3 Tips to Help You Achieve Your Dreams

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It’s nice to have dreams, essential in fact, but at the end of the day they are never going to come true unless you ACT on them! (See how I did that, LOL!)

These 3 tips will help you clarify your dreams and work toward them in the most efficient way. I HIGHLY recommend the following:

1. Write Them Down: A dream written down and attached to a date becomes a goal. It sounds over-simplistic, yet that simple act is the difference between a dreamer and a doer. The statistics are staggering. People who set written goals are much more successful than those that don’t. Putting your goals where you can see them is really important.  My CEO grads can attest to this one.

2. Dream BIG Dreams: It’s funny, but the amazing thing to me is the fact that it is easier to accomplish a BIG dream than a small one. Big dreams are exciting and keep us motivated. They get us up in the morning and keep us motivated through the day. They attract other people to get involved. Little dreams are easily forgotten and often abandoned.  Like one of my great mentors, Les Brown is quoted as saying “Shoot for the moon, cause even if you miss you’ll fall among the stars.”

3. Focus on One Dream at a Time. An old Chinese proverb states that “A man who chases two rabbits, catches none.” Focus is critical to achieving our goals. Steve Jobs commented that the single thing that made Apple successful was the thousand projects they didn’t do. Focusing on one important goal at a time will help you stay on track.

I’ve been talking a lot about dreams lately…the kind we have when we are awake, but this exercise has a lot of effect on the dreams you have when you’re sleeping too and I consider this internal programming, if you will.  When you wake up in the morning going after your DAY dreams feels exciting and inspiring.

So that’s it…simple yes, easy no.  It takes practice so get to it!  Let me hear right now in the comments section what your BIG dream is.

What NOT To Do – 8 Ways to Screw Up Your Marketing

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marketingCloudYou work hard at your craft, to build a reputation and contact list, generate positive reviews and word of mouth.  You’re working on your visibility and getting known for what you do. But are you undermining your own efforts?  Consider these common pitfalls of actor marketing:

1.  Your marketing is all about you.

It should focus on your talent and what you bring to the party, right? Well, no, not exactly.  It should primarily focus on what your talent and “actor services” do for the project or people who are hiring you.  The former is about “me and what I want and need” and the latter is “here’s how I can best serve the story that is being told.”  Take yourself out of your marketing and put your contacts (the people you are marketing to) at the heart of it.  In other words make THEM the “leading man/woman” in the story of your career.

2.  You market to yourself.

You can really mess things up of you make assumptions about your contacts based on the preferences and behaviors of you or your friends.  Your marketing could end up possibly offending and deterring your intended audience – out of touch with their true wants, needs and likes.  On that note…

3.  You don’t know your audience.

If you aren’t your target market, well, who is?  Invest the time and money to identify not just who your niche market is but how they behave. How do they prefer to be contacted?  Email, snail mail, social?  Where do they look for talent – what sites, networking places and showcases do they use/attend?  What influences their decision making process.  Who influences their choices?  Have a clear and full picture of the person you are trying to reach before you reach out.

4.  Your marketing is based on what you’ve heard, not learned.

Marketing in our business is like parenting:  Everyone has an opinion and believes they know how to do it effectively (especially those who don’t have children).  Even if you admit to being clueless, you are often influenced by others who also have no clue or are a know-it-all.  The best way to counter-act both is to have information (data) that backs up your plan.  Stay away from marketing classes and services that guarantee you results with no effort on your part and gain knowledge from your own research, participation and learning about your desired contacts.  Knowing who and how to reach your target market is best achieved by having insight into their mindset, not by choosing funky fonts or colored paper for your correspondence.  Which is why you have a problem if…

5.  You don’t have data.

I just said this above but it bears repeating.  Research, not opinion or gut instinct, should be the foundation of your marketing program.  That doesn’t mean art and creativity (which abounds) have no role in your plan.  Instead, think of data as giving you the necessary clarity you need to create new opportunities.  That’s a truly inspiring place to begin and will create a foundation for marketing your talent that’s fun.  Remember you’re ABCD’s – Always Be Collecting Data.

6.  You rely on example instead of analogy.

Creating your “big break” opportunity will be completely different from anyone else’s.  What has worked for one actor will not necessarily work for you. Even if you studied their story and duplicated their marketing, your path (by Universal Law) has to be different. However you don’t have to re-invent the wheel either.  Remember, the folks in our biz really don’t love “original” (unproven and risky) but they love “unique” (familiar, with a twist).  By the way I’m talking about your marketing, not your acting.  Therefore I suggest you look outside of the way most actors market themselves and to other people and organizations outside of our biz for ideas.  Be innovative.  Take something that worked “over there” and start using it “over here”. (For example, the inspiration for this post came from Entrepreneur magazine)

7.  You aren’t sharing yourself or your experiences.

In our socially connected world, between all of the technology that has forever changed the way we relate in our industry and get work, many actors are not leveraging the newest methods of marketing available.  The traditional (old fashioned) way of creating visibility and getting hired are still around, but have significantly narrowed the opportunities, while the amount of actors seeking work has increased 10-fold during the same period.  Your marketing has to include social media and enabling connections outside of the “norm”.  Are you encouraging and supporting interaction by rethinking the way you reach people?  How about building relationships before industry professionals have identified you as a possible candidate for a project?  You must have an on-line and social strategy in place so you can frequently engage folks in the industry outside of always “trying to get a job”.  Building rapport is the key to future success.  Which leads me to…

Quiet on set8.  You’re too quiet.

If someone reaches out to you on social media, do you respond, or is the message met with silence? Too busy/picky/don’t know what to say? Actors, casting directors, agents, producers, directors, et al are people first and these days most expect real-time (or near it) responses. This is a fast business with tons of options at all time and if an answer doesn’t come quickly, the likelihood of any R.O.I. (return on investment) is greatly reduced.  And after 24 hours, forget it.  If you’re not facile with social then get started because it is replacing almost every traditional method of making contact out there.

I’d love to hear about some of the ways you’ve screwed up.  Then let me know how you learned from your mistake and what the “correction” was.  SHARING your pitfalls (heck I’ve had so many you’d go blind reading about them) is the surest way to inspire others and gift them your wisdom so they can learn from your mistakes.  Please post comments in an effort to “pay it forward” to our fellow actors in the community!

To Your Success, Lisa

A Faster Way to Realize Your Dreams

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Here’s a little “to do” that if you actually DO it, will help you get what you want much faster!  But of course, you have to know what it is you want for this to work.  I have found in my coaching sessions that not distinguishing what EXACTLY my client wants is the biggest obstacle to a successful acting career that dreams are made of.  “I just want to make my living as an actor” is not a goal…at least one that can have a strategic plan with actions that will bring you that manifestation.  

So what do YOU want?

WRITE down your big dream, short term desire (a 90 day goal) and a supportive belief.  What do I mean by that?  Here’s an example:

Big Dream:  I have just been nominated for my first Oscar and am about to appear on a hit late night talk show.  

Short Term Desire:  I have just been cast in my first leading role for PAY in an independent film.

Supportive Belief:  Because of my strong acting skills and fabulous network, I believe my determination and natural likability will make it easy for me to get cast in the kind of projects that I want to act in.

Give yourself the gift of this 15 minute exercise and I can absolutely guarantee a HUGE difference will be seen in 90 days. Why, because what you FOCUS on expands.  Attention to your dreams and goals (a dream with a deadline) is what speeds up any process!

Why 90 days?  Because some scientist or genius figured out that anything done for this amount of time eventually becomes habitual.  And creating the habit of focusing on exactly what you want will have it come to you faster.

For more assistance I’ve put together the 90 Kick Butt Kick Start Program workbook for you if you’re feeling like this would be helpful to you. Give it a try!

Also, I’d love to hear about some of your big dreams and short term desires in the comments below!

14 Ways to Get INSANELY Motivated!

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No matter the season, the weather, or even what the day of the week it is, we can always use a little motivation to lift our spirits.  I thought it appropriate to give some ways that I guarantee will make you immediately feel more successful (what ever that means to you!) for today and beyond.

Here are 14 quick strategies to get and keep yourself insanely motivated:

1. Condition your mind. Train yourself to think positive thoughts while avoiding negative thoughts.

2. Condition your body. It takes physical energy to take action.  Get your food and exercise plan in place and follow it just like your business plan.  I just started back at the gym again, yay!

3. Avoid negative people. They drain your energy and waste your time, so hanging with them is like shooting yourself in the foot…or worse. Learn and practice the word NO!

4. Seek out the similarly motivated. This is why the Act Outside the Box community exists.  The positive energy of like-minded, pro-active actors will rub off on you and you can model their success strategies.  Wanna join us?  Check out The Gold Standard mentoring program.

5. Have big goals–but remain flexible. No creative biz plan should be cast in concrete, lest it become more important than achieving the goal.  Know that every plan will alter.

6. Act with a higher purpose.  I love this one.  Any activity or action that doesn’t serve your higher goal is wasted effort–and should be avoided at all costs.  Really “check in” with your gut…it never lies.

7. Take responsibility for your own results. If you blame (or credit) luck, fate or divine intervention, you’ll always have an excuse.

8. Stretch past your limits on a daily basis. Walking the old, familiar paths is how you grow old. Stretching makes you grow and evolve.  I do something called “never dones”.  Basically I take on, at least once a week, something I’ve never done before.  It’s VERY exciting.

9. Don’t wait for perfection; do it now! Perfectionists are the losers in the game of life.  I know this because I’m a recovering perfectionist!  Strive for excellence instead.

10. Celebrate your failures. Your most important lessons in life will come from what you don’t achieve. Take time to understand where you fell short, then correct and continue.

11. Don’t make success your highest priority…make it happiness. Success is a feeling, not a thing or a circumstance.  It is a place to come from, not to get to.  Laugh and enjoy every moment of the inspired actions you’re taking toward your goals.  If you can achieve that during the process, you ARE successful.

12. Avoid weak goals.  Goals are the soul of achievement, so never begin them with “I’ll try…”  Always start with “I will” or “I can.”  Big dreams with short term attainable goals are the way to go.  Remember, if you shoot for the moon and miss, you’ll still fall amongst the stars! (quote by Les Brown)

13. Treat inaction as the only real failure.  If you don’t take action, you fail by default and can’t even learn from the experience.  ACT Outside the Box.

14. Think before you speak.  This should actually have been #1…but it’s a GREAT thing to leave you with.  Keep silent rather than express something that doesn’t serve your purpose.

The above is based on a conversation with Omar Periu, one of the world’s best (and best known) motivational speakers.

And what is one of YOUR ways to get and stay motivated?  Please share with your fellow acting community by commenting.  Thanks!

Creating New Industry Relationships – a “How To” Guide

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You’ve got to meet, listen to, work with, and hang out with people at the next level and you will get to the next level.  No exceptions.

When I first started out I did background work like a lot of actors do.  I spent my days on set counting the hours until lunch and reading magazines.  Sometimes I’d be upset when getting called to the set. I was in the middle of something important…like a card game with another actor.

Yes, you read that correctly. I didn’t pay attention to the crew and learn their names, but I sure knew I’d like to be in the union and get the better food and more money. Oh yeah, and I thought that if I looked really sweet at the director he might give me a line. I was such a novice back then and I really needed someone to tell me what to do to have my career work out.  Now I’m the one that does that for a living.  Full circle, right?  And that’s why I do this…to pass on what I’ve learned the hard way through lots and lots of experience so it doesn’t have to be as hard for you my friend.  Read on please…

Actors who’ve created an enviable career have a knack for understanding how to make every experience a small step on the ladder to where they want to go. (Goal) They observe others, pay attention and they can undoubtedly share a lot of lessons they’ve learned along the way (many of which they probably learned the hard way too). 

So here’s are a question to ask yourself if you intend to expand your network of influence by forming some new stellar relationships in service of the forward progress of your career:

1. How many casting directors know your work?

You know the old saying “It’s who you know” that will help you get ahead in this biz?  It’s actually our tag line at Actors Connection. Well honestly, I think that’s only half true. 

My take on it is “it’s who knows you”.

For every agent meeting you take, you will be asked, “How many casting directors know your work?”  Before you interview, my recommendation is that you have at least a list of 10 or don’t go! And when you have an agent, they will want you to continue to grow your list on your own in addition to the auditions they send you on.

So how do you create a network of influential people like those top casting directors that know you, like your acting work and are in your court?  

Let’s look at 5 ways to do just that:

  1. Mail or email your headshot and resume to the 20 top casting directors in your area of focus every quarter, without fail, letting them know that you’re available and what else is going on in your career. Ex. new class, skill acquired, call back or booking.
  2. Identify which CD’s you’d like to show your talent to in person and book a meeting with them at a casting director workshop establishment like Actors Connection in New York or Ace Studios in Los Angeles.  If you’re not in either of those two cities, check for local opportunities or submit a reel for critique on ActorsInsite.com.
  3. Attend a networking party, brunch, assistant’s night, screening or other event where casting directors and other industry professionals will be in attendance. Introduce yourself as an actor and be interested in them and what they do before you offer a headshot and resume.
  4. Volunteer at or attend a charity event frequented by the entertainment community.  Animal rescue and health awareness causes always draw actors, agents and casting directors alike.  Do your research on your top picks to see what they stand for and if you get behind the same cause, you have commonality.
  5. Follow or friend them on Facebook, Twitter and other social media.  Today casting directors use the web to offer advice, post auditions and offer feedback on many things hoping to help the actors they will meet someday in an audition room.

It’s time you understood that without a HUGE network of people that have you on their radar, the chances of having the BREAKTHROUGH, kick-butt, acting career of your dreams are pretty much dead in the water.  Talent is not enough…people have to know you’re talented, like you, and have you be on their list in order for you to be able to act for a living. There are many people in the showbiz world who are ready and waiting for you to get connected and STAY connected.  You never know which one of them will be key in your forward movement. 

I’d love to hear some of your thoughts on meeting new people…how you do it, why you do it and most importantly, how you keep in touch!

Do You Have Worthy Goals?

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In my last post I talked about 20 signs you’re already successful.  Most people think success is the creating, going after, and obtaining of goals.  As I write this we’re about to end one year and being another, a time when many are busy making plans, goals and resolutions for a future brighter than before.  However, no matter when you are reading this, goal setting and creating the path to your desire is something that can be accomplished any and every day.  Let’s take a closer look…

Being successful is a creative process and you’re engaged in it already.  It’s something we live, not an end state we arrive at.  The choices we make either align with or block the path to success.  This starts with choosing worthy goals.

Desire – seeds planted that lead to your divine passion and purpose.  Signs, dreams, feelings, visualizations and images.

Destiny – the experience of the growth of that desire.
If you set a goal that takes months or years to excel at (like being the best actor you can be craft-wise, or being represented by CAA) and this is a time span you can embrace because you love what you’re doing, your vision of this goal will make it easier to respond to setbacks that are normal on the path and you aren’t dismayed by external factors because your goal comes from within.

There’s a good chance you’re going to make a New Year’s resolution this year, and there’s also a pretty good chance you’re going to break it.

Why? It’s no secret that setting goals for yourself is hard, especially when many of the goals you have may be out of your control.  (like being represented by CAA!) But the things that ARE in your hands that are accomplish-able are still a challenge and the hard truth is that many people who make goals never achieve them.  So I recommend a shift in what you call a goal.

Here’s a short list of worthy goals.  They are all a progressive realization and while some I’m listing may feel a fit for you, some may not.  By the way, your goals can and will evolve…a major goal that will sustain you for a lifetime is to be self-aware.  I’m always, always, always working on this one and for me in this business of show, it is to be of service.  Your worthy goal can be a word or a phrase.

Love and compassion for all
Promoting Peace
Teaching others
Pursuing creative expression
Protecting the weak
Promoting culture
Exploration and discovery
Being of service
Protecting the environment

Choose a goal without worrying that it must be permanent.  Sit quietly and center yourself. Breathe deep and exhale, another deep breath, exhale, now a third breath, exhale.   Think about the goal you want to achieve…ask yourself “am I already living my goal at least part of the time?”  Is this pursuit enjoyable and energizing?  Does it come naturally and make me feel more like the person I want to be.  When you can say yes, then you’re making your success a living reality and thrive today as well as tomorrow.

I wish for you a bright future year, month, week and day ahead, full of purpose, passion and the pursuit of worthy goals!  Please feel free to share one or more of them in the comments section below.

“It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but within ourselves.” – Shakespeare

Law Of Attraction Quotes To Live By

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In the last several years I’ve become a believer, a fan, a follower of one of the natural laws of the Universe, the Law of Attraction.  As I delve into the concept, then take the tenants into practice, I can see the materialization or manifestation of my smallest desires to some of my largest goals realized.  What you focus on expands.

It’s pretty obvious to me I am not alone in this thinking.  Here are some well known “thought leaders” that have been inspiring you for years and their most famous quotes on the very powerful Law of Attraction.

My hope is that these quotes inspire you as they have me.  Read them slowly and savor!  As usual, I welcome your thoughts in the comment section below.

 

Every single second is an opportunity to change your life, because in any moment you can change the way you feel.
– Rhonda Byrne

You create your own universe as you go along.
– Winston Churchill

It is the combination of thought and love which forms the irresistible force of the law of attraction.
– Charles Hammel

See the things that you want as already yours. Know that they will come to you at need. Then let them come. Don’t fret and worry about them. Don’t think about your lack of them. Think of them as yours, as belonging to you, as already in your possession.
– Robert Collier

What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
– Mark 11:24

Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step.
– Dr Martin Luther King Jr.

All that we are is a result of what we have thought.
– Buddha

Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.
– Albert Einstein

Whatever the mind can conceive it can achieve.
– W. Clement Stone

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.
– Anne Frank

Divine mind is the one and only reality.
– Charles Fillmore

Whether you think you can or think you can’t, either way you are right.
– Henry Ford

Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they’ve been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.
– Muhammad Ali

If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.
– Yogi Berra

To accomplish great things we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.
– Anatole France

Nurture your mind with great thoughts, for you will never go any higher than you think.
– Benjamin Disraeli

Nothing is, unless our thinking makes it so.
– Shakespeare

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.
– Helen Keller

Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambition. Small people always do that, but the really great ones make you feel that you, too, can become great.
– Mark Twain

Those who think they have no time for bodily exercises will sooner or later have to find time for illness.
– Edward Stanley

We are always getting ready to live but never living.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

I attract to my life whatever I give my attention, energy and focus to, whether positive or negative.
– Michael Losier

That which is like unto itself is drawn.
– Jerry and Esther Hicks

What you radiate outward in your thoughts, feelings, mental pictures and words, you attract into your life.
– Catherine Ponder

Nothing external to me has any power over me.
– Walt Whitman

Happiness is not a destination. It is a method of life.
—Burton Hills

If you can dream it, you can do it.
– Walt Disney

Whatever you create in your life you must first create in your imagination.
– Tycho Photiou

The grateful mind is constantly fixated upon the best. Therefore it tends to become the best. It takes the form or character from the best, and will receive the best.”
– Wallace D.Wattles

Be thankful for what you have, you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never ever have enough.
– Oprah Winfrey

A person is what he or she thinks about all day long.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Nurture great thoughts, for you will never go higher than your thoughts.
– Benjamin Disraeli

As soon as you start to feel differently about what you already have, you will start to attract more of the good things, more of the things you can be grateful for.
– Joe Vitale

Man, alone, has the power to transform his thoughts into physical reality; man, alone, can dream and make his dreams come true.
– Napoleon Hill

Cherish your visions and your dreams as they are the children of your soul, the blueprints of your ultimate achievements.
– Napoleon Hill

Gratitude is an attitude that hooks us up to our source of supply. And the more grateful you are, the closer you become to your maker, to the architect of the universe, to the spiritual core of your being. It’s a phenomenal lesson.
– Bob Proctor

A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks he becomes.
– Gandhi

Everyone visualizes whether he knows it or not. Visualizing is the great secret of success.
– Genevieve Berhrend

I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.
– Michael Jordan

I have decided to be happy, because it’s good for my health.
– Voltaire

Every saint has a past and ever sinner has a future
– Oscar Wilde

A moment of gratitude makes a difference in your attitude
– Bruce Wilkinson

Learning is a gift. Even when pain is your teacher.
– Maya Watson

I can be changed by what happened to me, but I refuse to be reduced by it.
– Maya Angelou

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.
– Martin Luther King Jr.

There is no cosmetic for beauty like happiness.
– Lady Blessington

All things are difficult before they are easy.
– Thomas Fuller

You are in the perfect position to get there from here.
– Abraham Hicks

Givers get given to.
– Russell Simmons

Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.
– Judy Garland

The entire universe is a great theatre of mirrors.
– Alice Bailey

Love everyone. Trust few. Paddle your own canoe.
– Anonymous

Criticism is something we can avoid easily
by saying nothing, doing nothing,
and being nothing.
– Aristotle

Genius is the ability to receive from the universe.
– I Ching

Your “Never Ending” To Do List

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“I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they are great and noble.”   Helen Keller

I love this quote and I love who it came from.  One of my FAVORITE things to do is cross things off my to do list.  And I’m sure I’m not the only person in the world who sometimes can get completely STOPPED because of the feeling of overwhelm.

In my last post I talked about the Time Trap and the desire of most actors to get what they want, like yesterday!  But if you’re anything like me, things are added daily to my never ending list that can often make my goals and dreams seem very far off indeed.  It’s an illusion of course and I’ve since gained a new perspective.

My perspective shifted greatly once I noticed a recurring theme with many of my coaching clients, that though progress is being made, it’s often overwhelming taking on new things and deciding what to do with what seems an expanding “to do” list.  Where to start, what to leave out, what’s a priority…how to fit it all in?

So I’ve got a really cool strategy for you that will make a HUGE difference, especially if you are one of the folks that have not been able to keep up with the “building” over time of performing multiple tasks.  This strategy will bring you focus and clarity on what to do, and more importantly what not to do.

Make a “to do” list.  EVERYTHING you have to do both personal and professional.  Things like: Make an appointment for the dentist; clean the bathroom; call 3 photographers, make appointments, choose one; wash the dog/car/clothes; write 5 postcards, travel to Australia, buy a Birthday card for Tom.  Call Joan about dinner on Tuesday.  Go on Actors Access and submit for some great auditions.  Pay bills.  Sign up for The Gold Standard (ha!, had to slip that one in!)

Everything goes on the list.  This will probably take at least 15 to 30 minutes or longer.  Then when you’ve emptied your brain of all that you have to do, more things will come up if you stay in silence and let them come.  Then write those things down too!

Next, divide this one huge list into 3 smaller lists:  The things you are never doing (at least right now), the things you are not doing (at least right now…this time frame being not within the next 4 to 6 weeks) and the things you are doing now.

The never doing now list contains items that if they never, ever got done, will not affect your life and goals in an adverse way…yet you may someday still want to do them.  For example, travel to Australia or re-paint the bathroom.

The not doing now list contains things that are definitely needed and wanted to accomplish, but again, won’t adversely affect you life or goals if they don’t happen outside of 4-6 weeks from now.

That leaves the “to do” list…things that if not attended to within the next month to 6 weeks, will adversely affect your life and goals.  These items should then be scheduled…actually pick a time and date and put them into your calendar.

So the things you’re doing now get put into your schedule, to be moved around if need be due to auditions, other opportunities, etc. but then get rescheduled, got it?

Once they are in your calendar/schedule you will have a clearer picture of accomplishing the things that are directly related to what you say you want.  For some this will be a huge accomplishment and breakthrough, for others, a review.  Either way, do it please!

“What you resist persists” – Anonymous

By the way, if you don’t use a calendar or schedule of some kind to keep track…GET ONE.  Honestly, you’re life will become much more manageable when you keep track of your appointments (especially the ones you make with yourself!)  Get started today.  It’s not too late, in fact, we have an opportunity to start newly every day

Enjoy marking those things off the list!  Ahhhhh, feels GOOD!

As usual, I’d love your comments or perhaps you have some tips about time you could share with the community.  Write them below now…don’t put this “to do” on your list!

Creating Your Ultimate Career – The Time Trap

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Have you CREATED your ultimate career yet?

The biggest reason any actor’s inability in creating the career of their dreams is simple.  I call it the Time Trap.

First of all, let me ask you this:  Why do you want it to happen so FAST?  What’s that expression? “Half the fun is getting there!” – It doesn’t seem to apply to our actor community.  Maybe it’s the society we live in but we all seem to want a microwave career.  Everyone is always in such a hurry!

Creating the career of your dreams – out there in the future, requires that you understand that your dreams are already in existence right now.  Yeah, I hear your inner voice shouting, “But it doesn’t exist the way I want it to yet!” — your inner voice is LOUD!

There  you are stuck in the Time Trap with a part of you canceling the work that you’ve already done to achieve where you already are, which if you look is pretty significant…but that doesn’t count, right?  The Time Trap also seems to cancel out the upcoming ACTions still needed in order to get to the next goal or milepost because you most likely haven’t created them yet or even know what they are…you just want it all to be different than it is right now, which is insufficient.

No wonder so many actors never achieve their ultimate career dreams.  Remember statistics say that 97% of professional actors leave the business withing 3 years of getting into it!

I want to share with you a quote from Esther Hicks of Abraham-Hicks, a spiritual leader/teacher of mine, who teaches this premise around time and getting what you want.  Please read what follows slowly, without distraction, and let it sink in.  It truly can and will change your point of view about the time it takes to have a successful career:

“If you are willing to let your improved emotional state be the evidence of your progress, then the progress will continue; you will continue to feel even better, and the tipping point will come where physical evidence can be seen.

But if you look too soon for the evidence, and you do not yet find it, you will lose ground. The need to see the immediate evidence of progress is the most significant hindrance to most people. When you attempt to take score of your progress too soon, you move further from the results you seek.

There is no desire that you hold that is for any other reason than you believe you would feel better in the having of it. Whether it is a material object, a pile of money, a relationship, or a physical state of being, every desire is wanted because you want to feel better.

When you discover the power of feeling better first, by the deliberate focusing of your mind away from problems, struggles, irritants , and any other manner of unwanted things and focus your mind upon the simplicity of even your own breathing, you will have found the key to the power of allowing. And allowing is the answer to all that you seek.”

I shared this life lesson with you because in my own life I have found that if I pay attention to how I feel first as the most primary importance of my focus, the stuff I want comes to me faster.  I’ve figured out how to get out and stay out of the Time Trap…and I hope you do too!

I’ll be posting more about TIME and how it affects the way we move through our career, feelings of overwhelm, how to manage all of the details of the balance of career aspirations and family life in upcoming posts.

I’m grateful to you dear reader and welcome any comments you have on the subject below.

5 Big Mistakes You Can Easily Avoid

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In my last post I began to discuss mistakes and fear.  Mainly fear of making mistakes!  However it’s inevitable you’re going to make them, so fear not.  However there are some mistakes that you can easily avoid that will make a HUGE difference in speeding up the path to your dreams and goals as an actor.  So whoop, there they are:

MISTAKE 1:  CONFUSING HOPE FOR GOALS

We all have hopes for our career, deep desires for our future life, and what we yearn to see happen. It feels good to dream and imagine. But sometimes we let the good feeling that comes from expressing our hopes get in the way of working to see them realized. Very typical of artists.

This happens two ways:

  1. We don’t know the difference between a hope and a goal. A goal has a certain kind of anatomy that gives hope structure. We’re too often satisfied by the feeling we have and think our hope is strong enough to stand on its own. But it’s not.  I mean I love good feelings and preach a lot about finding that satisfying place, however it’s the specific features of well constructed goals that enable our hopes to come to life.  It’s the ACTion part of the formula for success.
  2. We’re not disciplined enough to either do the work of constructing good goals in the first place or to see them through.  We let the hope suffice for now, resigned to the frustration we’ll feel later. I can’t imagine ever doing that anymore.  My hopes are too important for that.  I’ll bet yours are too.

MISTAKE 2:  NOT CONNECTING TO “THE WHY”

The real issue here is that we are not consistently connected to our “why” which is the biggest cause of a gap between our choices today and our results tomorrow.  One thing research has taught us is that stagnation and very few results happens mainly because we don’t connect to our future selves. If we have a desire for our career but don’t see our future self as the product of the choices we’re making right now then it’s easier to put off the marketing efforts, open call audition, (insert yours here), till tomorrow or skip it entirely.

When we can connect to our “why”, we can see the connection between our future reality and our present decisions. That means it is vital to establish goals where we have a strong emotional connection to the outcome. We have to connect our ACTions today to the payoff tomorrow.

MISTAKE 3:  BELIEVING THE NEGATIVE LABELS

You’ve heard the statistics: Most people who set a New Year’s resolution blow it year after year (me included by the way, which is why I’ve stopped that nonsense!) There are lots of negative consequences to this yearly disappointment but one is setting up the rest of the year based on failure, which then dampens our sense of what’s possible.

The more we fail, the easier it is to label ourselves as someone who can’t win. Just as bad, we sometimes let others do that job for us. But don’t believe it. We all have hardships, setbacks, and challenges. We all have things that didn’t go so well in the past. So here’s the reality…

Negative labels are just an interpretation of the past. You’re free to interpret the past differently at any time you choose. You’re also free to see it as one chapter, not the entire story. As far as I know, the only person who can’t win at the acting game is the one who lets these negative labels determine their present, which in turn, predicts the future. It’s that “rat on a wheel” and “stuck in a rut” space.  Many actors are all too familiar with this.

MISTAKE 4:  LETTING OTHER THINGS TAKE PRIORITY

This has always been a tough one for me because I want to do soooo many things in life and many of my creative coaching clients face the same situation. However if being a sought after, highly paid actor is one of your goals, you’ll need to make this particular goal a priority.

But just because you declare it a priority doesn’t mean it IS one or your only one. The next mistake we make is not recognizing our unspoken priorities. We have many things competing for our attention and time and some of these are extremely important.  If we don’t get clear about these, and a myriad of other daily details and where they fit, it’s almost certain we will sabotage our attempts to achieve our dreams. “Life” gets in the way.

This is doubly true for one of my least favorite priority distractions— procrastination, which is just a competing time claim that has no real or inherent value. It makes sense to organize our efforts around a regular date night, but not Candy Crush, which in late night hours I have been guilty of playing, losing sleep, and thus causing a back log of attaining my goals the following day! But now I get back on track quickly. My priorities, and realizing I’m not perfect but committed, is the key!

MISTAKE 5:  NOT BELIEVING IN YOURSELF

Here’s the one I think is probably the most important. We tend to experience what we expect. If we expect to fail, or even have this lingering doubt, we’ll likely fail. If we expect to win, we’ll likely win. Why? I’m sure you’ve heard the term “self-fulfilling prophecy.” The idea is that our predictions and expectations direct our actions, even if we’re not aware of it.

Someone who thinks they can’t achieve a goal, or that it’s super hard to achieve, is the kind of person who will give up more quickly. And at the same time, someone who believes they can achieve a thing they’ve set their mind to is more likely to see opportunities where others don’t, more likely to work a little harder when it counts, and more likely to persevere when others quit.

There’s no guarantee you’ll accomplish everything you desire, but there are several things you can do to dramatically improve your odds. This includes taking the right steps, but it also includes avoiding the bad ones.

So there you have it. I am convinced you can shortcut a lot of time and trouble by avoiding these top five mistakes!

Please let me know your thoughts in the comment section below.  Thanks!

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