Reconnect with
your creative passions
Develop the superpower
of hyperfocus
Have the confidence
you are on the right path
“What I really appreciate about working with Zack is that he’s so supportive. He helps me stay focused. We take a goal and he helps me focus on the most important point so I don’t get distracted by all the things I want to do. Having a structure that is so easy to understand is HUGE for me. Zack saved my life when I couldn’t find work and things were dark and depressing. He inspired me to still love my career.”
– Krysia Szyszlo
Nobody ever said that building your dream career would be easy.
It’s a good thing you don’t have to do it alone.
Join an energetic, ambitious, and focused community of creative professionals just like you optimizing every aspect of our lives to reach our fullest creative potential.
Best of all…we’re doing it all from home in our pajamas. 
(you had me at ‘pajamas’)
00 Hours
00 Minutes
00 Seconds
“Why Didn’t Anyone Warn Me It Would Be This Hard?”
No matter your creative craft, when it all comes down to it if you’re an ambitious creative like me, your passion…your OBSESSION is telling meaningful stories. You live to make people feel something.
When you began your career you gave it everything you had simply for the sake of learning, collaborating, and having the opportunity to help other people realize their dreams. You would do anything!
At one point “Exposure Bucks” were enough to pay your bills, and you took whatever gig came your way, working like a machine to build credits and hone your craft. You thought you were unstoppable.
Then came a whopping dose of reality…followed by “the crash.”
Little did you know all that energy directed towards helping others achieve their dreams would be at the expense of your own. Years later you are stuck in a job you don’t want, and the passion for your craft is all but gone.
Now you most likely find yourself asking:
“How did I end up here?”
Listen…life gets the best of all of us at some point. Any of these sound familiar?
You are stuck climbing the wrong career ladder but too afraid to make the transition to something more fulfilling because you have to pay the bills
Your default answer is “Yes” to the needs of others but the only person you say “No” to is yourself
You often take on too many projects because you don’t want to “let people down,” but the long hours and the insane demands of the entertainment industry have pushed you to the brink of exhaustion and burnout
You struggle to set boundaries around your time, and at the end of the day you end up only accomplishing a fraction of what you intended
You struggle to focus and you find yourself chronically procrastinating (until your deadline is so close it puts the fear of God into you)
You gave up trying because there are just too many people competing for so few opportunities, and there isn’t enough room for you
You feel stuck in a rut, and you’re not utilizing your time to move your career forwards
You’ve been doing the same job for years (or even decades) because it feels “safe,” and you feel the pressure to maintain instead of taking the chance to grow
You have no idea what the path looks like to get where you want to be
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY:
You are convinced that balancing a successful career and a life outside of your job is IMPOSSIBLE.
The problem isn’t that you lack motivation, discipline, or willpower
The problem is YOU DON’T HAVE A PLAN
If you work in a creative industry, you know how important it is to have a plan, a schedule, and deadlines (even the insane ones). And there’s no doubt that when asked to do the impossible…YOU. ALWAYS. DELIVER.
As an editor & director, I’ve spent the last twenty years of my career properly sequencing complex story structures with multiple twists and turns such that I can maximize the emotional impact for my audience.
As your coach & mentor it will be my job to help you restructure and rewrite the next draft of your story to maximize your impact on the world. But I can’t help you write your story without a plan.
Unlike becoming a doctor, lawyer, or accountant, there is no clearly defined path to becoming successful in the entertainment industry, so the story that leads to your success often appears unclear.
And more importantly, nobody teaches you how to define what “successful” means to YOU.
For some “success” is all about awards, money, & prestige. But for others “success” could simply mean collaborating on projects that have a meaningful and positive impact on the world while simultaneously having the time & energy left over for the most important people in their lives.
Having interviewed over 200 industry professionals, Oscar and Emmy winners, New York Times bestselling authors in the fields of behavioral psychology, habit formation, health & well-being, cognitive fitness, and the science of success, I’ve discovered that although it might not be obvious…
There is a very clear 3-step formula that is the foundation for just about everyone’s “overnight success” story
And none of the above happens without the meta skills of → Focus and Time Management.
Here’s what your life looks like when you work from a plan:
Here’s the most powerful strategy you’ll learn in this entire program:
How to Identify Your ‘One Thing’
Stop trying to push a boulder up a mountain
I’m going to show you how to effortlessly roll a tiny snowball down the hill such that it becomes an unstoppable avalanche
So...what’s your ‘One Thing’?
What is that single domino that if you knocked it over next would help you accomplish something small (yet important) that creates the positive momentum you need to move closer to your most important goals?
Let’s Be Honest…
I’m guessing the chances are good you’re reading all of this and thinking,
“Are you kidding about choosing my ‘One Thing?’ I’m too busy just making it through my day. I have no idea where to even start!”
Whether or not you’re already clear on what comes next for you and you require the tools, insider tips, and tactics to take action…
…or if you have no idea where to start because you are so overwhelmed with what you “should be” doing that you end up feeling frozen and you just do nothing (or you doom scroll social media all day and night)…
The Optimizer Coaching & Mentorship Program has your back.
Introducing
The Optimizer
Coaching & Mentorship Program
The only coaching program designed specifically for ambitious creatives that takes a holistic approach to designing your dream career.
(that also includes a healthy dose of work-life balance)
Not only can we help you pursue
WHAT
truly inspires you.
We can also help you optimize
HOW
you work.
And most importantly we’ll reconnect you with
WHY
you love what you do.
Most importantly, you’ll have:
100% CLARITY
about your most important goals
TOTAL CONFIDENCE
you are taking the right actions
A step-by-step system that ensures you take action with
CONSISTENCY
Here’s what’s included in the
Optimizer Coaching & Mentorship Program
Get access “Netflix-style” to over $2000 worth (and 20+ hours) of the cornerstone educational, motivational, and inspirational courses, workshops, masterclasses, and student case studies that hundreds of students across 6 different continents have used to get life-changing results.
Normally it costs thousands of dollars to get time with me privately, but you get access to me every week when you attend my Office Hours (via Zoom). And not just to say “hi” for a minute…you can schedule a one-on-one “Hot Seat” with me for up to 20 minutes per session…every week if you need it!
For anytime you can’t attend Office Hours live, you have 24/7 access to the following as long as you’re a paid member:
The Optimizer Vault
As a member of Optimizer, you’ll have access to over 200 hours of Office Hours. I know that’s a LOT of hours to go through, so I’ve hand-picked the BEST of my Office Hours and curated them into a value-packed, digestible ‘Greatest Hits’. So you’ll get the juiciest and MOST useful coaching sessions organized into the following..
The Optimizer Vault also includes the following bonuses:
Unlimited Access to ALL of my previous coaching sessions in
The ‘Office Hours Archives’
Access every single Office Hours “Hot Seat” I’ve ever conducted and listen to the audio recording, read the transcript, or search by subject & keyword for exactly what you need to solve your next challenge. Whatever your question, I’ve probably already answered it. 
Connect with hundreds of creative professionals all over the world for support, accountability, mentorship, and maybe even your next gig! (It happens a lot more often than you might think)
You’ll have private access to Optimizer-only Slack channels including:
#jobs
Where community members often share work opportunities before they hit the Facebook groups and job boards.
#networking
Where you can connect with other members of the community for personal accountability, sharing skills, or group masterminds based on your career goals.
#workshopping
Where you can get group feedback on your cover letter, resume, portfolio website, demo reel, outreach emails, and so much more.
#accountability
Where we motivate and support each other to achieve our goals and stick with healthier, more productive habits. We also do fun monthly challenges with prizes included!
And by far my FAVORITE Slack Channel of all, our #wins channel where students share their biggest success stories to motivate & inspire our whole community!
#wins
Search our private database of global Optimizer members by location, profession, previous credits, skill sets, and so much more. The connections that have been made simply by students searching this database are worth the price of admission alone!
You don’t have to keep going at this alone.
From the moment you join, every single Optimizer will become invested in helping you succeed.
There are three different ways we can work together to help you realize your full creative potential based on your schedule, your needs, and your finances.
Ready to see how deep the rabbit hole goes?
I’ve been told by numerous students this is one of the most challenging experiences they’ve ever been through…but also one of the most rewarding. You will be pushed outside your comfort zone and learn more about yourself than you ever thought possible, but with that discomfort will also come tremendous personal and professional growth.
Most importantly…
This program will help you unlock the optimized version of you.
ESSENTIAL
The ESSENTIAL coaching package includes access to the following:
PREMIUM (most popular)
The PREMIUM coaching package includes access to the following:
OPTIMIZED
The OPTIMIZED coaching package includes access to the following:
Not convinced this is the right fit for you, or you have
more questions about how coaching & mentorship works?
Check out our Frequently Asked Questions!
Frequently Asked Questions
If you have additional questions not answered above, reach out to support@optimizeyourself.me
About Zack Arnold
The host of the Optimize Yourself podcast and the creator of this coaching & mentorship community.
In this program my mission is to help you DO better and BE better.
“Doing” better means learning how to more effectively manage your time, your energy, and your creativity so you can produce higher quality work in less time (and ultimately become a time management ninja).
“Being” better means doing all of the above while still prioritizing the most important people, things, and passions in your life…all without sacrificing your health (or sanity) in the process.
As an ambitious creative professional who’s spent the last twenty years working in Hollywood as a film & TV editor (recent shows include Netflix’s Cobra Kai, Empire, Glee, and Burn Notice), I’ve battled depression and burnout more times than I can keep track of. Having been diagnosed with adult-onset ADD in my mid-twenties, I spent over a decade flailing as I slowly learned how to balance a demanding career, having two kids, and just trying to survive.
And that’s what brings me to you today. Having been on this journey myself from barely making it through the day to having so much energy left over that I’ve chosen to spend the last two and a half years training to become an American Ninja Warrior, I know how overwhelming it can feel taking the first step. I’ve got your back. I’m here to help shorten your learning curve so you can avoid many of the costly and time-consuming mistakes I’ve made along the way.
To be clear: If you’re looking for all the answers, I am not the mentor for you.
I am not an expert, and I’m definitely not your guru.
You and I are on the exact same journey, I just happen to be a step or two ahead on the path. Therefore my job is to shorten your learning curve by sharing my best discoveries with you over the next 12 weeks (and beyond!).
In my career I’ve worked with the following studios: Netflix, Home Box Office, Sony Pictures Television, Walt Disney Studios, 20th Century Fox Television, Paramount Television, Fox Searchlight, Universal Cable Productions, ABC, NBC, Dreamworks, Warner Bros, USA Network, Lionsgate Films, Paramount Classics, and many more.
My work as an editor, documentary director, teacher, podcaster, and writer has been featured in such publications as Forbes, The Huffington Post, NPR, I Will Teach You to be Rich, LinkedIn Learning, Cinema Editor Magazine (ACE), Cinemontage, Post Magazine, Post Perspective, Frame.io, Film Editing Pro, and many more.
My Commitment to You
If this program isn’t the right fit for you, if the timing isn’t right, or if financially you can’t make it work, I totally understand. No hard feelings whatsoever.
However, if you’re hesitating because this program seems scary, or I might push you outside your comfort zone, guess what? Outside your comfort zone is the only place things are going to happen for you. You can either continue waiting for opportunities to find you, or you can start creating your opportunities.
Here’s my promise to you:
I will be in your back pocket 24/7 (via Slack) to answer any questions you might have during your journey, and we’ll work together every week via Zoom to clearly define your next steps, no matter your goal.
You’ll also have the support of everyone else in the ‘Optimizer’ community on the same journey as you. It’s literally like connecting to an instant network of new best friends and colleagues who are overcoming the same obstacles as you that want to help you succeed!
But here’s the thing…I can’t help you.
Wait…what?
Isn’t that what coaching and mentorship is all about?
Not quite. Only you can help you.
I can’t take the action that will lead you towards the most important goals in life.
My role is to make sure you are asking the RIGHT questions and taking the RIGHT actions for yourself. And like the sherpa leading you towards Mt. Everest, I’ll be there by your side to ensure you don’t take the wrong path.
I’ll give you the CLARITY you desire so you finally know what your goal is. And to clarify, there’s a big difference between your dreams and your goals.
I’ll give you the CONFIDENCE that every single action in your calendar is the right one. If you’re tired of being “busy” all the time and you’re ready to become “effective,” I’m your guy.
And I’ll help you build an action plan that ensures you follow through with CONSISTENCY.
Sound like a good fit so far? If so, then let’s do this!
P.S. If you’re a procrastinator, you can do that later.
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