The Price of Success

Now that Oceans Thirteen has made it to cable television, it would appear that every cable channel is running it. At least that’s how it feels every time I turn on my TV!

By now I’ve probably seen the movie 5 or 6 times, but I must say this: I really enjoy the relationship between George Clooney and Brad Pitt. Not only are they fun to watch in these movies because of the great friendship their characters have, but you can tell that they’re also good friends in real life. Because they share the bond of “celebrity,” they also share the understanding that true friends are very hard to make in Hollywood.

Last week I had a coaching call with one of my clients and during the course of our conversation, she told me that the more successful she became, the more friends she lost. Sadly, I wasn’t surprised.

When my grandmother first started out in the fabric business (of which she knew nothing about), one of her suppliers took her under his wing to teach her the business and help her make other industry contacts. At that time, one of the most important things he told her was that as her business grew and she became successful, she would also lose friends. He then told her that she would meet new friends along the way, and he was right: on both accounts!

When I became an agent, I suddenly found myself with a LOT of new “friends.” However, the truth of the matter is that these people were more interested in what I could do for them, than they were in being my friend. Fortunately, I figured that out early, because as soon as I quit the agency and started my own company, a lot of those people dropped out of my life. No surprise there!

Once my business started growing, I also lost some friends who couldn’t relate to being an entrepreneur, and I chose to let other friends go because I realized that they were not supportive of me, or my business.

As your career grows and you become more and more successful, you may discover that your circle of friends grows smaller and smaller, because true friends are few and far between.

So if you ever find yourself in the position of losing friends, make sure you take the time to grieve your loss, trusting that you WILL make new friends along the way; friends who want nothing but the best for you and who will be there to share in your success because they’re genuinely happy for you.

Success does have a price tag attached to it. It may not be immediately apparent, but it’s there, nonetheless. The good news is that you’re not alone on your journey – I’m right there with you!

To Your Success,
Sharon


Sharon Moist
The Industry Coach®
*********
Website: The Industry Coach
Newsletter: Industry News Digest
Book: 101 Tips for Actors

What Are You Afraid Of?

When I was 10 years old, my mom enrolled me in formal swimming lessons. Up until that time, I had always loved the water and was a bit of a fish, but now it was time for me to learn the proper way to swim.

The lessons lasted about 4 weeks and soon after that, the head instructor came to my parents and asked them if he could put me on the swim team. By the end of that summer, I was the regional conference champion in backstroke, and by age 12 I was training for the Olympics.

For the next 7 years, I set swimming records and remained the regional backstroke champion. No one could beat me. Then, at the age of 18 (my last year of eligibility on this particular swim team), as we were driving to the final conference championship, a single thought crossed my mind that had never crossed it before: “What if I lose?”

For 8 years straight I had won this event. And in those 8 years I had never even considered the possibility of losing this race. Now, however, I found myself thinking about the fact that this was my last year on this team; I started getting sad about that fact, and I started thinking about how I would feel if I lost.

It wasn’t a good feeling and I did my best to shake it, as I swam the other 2 individual events in which I was entered (50 yard Butterfly and 100 yard Individual Medley). Then it came time for MY RACE, the 50 yard Backstroke. We got in the pool, the gun went off and the race was on. The first 45 yards of the race were fine, but as I took my final three strokes, the thought of losing once again crossed my mind, and sure enough, my mind took hold of that fear and I lost the race by .01 seconds. Unbelievable!

I think I may have won a couple of other events (I was entered in 5 altogether), but honestly, as far as I was concerned, this was the ONLY race that mattered. And after 8 straight years of being the best swimmer in this event, all it took was one moment of fear, and I now found myself in the spot of “second best.” I was crushed.

The power that fear can have over us can be enormous, if we let it be. The key, however, is that it can only have the amount of power that we give to it. If we give it a lot of power, it can keep us frozen and prevent us from moving forward.

On the other hand, if we acknowledge it, but don’t allow ourselves to dwell on it, and instead choose to continue moving steadily forward, we can get past the fear.

There’s no question about the fact that pursuing an acting career is a scary concept. As actors, some of the fears we face including: being too old; not being good enough; not knowing where to start in pursuing our career; not having an agent; not getting the job; not living in LA or NY in order to pursue a career; blowing the audition; not knowing where to take class; not succeeding; not becoming famous, and the list goes on and on and on.

So, how does you get past the fear? The first step is to acknowledge it, because you can’t deal with it until you actually acknowledge that it’s present.

Secondly, you list it, in order to know exactly what it is. Auditions? Money? Lack of representation? Make a list so you know exactly how many fears, and what fears, you’re dealing with.

Next, you name. That’s right – give each one of your fears a personal name, so that every time it rears its ugly head, you can call it by name. Afraid of not being good enough when you audition for something? Call it George, so that when you’re on an audition and that fear comes up, you can say something like: “Oh, that’s just George, stopping by to say Hello. Hi George! Bye George.”

And finally, create a phrase or mantra for yourself (mine is “Cancel That”) so that anytime you feel fear coming on, you can continue to tell yourself to “cancel that” (or whatever your mantra is), until the fear goes away. It may take 50 times of saying your mantra, but eventually it WILL go away, and as time goes on, it will begin to get easier and easier to eliminate the fearful thoughts that cross your mind.

Dealing with fear will take some work on your part. And while it won’t happen overnight, you CAN find a way to start taking control of your fears and letting them go. You can do this. I know you can. So start today and let me know how it goes!

To Your Success,
Sharon


Sharon Moist
The Industry Coach®
*********
Website: The Industry Coach
Newsletter: Industry News Digest
Book: 101 Tips for Actors

Do You Trust Your Intuition?

As I mentioned in my opening note to you, even after making the decision to cancel my trip to Chicago two weeks, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I needed to come home. So, I trusted my intuition; booked a ticket and hopped on plane.

Why did I need to make this trip? I have no idea. I just knew that I needed to be here, so here I am.

One of the biggest challenges we often face is the idea of trusting our intuition on something; especially when the “facts” tell us something different. However, as Bill Gates (Founder and Chairman of Microsoft) said, “Often you have to rely on your own intuition.”

So what is your intuition telling you today? I know it’s telling you something!

Maybe it’s to submit to the Casting Director of a movie you just saw and loved. Maybe it’s to pick up a trade you never read. Maybe it’s to try out a new acting class; do a private session with a new teacher; or hire a career coach, such as myself. Maybe it’s to step out of a theatre company that’s not working for you. Or, maybe it’s telling you to look for a new agent.

If you will take a few minutes to stop what you’re doing, take a deep breath and still your mind, your intuition will make itself known to you.

After all, if the third richest man in the world does it, maybe you should try it sometime!


Sharon Moist
The Industry Coach®
*********
Website: The Industry Coach
Newsletter: Industry News Digest
Book: 101 Tips for Actors

Are You a Happy Camper?

What makes you happy? I mean really, truly happy. Have you ever given any thought to what makes you the kind of “jumping for joy, singing in the rain” happy, that leaves you grinning from ear to ear for no apparent reason?

When I was younger, it was material things: new shoes; a new purse; the latest CD by my favorite musician, a new car. You get the picture.

Now, it’s the simple things in life: spending quality time with my parents’; good conversations with friends; great water pressure in the shower; playing with a puppy; nicely fragranced soap; spending the summer at my home in Montana (where I am even as you read this); grapefruit scented candles; a beautiful garden of wild flowers; new baby ducks learning to swim in the stream off my dining room patio; a really good thunderstorm; jumping in a really big rain puddle afterwards. Those are the things that truly put a smile on my face today.

What about you? What’s on your list?

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day stress of our lives that we forget to stop and enjoy the little things that make life so wonderful.

So now, after you’re done reading this article, I would challenge you sit down and make a list of those things that make you truly happy – and I’m willing to bet that they aren’t material things.

Then, when life becomes a little too crazy or too stressful to handle, pick an item on your “Happy List” and take the time to enjoy it – even if it’s just for a few minutes. You’ll be amazed at how great you feel during the rest of the day.

Cheers,
Sharon


Sharon Moist
The Industry Coach®
*********
Website: The Industry Coach
Newsletter: Industry News Digest
Book: 101 Tips for Actors

Do You Know What To Do To Succeed?

In last week’s article, I discussed what it takes to succeed as an actor. This week, I want to look at what you have to DO in order to succeed in your career.

Simply put, your most important job, as an actor, is to market yourself.

In its most basic form, marketing involves:

1) Knowing Your Type
2) Picking Your Target Market
3) Sending Out Your Materials

Are you the best-kept secret in the industry? If you’re not doing anything to market yourself, you probably are!

One of the biggest mistakes most actors make is presuming that once they have an agent, their job is done and they no longer need to market themselves. Unfortunately, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Getting an agent is just the first step. And while it can certainly help you get your foot in the door, it doesn’t mean that you will be submitted to all of the people your agent does business with.

Due to the nature of being a talent agent, more often than not your agent is focused on submitting you for projects they feel you’re “right for,” not on marketing you to all of the casting directors they work with. Is that how it should be? No. But that’s how it is.

When I first started as an agent I sat in on a meeting with my boss as he was interviewing a prospective client, and one of the most important things he said was: “Never leave 100% of your career in the hands of someone who ultimately has a 10% interest.”

Every time you book a job, 10% of your salary goes to the agency that represents you (not to your specific agent). Therefore, if 90% of your salary is going to you, then you’ll also want to take responsibility for 90% of your career, and that includes doing something to market yourself every day.

The more you can take control of your career, the more empowered you will feel; the more empowered you feel, the more confident you will be in yourself and your talent; and the more confident you feel, the greater your chance for success.

Are you ready to put on your marketing hat and let the rest of the world know you exist? You can do it, I know you can!

Ready. Set. Go!

To Your Acting Success,
Sharon


Sharon Moist
The Industry Coach®
*********
Website: The Industry Coach.com
Newsletter: Industry News Digest
Book: 101 Tips For Actors

Do You Have What It Takes To Succeed?

One of the first questions my clients always ask me is: “What does it take to succeed in this business?”

Now, here’s the catch with that question: What It Takes to succeed as an actor, and What You Have To Do to be successful in this business are two different things.

Today we’ll look at what it takes to succeed, which primarily consists of two things:

1) Perseverance
2) A Positive Mental Attitude

Connections can certainly help - but only in helping you get your foot in the door. Then, the rest is up to you: your talent, your training, your knowledge, your persistence and your attitude.

It also helps to have an agent or a manager, but it is not a necessity (at least at the beginning), and agents and managers are not god. Believe me, I was an agent, so I know! The agency where I worked discovered Adam Sandler, Jack Black, Halle Berry, T.R. Knight, Gary Sinise, Tim Robbins and Josh Lucas, just to name a few actors whom you may recognize as having successful careers. We also passed on John Travolta and Russell Crowe, so obviously we don't know everything!

To paraphrase what Sir Anthony Hopkins once told soap opera actor Tony Geary (General Hospital), "success in this business is a 'numbers game' and it's just a matter of waiting for your number to come up." (A good definition of Perseverance!)

Talent also helps, but as one of my own acting teachers once told me, during the pursuit of my career, "... there are many actors out there working who are less talented than you are, and there are many actors out there who are more talented than you are, who are not working. It really comes down to how badly you want it, and how long you're willing to wait for it."

Personally, I didn't have the patience to wait for it (perseverance), and I certainly wasn't willing to share an apartment with 3 roommates and live on macaroni and cheese for months on end (positive mental attitude), so I moved over to production and worked as a development executive at one of the major studios, before becoming an agent.

I truly believe that anyone who wants to succeed can succeed in this business. I've seen it with my own clients who have accomplished their professional goals at an astonishing rate.

Look at World Class athletes. They are the perfect example of having what it takes to succeed. Before a swimmer ever reaches the Olympics, a tennis player ever reaches the French Open, or a golfer ever reaches the British Open, they have spent thousands upon thousands of hours swimming laps, hitting tennis balls or swinging golf clubs, because no one becomes a world class athlete overnight. Instead, they continue to persevere and stay positive, even when the end is nowhere in sight, because they know that each lap, swing or stroke will bring them closer to their goal.

Wanting an acting career is one thing. Persevering through the tough times, and staying positive when the auditions aren't coming and nothing seems to be working, is a whole other ball game.

Are you up for the challenge?

To Your Acting Success,
Sharon


Sharon Moist
The Industry Coach®
*********
Website: TheIndustryCoach.com
Newsletter: IndustryNewsDigest
Book: 101 Tips For Actors

Are You an Open or Closed Book?

Are you open to learning something you already know? They say that “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” But what about people? Do you think it’s possible to teach someone something new, even if they feel like they already know it?

My father is a voracious reader, reading the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal every day, along with the stacks of books he has by his bedside. You see, my dad’s of the belief that just one good idea is the worth the price of the book. That philosophy has now stuck with me; thus the stacks of books alongside my own bed, as well! (In fact, I swear that between the two of us, we could open our own library!)

When I first started out in my career, I was always buying whatever acting book caught my eye. Yes, I probably had 2 or 3 others on the same subject already, but if I didn’t have this particular book, I would add it to my collection. Why? Because a new book often gave me a different point of view – especially if it was written from a different author.

For example: Right now I have about 4 or 5 books in my library, from different casting directors, on the casting process. Now some people may say, “Well, wouldn’t one book do the trick?” And my response would have to be “No” because there are hundreds of casting directors out there, all with different thoughts, opinions and processes they use in casting a project. Therefore, if I just read one book, from one casting director, I could (potentially) miss out on information from another casting director that may actually help me land a job. Make sense?

The same situation applies to workshops. I recently attended a workshop on marketing, and as I introduced myself to the two people sitting next to me, I experienced two very different conversations. The gentleman on my right told me that this was the third workshop he had attended this year on marketing, and that he was really enjoying these workshops because even though he knew most of this information already, he had gotten a couple of new ideas that he was now using in his business and these ideas had already doubled his rate of return – in effect more than covering the cost of the workshop and all of his travel expenses.

Next, I spoke with the woman on my left, and she, too, told me that she already knew all of this information. She also told me that the only reason she was there was because it was another tax deduction for her business and it was a great way to play hooky for a few days without having to do any work.

Two very different people with two very different mindsets, and I would be willing to bet that you could guess which one of these people had a successful career and which one did not.

Remember: All it takes is one really great idea to change your life, and when it comes to your acting career, the one question you need to ask yourself is this:

Am I open to learning something I “think” I already know?

Only you can answer that question.

To Your Acting Success,

Sharon


Sharon Moist
The Industry Coach®
*********
Website: The Industry Coach
Newsletter: Industry News Digest
Book: 101 Tips for Actors