Being Geek Chic is a blog about one woman navigating the male-dominated industries of production and tech. It's written by Elizabeth Giorgi, Founder, CEO and Director of Mighteor - one of the world's first internet video production companies. Learn more about Mighteor here.
I just love the movies.
There’s this moment I wish could capture for you and share. It’s this 5 second period of pure quiet before the soundtrack picks up and the screen fades in.
It’s accompanied by the sweet scent of popped corn.
And appreciated in the noise of the next morning when you find the ticket stub in your pocket and remember a scene or a song.
I will see a romantic comedy, dark thriller, suspenseful drama or documentary. Nothing is really off limits. OK, maybe horror flicks. (They’re just not my thing.) Especially, if it’s at the cinema.
Yes, I’ll pay the $6 for a small bag of popcorn. I’ll hand over my $12 for a movie ticket. I’ll fight for a parking spot. Despite it all, I’ll be happy. Especially when I sit in my favorite spot. One row from the back. Center. No one to my left. No one in front of me. Boyfriend to my right. Everything glorious.
It’s a place to be quiet. A place to think. A place to escape. A place to explore.
Even when I see a terrible movie - I don’t leave. I appreciate the time to just be. To just absorb. The time I spend at the movies.
My brother, my boyf and I are always having pseudo-intellectual, semi-existential conversations about life, but last night’s conversation hit home in an intense way. We were discussing a big new project I’m working towards (announcement coming soon!) and as such, I was discussing how daunting it is to take on something so consuming… And my brother said:
“It’s one thing to be ambitious, but you can’t let your ambition own you.”
I’m going to confess something here and now.
My ambition owns me.
I’ve never totally understood what makes me act the way I do. I can’t completely explain it, but I can tell you a story.
When I was editing SKOL last year, I would come home from my full-time job at 5 PM, hole up in my office and edit until 2 AM. I wouldn’t leave to eat. I wouldn’t leave to take a phone call. I wouldn’t leave to get a glass of water. I wouldn’t leave to wash my hair. The boyf would lovingly come up each night and bring me some food and drink so I didn’t die. I did this for 10 weeks.
See, when I get into a project… I REALLY get into a project. I become the project. The project becomes the very air in my lungs and blood in my veins.
As a result, I place all of my self worth in the things I create.
So many people have said to me, “your job is not who you are.” Except, it’s not about a job, is it? See, in my world, my job is just a venue in which I DO things. I CREATE things. I am what I do.
I can’t get through a day without thinking about how many hours I will have left each night to spend on this blog, my next project, some shooting. Almost daily I find myself upset when things simply “take too long.” And these are things that others would never bother considering:
Taking a shower. Watching a TV show. Eating a meal. Driving to the store. Grocery shopping. Laundry. Working out.
This week alone, I have found myself thinking: “this is taking too long” while doing each of these activities. It wouldn’t matter… except I had this blog post to write.
I’m not divulging this because I think it’s a problem or because I’m worried about it. I’ve been living this way since I was 14 years old and besides a couple sleepless nights, I’ve managed to find some decent checks and balances in my day to day life.
I’m living in ambition prison. I hope I learn something along the way.
Today was rough. I’m worn out. Stressed out. Ready for a nap.
But a Lady Geek doesn’t give up when things get tough. Which made me realize that maybe we need a mantra? Something to express the qualities that make a chic geek surpass her counterparts in creativity, endurance, passion and intelligence. Here’s my first jab at it:
The Lady Geek is a warrior of the unknown. She seeks answers in places where others only see tedium or uselessness. She relishes in the ability to expand her knowledge and hears the answers while basking in the quiet of her mind. She reads. She writes. She dances. She sings. She watches. She films. She waits. She photographs. She crafts. She types. She codes. She walks. She bikes. She moves. What does she seek? It doesn’t matter, because it’s the hunt that makes her happy.
What is your Lady Geek mantra?
Last week, I booked my summer vacation to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando Studios. Since then, I’ve been basking in the glory of what this trip will offer me: butterbeer, Buckbeak, Dumbledore’s office, the Room of Requirement - the list is endless. On top of the joy of the anticipation, I’ve been jokingly telling people that the sole purpose of the trip is that I am changing careers and I will be enrolling in Hogwarts.
So what’s the point of all of this? It’s my life hypothesis that we are happier and life is more enjoyable if we embrace the things we love, no matter how unusual or unconventional. Now you might be thinking - well duh, being who you are will always make you happier. That’s true. My point here is different: being comfortable talking about who you are and willingly allowing other people to enjoy your nerdiness with you will make your life more fulfilling and your relationships more real.
Let me explain.
