The first month of the year is already half over. Around this same time every year, I start hearing from actors that are starting to feel hopeless when it comes to trying to take their career to the next level.
Everyone starts off with big plans and even bigger hopes, only to find that they don’t really know what to do, so they just continue doing what they did the year before.
In the new year, you need to have a new strategy if you want to get new, different, and better results in your acting career.
Before planning your new year, you have to first take stock of what happened last year.
Successful actors are incredible at this. It’s how they are able to move from one career stage to the next so quickly.
While most actors stay stuck in one career stage, spinning their wheels for a long time, successful actors are able to identify what may be getting in the way of their progress and change things up accordingly.
If you want to be a professional actor, this is something you have to get really good at too. Here’s where to start...
First, take an objective look at what happened over the last year. Set aside a few minutes and grab a sheet of paper or open a note on your phone.
You won’t share this with anyone, so get really honest with yourself and take an objective look at your career, specifically looking at the last year.
What kind of progress did you make?
What went as planned?
What didn’t go as planned, and did you even have a plan last year?
Knowing this will let you identify which areas you need to focus on. It allows you to build a strategic plan for your career, instead of just winging it.
Here’s what I mean...
Let’s say you went on a lot of auditions last year, but you didn’t book very many jobs. That’s a different problem than not having enough auditions.
One of those problems might be fixed by redoing your headshots, the other might be fixed with some advanced training.
Most actors tend to just start doing things randomly, without really thinking about what to do or why.
They just start trying different things, hoping something works out. They didn’t book enough last year, so they enroll in a random acting class.
But, when you look back and figure out what the problem actually was, then you can tackle the right problem instead of just doing something for the sake of doing it.
This is how you become exactly what casting directors are looking for.
Let’s say that your problem is that you are not getting very many callbacks and you are not booking very often. If you have enough auditions to go on, then the problem could be with what’s going on during or after your audition.
Before deciding to move forward with you in the casting process, casting will look into you and gather information about what you’re all about. They are building a cast, so CDs go beyond what is listed on your resume.
They also want to know whether you will fit in with the other actors they are considering or whether there could be issues that affect the mood on set. They are also looking for actors who have great chemistry, among a number of other things.
This is also when they will look into your industry reputation.
If you are having great auditions (and enough of them), but you’re still not getting very many callbacks then the problem could be that your industry reputation needs to be in better standing. Here’s how I can help.
When it’s not in the best shape, CDs tend to be less trusting and they tend to gravitate towards actors who have a more established industry reputation.
What we talked about today will help you identify the strong points in your career, so you can double down on what’s working well for you.
While we talked about how to solve specific issues you may be having, there are also some things that are universal and that every actor should be paying attention to.
Those are the building blocks of your acting career.
Some of it can be monotonous and many actors tend to ignore it. That’s why I created Boost My Star, so you can focus on what you do best while we help keep this on track.
As you start planning the direction your career will go in over the next year, think of how different things could be when you implement what we talked about today.
When you double down on what’s working, while addressing the areas that could use improvement, that is as close to a recipe for success as you can get.
Aside from that, make yourself highly visible to the industry and see the impact this has on your acting career.
When you show up consistently, with your best foot forward, and a solid plan for taking your career to the next level you will immediately stand out from the countless other actors that are simply winging it.
As you’re going through what we talked about today, don’t hesitate to reach out! Remember, I’m always only a comment or an email away so feel free to get in touch anytime, even if you just need to bounce ideas.
I’m happy to help however I can because I truly want to...
See you at the top,
Scott