As you continue to grow as an actor, the expectations & goals you have for yourself will also grow.  It’s the same in all areas of your life…

I had a great chat with one of my students.  She’s 17 and just starting out in the business.  We were talking about an extra role she’d recently filmed in a cable TV show.  It was her first experience on TV and she was so EXCITED!  Unlike most extra roles, she was ACTUALLY able to see herself.  I found her excitement contagious.  It instantly brought me back to my first casting experience and my adrenaline was high!  Thanks to our best friend the DVR, she and her family were able to watch her moment over and over again.

Watching and listening to her was like a breath of fresh air.  So refreshing and organic. I reminded her to always remember that moment.  That very moment that ignited her passion for this business and fueled her drive and determination to conquer it.  So many times we let our expectations get the best of us.  We step over and disregard smaller milestones, often pushing them aside to make room for large ones…those that are bigger and better (supposedly) and those that aren’t guaranteed to come.

Every step on this journey should mean something to you.  You should never get to the point where the audition process no longer excites you or booking a role, ANY role doesn’t have you jumping up and down.  You may have to take a few steps backwards in order to move forward, it’s part of life and part of the game.  I’ve heard people complain when asked to audition for a role that ONLY has few lines, forgetting when there was a time when auditioning with no lines was a big deal!   I’m not saying you shouldn’t strive for bigger and better opportunities.  If you didn’t, then you would be guilty of not maximizing your potential.  I’m saying don’t forget where you came from. Do you remember how many doors you had to knock down just to get an agent to call you back or those days you spent wondering, searching the internet, chasing down every glimmer of an opportunity that might get you in the door?  You can’t forget…