At this point in the year, I usually start to hear from many actors that are waking up to the realization that this year will probably turn out exactly the way last year turned out for them.

I hear from actors that are concerned about the lack of progress they made so far this year, even though they were “doing everything they could.”

It is an appropriate time to reflect on how things have gone this year, because it’s not too late to turn things around.

The actors I hear from are the exception. The truth is that most actors will simply continue to do the same things as they always do and hope something changes.

Professional actors don’t do that at all.

They know that building an acting career can’t be done passively. You have to actively try new things and stop doing what doesn’t work.

To do that effectively, you have to periodically evaluate the progress you have been making and there’s not a better time to do it than right now.

So if you want to make the most of the second half of the year, here’s where to start...

Building an acting career without an agent is next to impossible. Everyone knows that, and most actors try to sign with an agent as quickly as they can.

Having an agent does many things for you. It provides you with someone to submit you for auditions, negotiate your contracts, and even provide some guidance on the direction of your career.

The agent you sign with can have a profound impact on your acting career. Over the years, I have seen first hand how many actors don’t take the process of finding and signing with a great agent as seriously as they approach other areas of their career.

Inevitably, that leads to many actors getting stuck in their career. See, signing with the wrong agent for you can be a huge weight on your acting career. It can lead to missing out on big opportunities at crucial points.

It can lead to pursuing the wrong opportunities, and spinning your wheels instead of making progress.

Most actors don’t give much thought to the agent they sign with. Very little planning goes into it, so many end up settling for whoever will accept them.

Professional actors know just how important it is to sign with a great agent and they start the process of finding one as soon as possible.

Here’s how you can start too, whether you are looking for your first agent, your next agent, or if you just want to make sure that you are already signed with the right agent...

Building a career as a professional actor is one of the most challenging things anyone can undertake.

Not only are actors presented with much adversity and rejection, it is so common that it is considered just part of being in the industry.

The actors that are able to overcome the challenges and build careers as professional actors, often struggle to comprehend how they accomplished what they did, making it difficult for them to be helpful to other actors.
So, when you are building your own career, who are you supposed to turn to for advice and guidance?

Acting coaches can help you work on your audition technique and help you with delivering powerful performances, but that is as far as their guidance goes.

Agents exist to help you get auditions and negotiate your bookings but most of them can’t help with anything beyond that.

So, what most actors do is bring on a manager to help with the big picture. A manager can provide guidance on how to get your career to the next level and they have the skills to help you build a plan for accomplishing your goals.

Hiring a great manager can be a complete game changer for your career and professional actors try to hire them as soon as possible. The problem is that great managers don’t typically work with actors that are still in the early stages of building a career.

They want to work with actors that have already experienced a certain level of success, so until you build your career to that point, who are you supposed to turn to?

Not many resources exist. Most actors just end up winging it, never really having a plan for building their career.

If that is something you would like to avoid, here’s where to start...

There is a part of the industry that many actors overlook, even though it can have big career implications.

In fact, over the years, I have lost count of the number of actors I have met that in some way looked down on this part of the industry.

I’m talking about voice overs...

Sure, most actors would love to voice a blockbuster animated studio film but many actors are unwilling to pursue projects that don’t have that high of a profile.

Voice Overs can take your acting career on a unique and unconventional path and there are many opportunities available that many actors are unaware of.

Professional actors are very good at finding opportunities that have limited competition and voiceovers is where many of them first find success.

If you have been struggling to get your career to the next level, maybe it’s time to change things up and try something you hadn’t committed to before.

Afterall, voice overs have several unique advantages that can provide you with many more opportunities.

Here’s where to start...

Every actor knows that their ability to book roles depends on more than just what happens during auditions.

While auditions are a crucial part of your career, they are only a single part of a larger industry system.

Actors that do not understand that larger system tend to have a more difficult time building an acting career than actors that do understand the system.

Part of what makes the industry so challenging is that it largely relies on relationships. It is not purely a meritocracy where the “best” actor books the job.

There are many other factors that are taken into consideration and that is where building relationships with casting directors and industry decision makers becomes important.

Those relationships can be what differentiates you from other actors and they can help to open other opportunities that are not available to most actors.

Professional actors know how much of a difference those relationships can make so they continuously work on building and leveraging industry relationships.

Many actors think that you have to already be a well connected and accomplished actor to build meaningful industry relationships but that’s simply not the case.

If you want to build your career as a professional actor, it’s best to start as early as possible. Here’s how...

Around this time every year I start to get emails from many actors that are coming to the realization that this year just might turn out to be exactly the same as last year.

Pilot season sets the tone for the year. Actors that can get some momentum are typically able to sustain it throughout the rest of the year.

The actors that don’t, are far more likely to start having doubts about whether or not they will be able to make the kind of progress they hoped they would.

The industry is incredibly competitive, and rejection is an inevitable part of the process. Every actor knows that but over the years I have seen that many of them are not very well prepared for what the industry will present them with.

The ones that are prepared tend to be the ones that are able to build their careers successfully. Most other actors will continue going from one audition to the next, sometimes half heartedly.

Professional actors don’t do that. They know that they can’t just continue doing the same things as before. In order for them to build an acting career, they have to do things differently.

If you want to build your career as a professional actor, that’s something you should do too.

Here’s how...

Deciding when it is the right time to join the union will play a significant role in how you build your acting career.

While the unions aim to ensure fair wages, safe working conditions, and to create plentiful professional opportunities for actors, not everyone will benefit from joining.

I know that sounds backwards and most actors dream of the day they finally get their union card.

However, joining the union can be a big career mistake, if your career is not on the right trajectory.

Professional actors know that joining the union is not as simple as becoming eligible and paying your union dues.

They ensure that their careers will ultimately benefit from joining the union and they don’t always jump at the first opportunity to join.

If you want to build your career as a professional actor, joining the union is something that in all likelihood will be part of your career plan.

After all, most of the big projects you will be hoping to be a part of are going to be union productions.

If you want to make the most of when you join the union, it will take some planning. Here’s where to start...

Auditions are your opportunity to show the industry what you are capable of.

That is why so many actors, particularly early in their career, feel a sense of overwhelm, nervousness, and uncertainty about the entire process.

Even after you have been in the industry for several years and you have lost count of all the auditions you have completed, it is still something you don’t want to take lightly.

After all, what you are able to accomplish in the industry largely depends on your ability to audition successfully.

That’s something professional actors realize early on in their career and they dedicate a lot of time to perfecting their audition strategy.

Over the years I have seen many actors fall into the trap of looking for the perfect tips and tricks to master the audition process.

That’s a journey that does not end well, because there is not one single thing you can do to cause a CD to move forward with you.

There’s not a magic phrase you can use either, so understanding the entire process and building a holistic strategy is what professional actors do instead.

If you want to build your career as a professional actor, that’s something you should too. Here’s where to start.