Many blogs I've been reading have to do with "setting goals" for the New Year, which is admirable, but I find that what's more important than setting goals is having an actual PLAN of how to make those goals become reality. Creating a plan takes time and the skill of being able to break down a long-term goal into definable and doable steps. Actors get caught up in how "everything is out of my control!" We lament about this constantly. "If only...." I do it myself. Frustration and fear fuel the "if onlys". "If only I had [fill in the blank], I'd be getting auditions for [fill in the blank]." "If only I was [fill in the blank], I'd be a lead on [fill in the blank]." What defeatist thinking!
I can only speak for myself. The best tool I have is my will. Will lives within the spirit; it's what drives me to do in the world, for whatever reason (and there are many reasons!). Getting clear and boiling down to the brass tacks what I actually GET out of my long-term goals is essential to being able to achieve anything. What is it I really want by being an actor? Whatever it is, I don't have to tell anyone, but I do have to be clear to myself or guess what? NOTHING WHATSOEVER will happen. I will spin my wheels, lament how unfair the business is and eat a pint of Ben & Jerry's. Gee, that's living the high life.
So my January 2011 has been spent formulating The Plan. Getting clear on what the hell I want to get out of being an actor. This isn't just "oh, I want to star in a feature film or tv show" or "I want to get an agent" bs. Those aren't goals. They're wishes. Dreams. The payoff of being an actor to me isn't about what someone else can give me (i.e., roles, agents, awards, fame, whatever!). It's what I give myself through the work and what I can give back to others through the work.
I'm using a lot of different tools. Meditation, journaling, art. Leslie Becker has an email series of 9 "weeks" of tasks to help goal setting and action planning that rocks. I found a new acting coach (start next week!) and I'm going to begin singing lessons in February. I'm getting back into the swing of going to EPAs for projects that intrigue me as well as continuing to pursue film, television and commercial opportunities. Great Hair Day continues to bring in residuals!
Though I just now got an email canceling an audition for Friday (project postponed), I know it's all part of The Plan. Shit happens in this business and I have to roll with it. It'll be rescheduled. Business plans need to be flexible but not so flexible that they lose shape. I know why I'm on this path and that makes walking on the path much more inspiring. It's my path; I lay the stones, I choose the direction and I decide why, how and how far. It's not about "if only" someone else gives me a break. It's about how I create my life to be the best it can be.
"Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans," said John Lennon. I think what's often overlooked is that if you're not busy making other plans, you can't see the life that is happening around you. So get busy!
Here's to The Plan!
