ChooseIT! Love The Biz + The Only Certainty In Life

Ahhhhh Show Business!

One day you’re up, the next you’re down. One day you’re a star, the next you’re standing in the freezing cold waiting for an appointment. One day, you’re making $60K in residuals, the next you’re making $200 from unemployment.

Oh yes, the uncertainties of show business are many. If you jump on the train, you’ve got to hold on for dear life because you never know when it might flip over on top of you. Of course, you also never know when it might bring you the golden ticket or your “overnight success.”

So how do you deal with the uncertainties of our business? And what is it that keeps you going?

You may think it’s something like “Because I love it,” OR “Because I’m passionate about it,” OR “Because I can’t do anything else.”

But the real answer may actually shock you. In fact, the answer might make you mad because it really is just one tiny word.

One incredibly powerful word.

CHOICE.

Each day, each moment we have a choice. We choose what we’re going to wear today. We choose what we’re going to eat. We choose which monologue we’re going to use for an audition. And daily, we CHOOSE whether to let the uncertainties of this business stop us pursing our dream, or to accept them and keep going anyway.

But #choosing something in any given moment means choosing ALL OF IT… the good, the bad and the ugly. CHOOSING to be an actor means you CHOOSE everything about it: the magic, the #uncertainty, the excitement, the financial challenges, the auditions, the heartaches, the opening nights, the highs and lows… everything.

And by choosing it each day, you can’t get upset when things don’t go your way because you chose the path.

But maybe you’ve discovered that you can’t accept that anymore. Maybe you’ve decided you’re going to trade in all that uncertainty for security and go get “a real job.” There’s probably not an actor around who hasn’t pondered that question at least once in their lifetime. Or for some they ponder it every single day. And there are many who have moved into a different profession to add some certainty and security into their life. Hooray for them!

But there’s still one question to ponder. One teeny, tiny, little question.

What in life IS actually secure? What in life IS truly certain?

The answer?

NOTHING.

Not one thing.

Oh wait, no… I was wrong… there is one little thing we can ABSOLUTELY be certain of.

One teeny, tiny incredibly CERTAIN THING.

Wait for it!

One day we’re ALL going to die.

There, I said it.

Now that may sound a bit morbid in comparison with the blog posts I usually write. But actually, it might very well be the most freeing notion I’ve ever given you.

Because within that ONE CERTAINTY, THAT SINGLE PIECE OF CERTAINTY, lies a giant, fertile space of sheer, unadulterated POSSIBILITY of what you can do, be, and pursue UNTIL that happens.

And THAT, my friend, is POWER. #power

THAT is FREEDOM. #freedom

THAT is CHOICE. #choice

So tomorrow when you wake up, ask yourself if you’re still CHOOSING to be an actor. And if you are, then embrace everything it offers… the good, the bad and the ugly.

Here are some other really wonderful things to CHOOSE in your life.

1. CHOOSE your acting career.

2. CHOOSE your family.

3. CHOOSE happiness.

4. CHOOSE love.

5. CHOOSE laughter.

6. CHOOSE your health.

Which ones are YOU choosing today? Write in the comments below.

Leslie Becker is an award-winning actress, writer and creator of The Organized Actor^® who is passionate about inspiring, entertaining and educating others. Sign up below for more tips for workin’ your acting career and your life. www.OrganizedActor.com.