Episode 307: Making a Pivot In Your Acting Career

Book a Free Consultation with Peter So today's podcast is going to be about making a pivot in your acting career.  The first thing you want to do when you are making a pivot is you want to clarify your new career goal. I understand that the goal may be to be a working actor, but what exactly does that mean to you?  And when you've made a goal, asking yourself that follow up question, that empowering question, what does that mean to you? What does that look like? How will it feel when you achieve it?  You want to take time to identify exactly where you want to pivot, and I think those questions can really, truly help you. Now, whether that is in a new area of the industry, or maybe with a new renewed energy towards a different area or a renewed energy towards an old goal? That is fine. The big thing I want you to think about is being specific.  Really setting a clear goal for yourself of what you are looking to do. Now one of the things that I always talk about with my clients is, and if you can put this on a piece of paper, make three columns.  In column one, I want you to put goal. In column two, I want you to put thought and in column three, I want you to put action.  So whatever in life your goal is, you need to keep in mind that your thoughts must be aligned with that goal, your thoughts, and that means what you think and what you say, your vocabulary. I've been talking a lot in my weekly coaching group about vocabulary lately. So what your vocabulary is around that goal and also what your actions are around that goal, making sure that those actions are alignable actions.  The other thing you want to do is really look at, and I'm all about the training. You really want to make sure that your training as an actor is where it needs to be.  Now, that again, click on the link in the show notes, that again, I am willing to help you with. Send me your picture, send me your resume, tell me what kind of class or what kind of skill you are really looking for. Looking to work on with your new pivot with that. Let me help you.  I'm offering this to you for free. So let me help you because this business is so tough.  It is so important that you stay on top of your skills that you stay on top of them. Don't ever underestimate how good you need to be as a casting director, I need you to be good at your job.  Now that may involve you taking new classes or gaining experience in some other way.  But this is the thing we want you to be competitive. And therefore we need your skills to be at the level that other working actors are at. The next thing I want you to think about is leveraging your existing network. In my signature course, The Working Actor Road Map, and in my weekly class, which is the Weekly Accountability Group, I talk all the time about a follow up list and staying on top of your follow up list.  Because you really want to be reaching out to those connections.  Now the thing is, you may not even realize that you have valuable connections. Again, I can guide you with this, networking and making relationships with casting directors, with writers, directors, film festivals at film festivals, these are all things that you can do. Again, this business is a lot about letting go of the things you cannot change or control.  And really embracing and handling and managing and changing the things you can. So I want to help you to get really clear. And in this step, I want you to look at what are the things in this business that are out of my control and what are the things that I want to change that are in my control.  And I want you to put that here when you're talking about your networking.  How can I network more? How can I get myself out there more? Again, if you need help, click on the link in the show notes and we will talk about it.  The other thing is as I want you to look at, and this is again where I get very woogie about putting this in a podcast just for general consumption, because I have a theory about your materials.  You want to be going over your materials. That's the next step here. But this is the thing. The biggest mistake that I feel actors make is that their materials don't speak the language of the agents and the casting directors.  And I want to put it to you this way. If let's say you have a day job. Okay, I want you to think of certain jargon that is spoken in your day job, or maybe your hometown, or maybe at your college, or your acting school. A jargon.  And I want you to think of three words, like three big words, that if somebody brand new came into your university or your day job and they didn't speak those three words, what would you know about them? One, that they're new. Two, that they're not really in the know.  And three, if you're gonna be in charge of them, you're gonna have to explain it all to them.  That's how it is for casting directors and agents and managers.  We want to be working with people who are, who already know the jargon, who are already speaking our language, because we don't have time to teach you. But I do. And that's the thing that I really want to stress. It is that you need your materials. If you're going to be revamping them, if you're looking for an exfoliation of your acting career, we gotta talk. And the reason is because you will be deleted or discarded if your materials don't speak the language of the agents and the casting directors. So again, another tip here is to really go over your materials.  Next bit is, and this is a big one. Start with small steps. And I talk about this a lot. Anyone can eat an elephant one bite at a time. Anyone can eat an elephant one bite at a time. Big steps, giving yourself big steps in your acting career is just going to lead to nothing getting done. Why? Because our perfectionism kicks up. Perfectionism leads to procrastination, which leads to paralysis.  So that is why we want to make it baby steps. When we do baby steps, one, we're more likely to get it done. And two, when we get it done, we build that incredible thing that money can't buy, which is self esteem and self worth and the confidence to go on to the next step.  So baby step it.  The next one I want to tell you about is seeking mentorship. And again, that is why I started off this podcast saying, hey, if you need someone to guide you through this, I'm here. Schedule a free consult with me. Let's work it out.  Because you do need those outside eyes to guide you. And you want it to be someone who is qualified in this industry.  Okay, last one. And this is a core work one. Oh baby, you know it because it's me, which is to be prepared for setbacks and stay resilient. Making a shift, making a pivot, can take time and may involve setbacks. And I know that freaking sucks to say, because already you're making a pivot because you've had a setback. And let's be honest, 2024 has been a rough time for the industry.  The thing is that you want to embrace the lessons that you're learning. You want to stay patient. You want to focus on small wins, and you want to progress. The fact of the matter is this is your dream. And you've only got one life to live. So let's freaking go for it.  Remember, being resilient is key in staying alive. motivated.  And of course, all of my podcasts are here to help you. And so am I. So if you want, if you would like to be brave, or you want to get that mentorship, click on the link in the show notes, and I'll be happy to help.