So what’s next?
Perhaps we should start with one of my great lessons. It was a moment that was a game changer. It is the reason I am not a teacher, enjoying a normal professional career and the reason I braved the auditions for the university BFA program.
After my psych degree, I aborted grad school plans, and decided to upgrade my undergrads so that I could apply to the PDP program. I enrolled in Theatre 100, my first theatre experience since high school. It was summer semester, so we spent three hours a day together for over a month. I was submersed in a creative world for the first time in 5 years and found I was flourishing. Every challenge that I would normally shrink from was a delight. You want to make an introvert loosen their shell? Make them desperate for the opportunity. I needed creativity like the parched need water.
One final lesson, we were asked to leave the room while the rest of the students would decide what our greatest performance challenge was. What did we need to work on based on our time together? I volunteered, hopeful their criticism would be kind. When I came back to the room, everyone was failing miserably at a poker face and their crooked smiles were aimed at the chair that was alone center stage.
“Sit,” said the prof, her hippie chic, turtle-ringed finger pointing to the seat. “We’ve decided together that your biggest challenge is admitting that this is your dream. We want to know how you’re going to make your dream come true.”
Of course, I was crying (a recurrent theme throughout theatre school – I was a hot mess daily). I blabbered about auditioning for the program. When the time came, I auditioned. I got in. But before I braved the journey, I needed to articulate my dreams, my fears, and the challenges I’d face living with both.
So here’s your first challenge.
Stand in front of a mirror. A big mirror. Yes. Get used to it. You are going to do it and you’re going to like it. If you think I’m strange for talking to myself in the mirror I think it’s strange that you do not. You need all the practice speaking. It is imperative that you start using your voice. In this scene, you are a success. You are being interviewed about the journey.
So tell yourself:
What were your goals?
What were your dreams?
What’s held you back?
How did you become successful?
What was the key to your success?
This isn’t a pity party. This isn’t an opportunity to beat yourself up. Love watching your glorious self speak. You were given a voice! Learn to love it while taking some constructive criticism from the one that knows you best.
The purpose of pretending that you’re a success is that you already are. Celebrate your accomplishments. Always have goals. But work towards them from the positive, confident perspective of a ‘successful’ person.
Don’t stop there. Interview yourself on current events, hot topics, and controversial themes. Ask your opinion like it really matters. Get the words moving. Observe how you use your face, hands, and body. Don’t like your answer? Start over until it feels right! You are the star of this production! Value your thoughts as such. You may surprise yourself. The wisdom you hold in your heart will flow once it realizes it has the stage.
So get talking. We are on a journey to discovering the Anatomy of a Star, your star. Time to get familiar with your light.
For more posts to help you with The Interview visit:
Obstacles, Objectives, and the Why of What We Do
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