Today, I found myself in the mailroom of one of the biggest talent agenies in Los Angeles. I was dropping off some tickets for a friend of mine who works there. It wasn’t quite like the ride from the House of Representative office building to the Capitol, but it’s pretty close in terms of future power brokers.

The mailrooms in Los Angeles are legendary. Some of the most powerful movers and shakers in L.A. began in the mailroom. Whether it’s at an agency or studio, many have gotten their start that way. With college degrees, MBAs, and JDs in hand, many have resorted to delivering mail in order to get their crack at the top. For some it works, they become an assistant (read secretary/slave) to an executive, and if they’re lucky, after a few years of hard work, they may become an executive themselves.

The other day I received a copy of my Social Security earnings record. I got out my calculator and added up the numbers. The bad news, is that I’ve earned a whopping $58,640 dollars in my life. That’s from the age of 15 in 1997 until today. The worse news; I earned a majority of that money before I graduated from college.

After almost $150,000 of education, and consequently $200,000 of debt, I’m not sure I’m getting my money’s worth. And now, for the zillionth time in my life, I’m embarking on a new career search. The question? Should I try to get a job in the mailroom or as an ‘assistant’ in order to make my way to the top?

As you can imagine with monthly student loan payments that exceeed my mortgage, I’m more than eager to begin earning a living — but without experience, it’s difficult to get a job — you know, the original Catch 22. I won’t get ‘experience’ until I get a job.

Until now, I’ve eschewed the mailroom, but, knowing it could double my lifetime earnings in a year or so, it’s beginning to look attractive . . . after all Mike Ovitz had to start somewhere.

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