. They need to know that there are people that still believe that dreams come true :)



If we don’t dream, what are we?



So here’s to all the dancers that I know: Francy, Evy, Suhanti, Aline, Cialing, Wiwiek, Santi, Yosandi, Aman, Leo, Suzan, Mona, Rita, Tisen, Vijay, Sandy, Cynthia, Yen Yen, Sella, Dada, Felice, Meimei and all of you out there who continue to come to the studio even if the world doesn’t know and the world doesn’t care: all of you have inspired me. To keep on going. To keep on doing what you love. Despite. Eventhough.



Here’s to the dancers:



Thank you.



* * * * *



A request: If you ever watch a dance performance, in the mall, in the church, on the stage, after they finish, come up to them and just say, “Hey, you did a great job there. Thank you.” It will mean the world to them :)



The writings above was taken from http://blog.edwardsuhadi.com/2012/08/18/stepping-up/

The Gambler

"That's the issue everyone's facing in life isn't it? We all have ideals. We all need money."
-Arem Duplessis-

It just punch me in the face. Reality.
I didn't realize until recently that there is a time limit for chasing dreams.
I just watched this movie, and I don't know why but movies always have it's own way of delivering it's message for me, stronger than any other media.

The main character is a dancer who believe that he can live and earn money by becoming a professional dancer one day. But one day everything is starting to fall apart and it seems like he has to give up his dream of becoming a dancer, and started to work at a company as a regular office worker.

It just hit me that when you grow up, you have less options. You cannot do whatever it is that you wish to do, because you are no longer living for yourself.

Even though you like it. Even though it is your passion. Even though you think you're really good at it. Even though your're believing that you can earn a living from it. When you grow older, you have to prove all that. Or else, you have to leave it. Simply said, when you get older, you'll need to start earning money.

When you grow older, you need money.

And that's why there is a time limit for dreaming.

You need to make it work. If you want to choose dancing as your career, than by a certain age you need to prove that you can earn enough money from dancing. If you want to be a painter, an artist, a musician, a sound engineer, a firefighter, a soldier, or any other profession that you wanted to be, at some time you need to start making money. Or else, you need to find something else to do, that makes money.
I just realize that. (where have I been, right?)

So I'll place my bet. I've set my time limit. I'll take the leap of faith.
Godspeed.

S.O.S. We Need More Specialist!

Ayah saya selalu bilang kalau hidup ini ibarat hutan belantara.
Kita ga akan pernah bakal tau, rintangan seperti apa yang kita bakal hadapi nanti. Oleh karena itu, alangkah baiknya kalau kita mempersiapkan sebanyak mungkin "senjata" sebelum memasuki hutan belantara tersebut.

Begitu beliau selalu berpesan. Paksakan dirimu belajar sedikit ini dan sedikit itu, kita tidak akan pernah tau, siapa tau sepanjang perjalanan hidup kita, hal-hal yang kita pelajari tersebut mungkin suatu saat akan kita butuhkan.

Saya tumbuh dengan mempercayai hal itu. Tidak buruk memang, tidak buruk sama sekali.
Didikan itu membuat saya sangat terbuka terhadap hal-hal baru, terhadap pemikiran baru, cara baru-ataupun lama, apapun, yang berbeda, semakin banyak, semakin beragam, semakin baik.

Namun, seiring berjalannya waktu saya perlahan menyadari bahwa pemikiran menjadi generalis tidaklah sepenuhnya tepat.

KITA BUTUH LEBIH BANYAK SPESIALIS! INDONESIA BUTUH LEBIH BANYAK SPESIALIS!

Definisi seorang spesialis menurut saya adalah seorang yang sangat-sangat ahli di bidang spesifik tertentu, bukan berarti pengetahuannya "nol" di bidang lainnya, namun untuk bidang tertentu, dia punya kemampuan yang jauh melebih rata-rata orang pada umumnya.

Kenapa kita butuh lebih banyak spesialis?

Menurut saya, Indonesia negara yang kaya. Negara yang sangat beragam. Banyak peluang di berbagai bidang, di berbagai daerah, di berbagai sektor industri, yang bisa dimanfaatkan.

Seorang anak TIDAK HARUS SELALU dibesarkan untuk menjadi seorang karyawan. Tidak harus selalu menjadi akuntan, tidak harus selalu menjadi seorang pengacara, tidak harus selalu menjadi seorang sales, marketing, finance, dan pekerjaan-pekerjaan "mainstream" lainnya.

Don't get me wrong, tidak ada yang salah dengan pekerjaan-pekerjaan di atas. Sama sekali tidak. Kalau memang dari antara pekerjaan-pekerjaan yang saya sebutkan sebagai "mainstream" di atas, ada yang merupakan passion kalian,hal yang kalian cinta untuk lakukan, then go ahead do it!

YANG SALAH ADALAH JIKA PEKERJAAN-PEKERJAAN DI ATAS DILAKUKAN KARENA TERPAKSA.

Karena paksaan orang tua, atau paksaan lingkungan, atau bahkan paksaan diri sendiri.

Passion, menurut saya adalah salah satu (jika tidak satu-satunya) pertimbangan seseorang dalam menentukan profesi yang dia akan pilih.

Motonya adalah : Be the best that you can be, in whatever field you choose.
Mau jadi penulis? Silahkan. Mau jadi pelukis? Monggo. Mau jadi arkeolog? Astronot? Pilot? Ahli bebatuan? Ahli astronomi? Ahli tumbuhan? Ahli hewan?

Lalu muncullah pertanyaan paling klise yang biasanya menghancurkan mimpi setiap anak di seluruh nusantara : "Kalau jadi itu, apa nanti bisa hidup? Apa ada uangnya? Bagaimana nanti masa depan kamu nak?"

Akhirnya biasanya, selamat tinggal pelukis, halo pegawai bank. Selamat tinggal sutradara film layar lebar, halo pengacara.

Pertanyaan saya sekarang :
1. Kira-kira, kalau kita adalah sound engineer terbaik yang dimiliki Indonesia, apakah kita akan jatuh miskin? Kalau kita adalah ahli gempa bumi terbaik yang dimiliki Indonesia, apakah kita akan kesulitan mencari pekerjaan? Kalau kita ahli tanah dan bebatuan terbaik yang dimiliki Indonesia, bahkan mungkin dunia, apa masih perlu konsultan dari luar negeri untuk menghentikan lumpur lapindo? (yang toh ternyata tidak berhasil juga)
Dan jika, sekali lagi jika KITA ADALAH YANG TERBAIK DI BIDANG KITA, apakah kita mungkin hidup susah karena tidak punya uang?

Pertanyaan anda selanjutnya tentu :
2. Bagaimana caranya supaya bisa menjadi yang terbaik? Ada lebih dari 200 juta orang di Indonesia.

Betul ada lebih dari 200 juta orang, tapi ada lebih dari 200 juta profesi unik, yang bisa kita masing-masing tekuni.

Miris mendengar bahwa tidak ada profesor bambu yang berasal dari Indonesia, padahal Indonesia merupakan salah satu daerah penghasil bambu yang cukup banyak. Di Eropa dan Amerika, banyak ahlinya. Mereka bahkan sudah menggunakan bambu sebagai bahan utama bangunan pengganti kayu pohon.
Miris rasanya mendengar bahwa kita yang negara agraris (katanya), tapi masih ekspor banyak sekali hasil pertanian dari negara tetangga. Beras, kacang kedelai, kacang hijau?
Banyak kemirisan lain di berbagai bidang yang saya dengan pengetahuan saya yang terbatas tidak ketahui.

My bottom line is,
please..be the best in whatever fields YOU choose.
Choose it wise, love what you do, do it long enough, and before long you'll be the expert in it.
And when you're an expert, it is only a matter of time until money will start to come into your pocket.
Your job is no longer a work, you're enjoying it, and you get paid for doing it!
Sounds good enough to you, people?