Following her story from failed auditions to major stage success and all the day jobs in between, Courtney uses her ten years of field research as a New York City actor to unpack what it takes to make it in any creative career. The First Ten Years isn't selling success to the reader. It is selling the reader to the reader. The Day Job Complex, Following Your Sadness and Why No One Likes a Perfectionist are just a few sections that address the very real inner battles that creatives (from actors to entrepreneurs) fight when facing a blank canvas. Pulling those silent soap operas into the open exposes creative turmoil for what it is: an unnecessary block to our greatest work. Blending anecdotes, creative philosophy and practical tips, each chapter ends with a set of questions designed to push the reader to uncover his or her own creative philosophy -- the philosophy that will ultimately serve as a guide toward the reader's own creative longevity and fortitude.