Be Yourself

“If you have the guts to be yourself, other people will pay your price.” – John Updike

While many in Hollywood would encourage you to be like someone else (i.e. Whose career do you see yourself having? Know your type!, etc.) in order to make their job of marketing you easier, what will truly set you apart from the herd is learning to be more authentically yourself.  I would bet that any actor you currently admire is ‘one of a kind’.  So… how do you be ‘more yourself’?  How do you bring something to the table that is uniquely yours?

If you began to look in your head for the answer, you’re already looking in the wrong place.  Our character is not defined by who we think we are, it is defined by what we do… look to your heart.  Michelle Pfeiffer recently said to me that her teacher, Roy London, would ask her “What would you do?  O.K. Now… what would you REALLY do?”  We are most ourselves when we are involved in what we’re doing and not being self-conscious.  We are much more than our minds can define, allow for something bigger than your ideas allow.

Close your eyes and ask yourself “What would it look like, feel like, sound like for me to bring more of myself to the work”?  Open the portal of possibility; allow and surrender and see how your work changes.

If you have a sneaking suspicion that there is more in store for you  – you’re probably correct.  Trust, get out of the way, and release control (except when driving and operating heavy machinery) – then, you will witness the enormity of your greatness!  Now, more than ever, the world needs your voice to be heard.