Meet Ruben Contreras

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

Hi Ruben, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
I’d have to say my work ethic comes from me trying to constantly raise my own bar. It’s without a doubt I’m always chasing that high or that next big step. I’ve learned that you can’t always be satisfied and expect to grow. Although that’s partially true. There is also a flip to that coin. Your work ethic dictates how fast you grow. Not necessarily how much you grow. Work ethic doesn’t mean you’ll always be accurate, it just means you’ll be consistent enough that eventually you’ll get something out of your career. That’s one thing that having a strong work ethic has taught me.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Lately in my career I have been focusing on building a foundation and places for artist to thrive. With the success of our studio, we would like to branch out even further. Our newest venture being an artist facility in San Francisco where we are planning on creating an artist friendly environment for creatives to thrive and benefit from opportunities. We want to be able to share what we experience and also the benefits with other creatives. Coming from a visual artist background since I was 12, this is precisely the environment I see myself at. Mixed media has always been my passion as well. I don’t only enjoy film production but I also enjoy 2D art, sculptures, furniture and any other intricate creative medium. Our imagination stems from all of this and what better environment can one create then a facility full of artist specializing in their own craft. Stay up to date on our latest expansion by following me at @sybexstudio.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The most impactful qualities I use today are awareness, precision, execution. You have to be aware of your surroundings and opportunities to be successful in any career. I have to be aware of all aspects of production to create and lead. I have to be precise with budget costs to make sure that I’m making the right choice each and every time. Once you are sure of the first two you have to be able to execute and get it done without fear. Fear of failing will always be there but it will become less and less similar to jumping off the high dive for the first time. After you start your very first venture, the second will become less intimidating and so on. You build on your successes not your failures. Meaning every time you find success, take something from that and multiply it. There will be a time where you’re no longer chasing but attracting.

Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
This is a great question. I believe one must dig deep and find your strengths within. We all have them. It’s only a matter of finding what they are. As a producer of films and businesses I see different strengths in people and am able to place them where I believe is best. I’m also a strong believer in trusting the people I am around with to unleash their potential and finding their inner strengths all by themselves. This happens after a while similar to how it happened to me. You start from the bottom, learn all the steps and choose what you really like and build a lifestyle out of it. The reason for learning all the steps is you don’t want to miss a position you may really be great at. I was lucky enough to learn to love art at a very young age, 6-7. I haven’t even thought about a different path since.

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