STOP WORKING AGAINST YOURSELF
Professional actors
Who finally realise that no job is coming to save them
Get to start doing the real work…
Mother Nature will always win
Better to be on her side rather than working against her
One of the most common reasons I see for burn out amongst professional actors
Is because they keep working against themselves.
One of the smartest coaches I know, told me
“Mike, the easiest energy is yours”
So the dream outcome here is that we build a career that’s aligned with our energy
Three main problems getting in the way
ONE
Ignoring your bodies signals.
Start letting the body lead.
How?
I grew up in Southern Africa
Where the lion trackers had an expression
“I have no idea where I’m going, but I know how I’m going to get there, by following the tracks in front of me”.
(In this case, the tracks are the signals our body is sending us)
Give up on results and start listening to makes what your body feel alive
Notice the patterns of when your body feels energised vs de-energised
People, place, work, activities
Then build a week where the majority of your time
Is filled with the things that make your body feel expansive!
TWO
You’re in the wrong season.
Pay attention to the weather!
Ask yourself, what works for me, for now?
Are you currently wanting to expand or simplify?
Are you wanting acting work to be evergreen (consistent all year) or seasonal (flow & recover)?
Is it more important that you have high volume of work or high quality of work?
Are you wanting to give auditions everything you have?
Or have them so streamlined that you don’t even have to think about them?
And if you zoom out… Out of the following three things, what is your actual priority:
Abundance: Flowing opportunities
Sustainability: Being aligned as an artist
Meaning: Contributing great work
(PS - Id love to know the answers to these questions so feel free to send through)
All of those questions will steer you in a direction of what you body is desiring
Which tells you what season you’re actually in:
One of Intense growth
Balanced growth
Or simply cruise control
This then allows us to build a strategy around what actually works for you, for now
So you can start aligning the results you desire, with a plan that actually makes sense!
THREE
Irresponsible Attention
Take responsibility for what your eyes, mind & body are focussing on
Write down all the things you can control and all the things you can’t
Then identify where you’re giving most of your attention day to day, hour to hour
(Simply looking through the last few weeks of your calendar, bank account & screen time will give you a reality check)
On top of this, notice the stories you’re repeatedly telling yourself
Then ask yourself:
“Who might I become if I was to let go of this story?”
Then convert that into very few, very simple actions
BONUS
One last thing
“I can have anything I want”
Yes… but this comes with a sacrifice
Here’s your choices
Do you want to do one thing incredibly well?
Three things at 80%?
Or ten things at 30%?
You choose
Point is
You can have anything you want
Just not at the same time
Remember
Decisiveness creates freedom
So
Decide what you want most for now
And what sacrifices that will require
Some things will have to be let go of for now
And somethings will have to go on cruise control for now.
Alright let’s wrap this up
For professional actors
A meaningful, abundant and sustainable artistic career isn’t built with a clenched jaw
It’s built when you start letting your body lead
Mother Nature will always win
Better to be on her side rather than working against her
Hope this helps
X