An Evaluation

Almost every actor, while trying to "make it," aka succeed as a working actor, has to have some kind of support job. It can also be referred to as a "survival" job, but I prefer to call it a support job, because it is part of the support I need while nurturing my acting career. To survive is another thing.

I have been very fortunate to have long-term acting jobs that span from months to years, and I am also fortunate to have a support job that works around my true career.

Something I've noticed with the corporate world is that most companies have 6 month evaluations where employees are asked to look back at what they've accomplished and then look ahead to what they'd like to achieve. This can easily be applied to the acting profession as well.

In the past 6 months I've been fortunate to do acting work in almost every field: film, comedy, drama, musicals. I am also blessed to have an abundance of artists around me, people who understand the desire to create.

 My brother is a drummer and a great "explorer" of the arts. Besides music, he is passionate about films, paintings, poetry... almost any kind of art there is. He and I often talk about "the business of show" as well as the artistry of it. We share stories and life lessons, and I am always so thankful to hear his point of view.

He recently asked me what I want to focus on moving forward. I have a tendency to want to do it all. But he offered me this life lesson of something he gleaned from an old jazz musician: "Specialize." And Collaborate.

I still want to do it all, but I am trying to narrow my focus, to follow my gut impulses, and this leads me to the desire to nurture some very personal projects which includes writing and producing a short film and working on a possible web series with some friends. When I think about these projects, I get very excited about them, and I believe that is something very special unto itself. It's the fire that keeps the furnace burning, ya know?

So.... my next step is to create a schedule of sorts, so I can be focused on these projects and nurture them into being. To take time to write every day and also keep my acting tools sharp, because it is indeed audition season. There's a lot to do, but I'm excited to do it! Just got to keep things in perspective and keep disciplined and focused while enjoying the ride.

 Off to the next adventure! :)