planting…

Winning an Emmy didn’t get me more work.

And that was a hard thing to admit.

I won my first Children’s & Family Emmy in 2023, right after we had a strike.
I had just finished directing Tiny Time Travel and projects with Sesame Workshop.

I thought the award meant momentum was coming.

It didn’t.

What followed was a year where the industry slowed down.
Projects stalled. Funding disappeared. Everything got quiet.

So what do you do when you’re holding a career milestone and nothing changes?

You sit with it.
You question things.
You try to stay hopeful.

And if I’m honest… It’s hard.

But 2024 became something else.

A planting year.
The kind where nothing is visible yet, but you’re doing the work anyway.

I took meetings with executives.
Started developing a documentary with Garrett Morris.
Wrote scripts.
Built out new ideas.
Learned how to turn our children’s book into a business.
Figured out Shopify.
Said yes to speaking opportunities.

It didn’t look like success.
But it was movement.

And now, in 2026…

The work I did during that “quiet” year led to my second Emmy win for Sesame Workshop.
I have a finished feature script.
A full slate of projects.
And our second children’s book on the way.

That slow year?

It wasn’t a setback.

It was preparation.

Awards are incredible.
But they’re not the finish line.

They’re a signal.

That something you planted is growing.

The real question is:

What phase are you in right now…
planting, watering, or finally seeing something grow?

Because every phase matters.