I think I was born strong-willed. That's not the kind of thing you can learn. The advantage is you stick to what you believe in and rarely get pushed out of what you want to do.
I am co-writing a screenplay now and I'm working on the rights to another story I want to do. So I plan to produce and direct. So for me I don't really feel that I am vulnerable to that sad baggage that comes with the business of filmmaking.