On your first day, it's important to make a good impression and to show up on time. Make sure you're there early enough to get fully prepared and changed, if necessary, to start your shift. Be there ready to go 10-15 minutes before your shift starts. Budget your time well in advance, giving yourself an extra 30-40 minutes as a buffer for things like traffic, getting lost, and finding parking.  If you have to take public transportation, or your new workplace is somewhere you're unfamiliar with, take the trip a few days ahead of time to make sure you know exactly how long it will take, and where it is. Don't stay beyond the time you're scheduled. Leaving late may indicate that you aren't able to budget your time effectively. Impress your employer by arriving early enough to prepare for the day, then leave when you're finished. You won't be expected to excel right away at most jobs, and most employers know that there will be a learning curve with new hires. So, don't worry so much about making mistakes and messing up your first day, but focus on learning as much as possible and listening closely to make sure you don't miss things.  Be conscious of your learning style. If you are a hands-on learner, for example, ask the person training you to walk you through a task rather than having you watch them. Take a notepad or notebook with you so that you can take down important points during your training. Ask questions and be sure to jot down the answers. Make it your goal to only make a mistake once. If your boss tells you how to do something, listen and remember so you won't have to ask again. Lots of new employees will be too sheepish to ask questions, and will blunder into doing things incorrectly. Know enough to know when you need help. There's no shame in asking for help, especially on your first day. It'll be better to have it explained once and be sure you'll do it right than to try to guess and get exposed later. The process of every workplace is very different. Even if you're skilled and talented, it takes some time to figure out what needs to happen, and in what order. The best way to stand out on your first day as a good worker is to try to analyze the situation and figure out what needs to happen next.  At some jobs, your first day can involve a lot of standing around and watching. Jump in when you see an opening. If you see another employee carrying a big stack of bags from one place to another, you don't need to be told that you could help out. At some jobs, you'll need to ask instead of just acting. If you're starting at a kitchen and finish up with some dishes, it might seem obvious that they'll go to the dishwasher, but there may be some other process. Ask. One thing that's consistent at every workplace is cleanliness and safety. Straightening up doesn't usually need to be coached. Look out for things you can organize, or ways that you can clean up to make the workplace much easier.  If you work in an office, change out the coffee filter and make a fresh pot. Clean up the cups and spoons and throw away the refuse. Take the trash to the bin. Help straighten up other public areas if they need straightening. If you work in a kitchen or a restaurant, keep an eye out for obstacles that someone may trip over, or help clean up dishes in the back. Take a turn at the sink if you need to try to find a way to stay busy. It's not what you know, how talented you are, or even what you do on the first day that will make it a success. It's your attitude and behavior. Your employer hired you because there was something about your combination of skills and personality that will benefit your workplace. Have faith in your ability to succeed as yourself, and don't think you need to be someone you're not. You don't have to act like your coworkers act, for good or for worse. It takes time for people to adjust to a new person in the workplace, so give your co-workers time to adjust to your personality rather than changing your behavior to match theirs.
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One-sentence summary -- Get there early. Listen and apply what you hear. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Try to anticipate what needs to happen next. Clean up without being asked. Just be yourself.


You might need to negotiate with the author’s agent, especially if the author is well-known. However, independent self-publishers and less known authors frequently don’t have agents. Introduce yourself and explain you want to make a film of their book. As a producer, you won’t buy the film rights right off. For example, you probably don’t know if you can even get financing for the project. Instead, you’ll buy an “option,” which gives you the exclusive right to buy the film rights in the future. The option lasts for only a certain amount of time, usually 12-18 months.   Try to get an 18-month option, which will give you extra time to pull together financing for the film. The author might disagree, but you should push to get as lengthy an option period as possible. You can also get the right to one or two extensions of the original option period. You probably need to pay for the option. There’s no formula for how much you should pay, but you should begin by assessing the book’s popularity. A hot bestseller probably has many people bidding, so you might need to offer high five figures or even more.  However, a book that’s been out for a while might only cost you $5,000 for the option. With more obscure books, you might not have to pay any money. Instead, you can promise to do your best to get the film made.  Talk to other film producers to see how much they have paid for options. This is the amount you will pay for the rights if you ultimately exercise your option. Negotiate this amount at the same time you negotiate the option so that you can include it in your option agreement. Generally, the amount you pay will be based on the written direct budget. The usual formula is 2.5%, and the option price is usually set off against the purchase price.  Remember to include a floor and a ceiling. For example, your budget might end up being tiny, which means the author will walk away with peanuts. You can protect against this by setting a minimum, say $7,000. Also set a maximum amount in case your budget is much higher than you expect. Authors typically get around 5-10% of all net profits (and not only the producer’s share). You’ll also need to agree on how to define net profits. There are two standard ways:  The definition used by the picture’s domestic theatrical distributor. The definition provided by the picture’s financers. Think ahead about what other rights you should negotiate at the same time as your option. At a minimum, you’ll want to include the following:   Rights to sequels. You might buy the rights before a book is even published. If it turns out to be a smash hit, then the author will probably create sequels, and a different producer might scoop up the film rights them. Reversion rights. After you exercise your option, you might hit a snag and not make the film. Authors don’t want to wait around forever, so they want their rights to revert to them. You can set a deadline for getting the film made, such as seven years, and also require the author to reimburse you for expenses. You have many options for crediting an author, and this may be a sticking point for some authors. Consider the following:  You give an on-screen credit that reads something like, “Based on the book Poison Ivy written by Michelle Jones.” This credit might have its own screen as part of the opening credits or just be part of the credit roll at the end. Some authors might also want credit in the paid advertising. If the author is famous enough, their name might be included in the title of the move, e.g., Sidney Sheldon's Bloodline. You need to give the author notice that you’re going ahead and exercising your option to buy the rights. Generally, you can exercise your option by sending the author a written notice or just staring principal photography. Sometimes publishers hold onto the rights of books they publish. Before signing an option agreement, ask the publisher to sign a release. This document will confirm the publisher doesn’t have any rights you are seeking.
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One-sentence summary --
Tell the author you are interested in their work. Set the length of your option. Negotiate the option fee. Agree to a purchase price. Determine the author’s cut of net profits. Negotiate other rights. Discuss how the author will be credited. Identify how you exercise your option. Ask the publisher to sign a release.