We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lesley Grant. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lesley below.

Lesley, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I think that learning and mastering your craft is part of a lifelong pursuit in any field, but especially in creative fields. I remember when I was little, my mom enrolled my sister and I in all kinds of activities like ballet, piano, taekwondo, soccer, theater, etc. I was always horribly shy and bad at all of them. It wasn’t until I got a bit older that I started to gain faith in myself. When I was starting out, my ambition far exceeded my abilities. It’s a frustrating feeling because you know where you want to arrive at, but you’re not sure how to get there. Since then, I’ve been fortunate enough to study and work with amazing teachers, directors, and peers who have inspired me along the way.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

When I graduated college I bought a one-way ticket to Barcelona to see how long I could make it. I moved on a whim and fell in love with the city and started looking for work. I was in a HORRIBLE job that I hated, but had overstayed my visa and didn’t have many options. While I was out to lunch with my boss one day, a woman came over to me and offered me a job at her agency. As I barely spoke Spanish at the time I had no idea what she was talking about and thought it was a PR firm so said yes as I was desperate to escape my current situation. It turned out to be an acting and modeling agency, and I’m still with them to this day. Through this chance encounter, I’ve been lucky enough to travel all over the world to Egypt, Dublin, LA, NYC, Paris and more and create amazing movies, TV shows, and projects that I’m very proud of. It’s fun to think that a younger version of myself would be proud too.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

One of the most rewarding aspects of this work is getting to create your own schedule and lifestyle. It’s like a ‘choose your own adventure’ book. It can be very difficult because compared to other fields, input doesn’t directly correspond with output, and it can be a lot more risky than working for say a corporation, but most of the people I speak to in this field wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s heartbreaking when you lose projects that you swore you were right for or have to choose between two things that overlap at the same time, or even wonder if every project is your last, but at the end of the day you just have to accept that it’s all part of the game. When I was younger I said “yes” to every single opportunity that came my way. I wanted to learn and try everything and meet everyone I could. As I’ve gotten older, my goal has been to say “no” to more things in life. To choose intentionally where I’m investing my energy and time.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

One of the most life changing things I’ve done has been setting a goal of reading 60 books a year which I started three years ago. The thing about reading 60 books a year is that it’s A LOT of books, more than one a week. It’s very difficult and you have to be very committed. After I read Matthew McConaughey’s memoir “Greenlights” he talked about how one of the books that changed his life was “The Greatest Salesman in the World.” I read it and became inspired by how one of the first principles is around developing habits that shape your life. I made reading a habit and started reading an hour and a half everyday. I’ll bring books whenever I’m commuting or walking my dog or before bed every night.

To reach 60 books, it also means that you have to read a lot of books that you might not normally read. I read memoirs, non-fiction, poetry, plays and more and it’s really opened me up to many ideas that I don’t think I would have been exposed to otherwise. I think the goal of reading is to help you refine your worldview just a little bit more with each one.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://imdb.me/lesleygrant
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lesleygrant/

Image Credits
Enric Fradera, Paula Riherz, Emma Trim, Beatriz Maldonado