This is part two in my series about how to survive that #assistantlife. Read part one here.

As an assistant at an agency, you’re fighting two battles: not only are you constantly putting out fires and helping clients and managing their schedules and your bosses’ schedule and working 11+ hour days to solve problems for writers and directors, but then you have to some how find a way to carve out time to do the job you WANT.

For me, and a lot of us, that job is writing. Yes, it’s an art form, but you have to treat it like a job before it can become your art. Step number one for assistants trying to be writers is to show up and actually write.

And then you have to network, balance the job, and be a real human and do laundry and run errands and also have fun and hang out with people and live life.

Oh hi real life, I didn’t see you there behind the MOUNTAINS OF WORK I HAVE TO DO.

Anyways, I’ve spent the better part of the past five months trying to figure out what the hell I’m doing and I think I came up with some semblance of a routine that makes this job a little less of a constant roller coaster and singular high-pitched scream, and more of a slow-motion car-chase (cool and only a disaster sometimes.)

Here’s what my typical day looks like: [Read more…]