How Actors can Benefit from Therapy - by Robert Curtiss

When working in a business as insecure as acting, it can often be difficult to remain a secure person. It's incredibly important to be of good, sound body and mind, and to maintain mental and physical health. Keep your mind clear, healthy, and balanced. I believe in positive energies. I think going through life with a positive attitude promotes positive work.

We all have times, however, when it’s a struggle to maintain a good attitude and a healthy outlook. There are times when even friends can't help you fix what’s bothering you, and acting class is not the place to work out your troubles. 

If you’re having problems in a relationship, at work, or just having difficulties adjusting to your new life in the city, consider going to therapy. Many people try to work out their problems in their minds, but there is something to be said for talking out loud about your issues and hear them reflected back to you from a mental health professional. 

A therapist can help you identify problematic behavior patterns and help you to figure out why you do what you do, help you to cope and/or make necessary changes in your life to move forward, maintain your balance, and to help you deal with new challenges. This will only enhance your life and your career.

Some people believe that therapy is only for weak or "sick" people. This is untrue. In fact, it shows inner strength to ask for help. As for the cost, many therapists have a sliding scale to accommodate clients with limited resources, and most insurance plans offer some mental health coverage. If you need therapy and can truly benefit from it, find a way to afford it. Some people can't afford to not have therapy! 

Remember: If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got. Therapy can help you change that cycle, and can truly enhance and enrich your life.

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How Following Industry Trends Can Get You The Part - by John Essay

There are trends in show business, just like in fashion. Certain types of action movies may be popular at the moment (“The Avengers,” “Thor,” “Spider-Man,” etc.), or there might be a surge of television or film projects featuring young singers and dancers (“Glee,” “Smash,” etc.). This means that certain types of actors will be cast more than others during these times.

Trends are important to recognize. Perhaps your "type" is hot right now or you might be able to adjust your image to fit a trend. There was a time when men with five o'clock shadows were everywhere.

I remember a time when one of my clients, who had previously done well commercially, had stopped getting callbacks. I thought this was so odd, since she had previously been so "popular." I watched TV for several days in a row and concentrated on those commercials that my client had auditioned for—I noticed that the women who landed the roles all had curly hair. Aha! I had spotted a new trend. I discussed this with my client, and she stopped straightening her hair. She soon began to get callbacks again. Now I know this might sound rather simple, but sometimes it IS simple—so simple that we fail to see what is there right in front of our eyes! The whole point is to always be aware of the current trends, and to see how you might fit into them. Sometimes it works!

If your type is not "in" right now, keep looking for the trends. They are always changing, and a trend for your type may not be far behind!

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3 Strategies for Staying Punctual and Professional - by Robert Curtiss

We live in a world where schedules conflict, where some auditions and appointments are tightly scheduled back to back, and though you may have plenty of time in your own schedule, the people who you are meeting, interviewing, or auditioning for may have little wiggle room to fit you in. Occasional lateness is undesirable but understandable—we all have been late some time in our lives, perhaps because of some last-minute snafu or bad traffic—and it is usually easily forgiven and forgotten by all involved. Chronic lateness, however, undermines your professionalism.

Here are a few strategies for being on time:

1. Leave 30 minutes early for every appointment, or add 15–30 minutes to your expected travel time. This means that if you ordinarily would leave home 15 minutes before your appointment, leave 30–45 minutes early. This will most likely get you there early; you can use the time to prepare yourself. If you run into delays on your route, hopefully the extra travel time will be sufficient to keep you on time.

2. Organize your life so you are not scrambling for misplaced items moments before leaving for the day. Keep a datebook calendar handy, and write down your daily schedule (of course, you have to actually look at it for this to be useful). There are smartphone apps for this.

3. It may be helpful to have an “audition survival bag” that you keep packed and ready to go. This could be a knapsack, purse, or briefcase. Here is a list of suggested items to keep in your bag: headshots and résumés, business cards, sheet music, a MetroCard, paper and a pen, makeup, a hairbrush, bottled water, breath mints, and an energy bar, and hide $10 or $20 inside just in case. This way you only have to remember your keys, cell phone, audition material, and any other audition/business needs, grab your audition bag, and out the door you go.

I hope these strategies help keep you on time and prepared for your appointments. If you still end up being late, by all means, acknowledge it and apologize for keeping them waiting. Break a leg!

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Why You Need to Keep Growing as an Actor - by Robert Curtiss

“I'm too old to start now.” “It's too late for me.” “I'm too old to change.” How many times have you heard someone say these things? Have you ever said them yourself?

It’s sad how often we repeat these beliefs as if they are the unquestioned truth. The more we say something, the more we come to believe it is true. These beliefs limit us. When you say these things—when you really believe these things—it means you've stopped adapting to the world around you. It means you're stuck in the past and not adapting in the here-and-now. It is not a healthy mindset. I am often struck by how many people talk about dealing with their problems, yet they don't actually deal with them at all. They shun the idea of therapy by saying, “I can handle my own problems” or “I'm too old to change,” but they don't truly deal with their problems by talking about them. They don’t try to change their problematic behaviors and instead keep repeating the behaviors that cause the problems!

Older people also use the phrase “In my day” as a way to make the present inferior to the way “it used to be.” However, they use it as a way to excuse their non-participation in the present. Think about it—is today not your day?? Are you too old to learn something?? Of course not!

Sometimes we get complacent, and trying something different feels scary. However, remember that a flower in a small pot can only grow so far. An actor in Wichita, for example, who stays in Wichita, will only go as far as is possible in Wichita. That is fine for some people—being the big fish in the little pond can be satisfying. However, if you want to achieve greater things, you need to grow, to push your limits.

We all must keep growing until we die. It is the nature of all living things. It is never too late to start something that can enhance your life—be it piano lessons, or therapy, or quitting smoking.

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3 Steps to Getting Out of Your Own Way

“If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you always got.”  

This is one of my favorite slogans, and it really is true. There is a famous saying that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

Think about it. Human beings are creatures of habit, and even though we may be unhappy in our particular circumstances and say we want something different, we are usually more comfortable with our familiar habits in our familiar surroundings, however miserable they may be, than we are about changing any of those same habits and surroundings!

It takes strength and determination, and insight into our own behavior, to actually change what is holding us back. Here is a helpful series of steps to guide you.

Step 1: Identify what it is you want that you are not getting. This is the easiest part!

Step 2: Recognize which patterns of your behavior may be impeding you from attaining your goal. Ask yourself: What do I do that sabotages myself from achieving what I want? As a simple example, let’s say it is consistently sleeping late, or procrastinating.

Step 3: Modify the problematic behavior. Sometimes the issue just needs a simple modification that you can do on your own (for the above examples, you could go to bed earlier and buy an alarm clock, or you could make a schedule to complete tasks and avoid procrastination), and sometimes the issue is more deeply ingrained in your psyche so that you may require additional assistance from family and friends, and perhaps from a psychotherapist, who is trained to help you with these kinds of challenges.

You have the power to get out of your own way and change your life! Good luck on your journey!

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