Goals

I attended a Savvy Actor workshop last night, and it got my gears turning.

What are my goals? How exactly am I going to get there?

I feel so focused on the day-to-day and then the BIG picture, that I often loose sight of planning how to get to that big picture goal.

Its overwhelming, but I think the key is to narrow the focus. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, right? Right now I'm trying to do so many different things: audition for regional theater, audition for NY theater, audition for DC theater, take voice lessons, look into acting programs, look into acting workshops, submit myself on Actor's Access to try to build a reel, submit myself on backstage, try to find an agent, try to get invited to appointments, try to jump into the dating field again, look for part-time work, maintain my friendships, maintain my professional relationships.....

The folks at the Savvy Actor really have something going for them, they recommend focusing on 3-5 goals at a time, otherwise you can get overwhelmed.

Right now I'm trying to whittle down that huge list and pick just five. High on the list are definitely NY Theater, DC Theater, and improving my skill set. Why do I keep submitting for film when I've never liked movies? This is just an example of my "Trying Harder" leading to inefficiency.

Those little vampire voices in my head keep whispering to me, "Why aren't you doing more? If you do more then you'll find more work. Maybe its because you suck, maybe you aren't good enough, maybe you are too old, maybe its too late...."

I'm stopping that bullcrap. I am creating a detailed plan and schedule as to how I'm going to achieve my long-term goal, which has always been my goal: To play the classic ingenue roles and sing my heart out on Broadway. I have always wanted to be Maria, Christine, Julie, Sarah Brown, Nellie, Eliza, Laurey, and Cossette and somewhere along the way I was convinced that I couldn't, because I'm not a classic blonde ingenue from Oklahoma.

Okay - you all heard it. The longterm goal is to sing legit ingenue roles in New York City. Preferably on Broadway.

The one-year goal is to add people to my team (like a legit agent) who will help me open the door to Off-Broadway and other New York work.

The six-month goal is to focus myself in classes and workshops that will hone my instrument and allow me to be the best performer I can be.