So it begins! A new year. A new decade. A new outlook on your career.
There is so much change in the air right now, it’s palatable. You can feel it, just going out to grab a cup of coffee.
The question is whether that change is going to be positive or not.
It never fails. As the year winds down, I’m always flooded with messages from actors who are looking to make a change.
They are always extreme. They either want to go from where they are now, to starring in Big Studio films or starring in their own show on Primetime, or they want to leave the industry altogether.
There is never an in between, and what’s sort of strange about this is that actors at both extremes of the spectrum are looking for the same thing....
Reassurance.
Either, they want to know that they have done all they can do and go forward into actors retirement with their heads held high or they want to know that they are not completely crazy for sticking with it and that they can actually reach their goals.
I truly believe that with every passing moment, you choose what will come in the next moment.
We can talk about this on many different levels, but let’s keep things focused on the here and now, and what we can quantify.
Most importantly, let’s focus on how you can move your career forward in 2020 and beyond.
To support you in building your career, I have compiled the top strategies used by our Boost My Star tribe in 2019 to accomplish big things.
From red carpet premieres, to roles on primetime, award nominations and so much more. Here’s how they did it and how you can do it too...
These strategies work regardless of what career stage you are in.
Whether you have been in the industry for a little while and are trying to get your first few credits, or if you have been booking consistent work but are struggling to get to the next level in your career, what keeps you from making progress is the same.
Use any of the concepts in whatever order makes the most sense for you and your career. What the most successful actors do is
The most successful actors in 2019 carved out a niche for themselves and they drilled into a specialization. We tend to think of the industry as being all about the artistic side, when there is an entirely other side to the industry that is much bigger than the art that fuels it.
At the end of the day, if a movie or a show is bad, no one will tune in. So, while the art is of extreme importance, the business side of the industry is what makes the art possible. Rather than being an actor for hire, making yourself a specialized actor puts the business side of the industry at ease.
Look at it this way, if your friend were having chest pains, would you take her to the dentist? No! You would take her to a cardiologist who is specialized in dealing with that.
It’s how humans mitigate risk and the casting office is no different. If you are specialized in a certain category, then you are going to rise to the top of that category much easier.
When a project comes around in the category that you are the expert in, you are that much more likely to get the call than someone who is just 1 of 1 million other actors for hire.
They took imperfect action. There is a big focus on perfection in the industry and it’s only gotten worse over time, because everything is “out there” forever.
This is keeping actors from taking chances or being involved in certain productions out of fear that it would impact them down the road.
I think it was Jack Nicholson who said “it’s OK to be in a bad movie, but you don’t have to be terrible in it.”
What that boils down to is taking imperfect action. It’s jumping out of the plane and fashioning a parachute on the way down. It’s starting from where you are and realizing that you are architecting your future.
They didn’t wait for the perfect headshot, the perfect opportunity, getting the perfect cut of their reel, etc. They started from where they were and improved over time, which gave them forward momentum.
A good friend of mine, who is a legend in the industry always says “it’s OK to fall flat on your face because at least you are falling forward.”The most successful actors actively sought to make themselves visible to the industry. This ties into what I mentioned a moment ago. There’s an entire side of the industry that most actors forget even exists.
Usually, they think that it’s what their managers or agents will take care of. This is true to an extent, but they can’t do it all for you. You still need to take an active role in making sure the industry even knows you exist.
This means you have to go out “shake hands” with industry decision makers. Even if your agent is able to get you in the door or make an introduction, you still have to take it the rest of the way and form a relationship with industry decision makers.
Of course, it’s always easier when the decision makers come to you. This happens when you consistently make an effort to show your talent in the best light and in a way where industry decision makers have no choice but to notice you. I created this to help you with that.
The actors that had a terrific year sought out the support of others when they needed it.
No one is an island. Most of us have heard that our entire lives, but most of us hardly ever put the concept into practice. This is another area, where most actors operate at the extremes.
They either try to do it all on their own, or they assume that someone else will do it all for them. The reality is somewhere in the middle. Depending on what stage your career is in affects that as well.
As you mature in your career, you will start to delegate things to experts, but in the beginning you are a one person Army. However, there are some things that you need to get off of your shoulders as soon as possible, because enlisting an expert in that area will improve your results ten fold.
The most successful actors top leveled the people around them. They held their agents, managers, and even their circle of friends accountable for producing, but they put a 2 way street in place.
If your agent isn’t getting you into auditions you know you should be getting into, maybe it’s time for a change. However, make sure that you first look in the mirror and measure what kind of client you are being.
Are you giving them the best tools to work with, or are you expecting them to manifest acting jobs for you out of thin air?
That’s where it becomes a 2 way street, and it’s largely why I mentioned that with every passing moment, you create what comes in the next.
If your circle of friends are less than optimistic about your career, maybe it’s because that’s the vibe you are giving off.
If your manager isn’t finding exciting projects for you, maybe it’s time for a change in management...or maybe you haven’t shown them that you are ready for more.
Changing the things you do will have an incredible impact on the people around you, especially those that are directly involved in your career. If your manager truly is just being lazy about finding you new projects, when you kick things into gear, they will become extremely uncomfortable and head for the hills.
Same with your agent and even your circle of friends.
Lastly, what top actors did in 2019 was: try new things, realizing that doing the same things over and over again will only produce the same results.
A new year is the perfect time to try something new. A new decade comes around once every 10 years and it’s the perfect time to try something radically different.
Let’s get this one started off right, by putting your career in the spotlight.
It’s your time and I can’t wait to...
See you at the top,
Scott