Your Map To The Red Carpet
by
Bob Fraser

One of the things that stymies most actors, when they set
out to succeed in the business (and let us not forget that
professional acting is a business) - is the lack of a PLAN.
(Map, if you will.)

Let's face it, even the building of an simple bird-house
requires you to start with a plan.

In fact, if you want a successful outcome in any endeavor
it's critical that your plan has all the elements you need
to actually attain the results you desire.

Unlike most plans, though, an actor's career plan really
involves putting together a lot of non-substantial things
such as mindset, attitude, and artistic point of view.

Naturally, there are strictly business concerns too:
Marketing, advertising, networking, budgeting, product
development, training, etc.

The big issue with many actors is that in order to work
this plan really must be written down (drawn up, if you
will).

In talking with my client actors over the past five years,
it seems that many of them are slowed down or even stopped
totally when it comes to the `writing it down' part.

I totally understand this `empty page' business because
I've been writing professionally for over 3 decades – and
truth to tell, it never gets easier.

Facing an empty page is always a daunting task.

In fact, for some – it may seem downright impossible.

Even with some imposed structure to help you ... writing
things down is never easy. But the results you will see
once you've done your `homework' and you have a real plan
to consult and work from - will truly be worth all the
work that's involved.

There's an old saying in business (which originated with
Benjamin Franklin) ...

"When you fail to plan, you are planning to fail."

This is just the plain unvarnished truth.

Rvery business requires attention to a lot of details and
missing any one can (and generally will) cause you to fail.
Acting is one of the most complicated businesses around.
The proof of that can be seen in the average time it takes
every actor to `make it.'

But there's another old saying ...

"People fail, systems don't."

So it's a good idea to build a plan of action that can be
used as a `system' to achieve success in the entertainment
industry ...

"Do A, then B, then C, then D ..."

In other words, the purpose of planning is to build a system
that will make success simply a matter of taking the steps.

A system is crucial for a simple reason: The main stumbling
block to figuring out success is that almost all success is
built in small, inconspicuous steps.

When people show up on the red carpet, it's pretty easy to
observe their success. But when the accomplishment is going
on - when the work that goes into that success is being done
- it rarely gets any attention and is almost never 'seen.'

Simply taking note of the result (the red carpet) makes it
seem as if success is only possible for a lucky few. But,
as soon as you peek behind the scenes, an entirely different
picture begins to emerge.

As with the so-called `gifted athlete' - most successful
actors make it look easy (that's part of their job) and
we rarely see the years of acting classes, unemployment,
free productions and missteps that took place along the way.

The truth is that success and accomplishment are not just the
results gotten by a lucky few - they are readily available to
any `regular' person who chooses to be ... FOCUSED, PERSISTENT,
DISCIPLINED, COMMITTED, POSITIVE, ENTHUSIASTIC and PASSIONATE
about their goals.

Despite the emphasis, the truly important words in that last
sentence are `CHOOSES TO BE.'

All forward progress in our lives is inextricably tied to what
we decide to be - and what we choose to DO about it.

For instance, you could choose to finish reading this article
and then relax on the couch, tuning into a rerun of Desperate
Dancers (not a real show ... yet).

Or, you could choose to get around to writing down your plan
as soon as the summer is over - or after you've lost enough
weight, or during Christmas vacation.

OR ....

You COULD choose to start doing the groundwork now - to build
the foundation that allows you to succeed, by beginning to
write down your plan as soon as possible and finally putting
a system in place that gets you where you really want to go.

Because, make no mistake, the system that results from having
a written plan is the best way to ensure that you will always
remain `on task' - and remaining `on task' is the only PROVEN
path to the red carpet.

It's up to you. You could decide today that you'll choose to
put aside an hour a day to work on your plan.

Or twenty minutes every evening.

Or ten minutes every morning.

Just keep in mind that whatever you CHOOSE to DO - is what is
actually going to get done.

Of course, your next move is completely optional:

Desperate Dancing ... or the red carpet?

The choice is yours.

* * * * *

Bob Fraser is an actor, writer, director, producer
and show-runner on such TV hits as Full House, The
Love Boat, Benson, and others.

He's been a regular columnist for NowCasting.com,
ActorsLife.com, and many other sites. He's also
lectured at AFI, SAG Conservatory, Equity Library
Theatre, UCLA, USC, Actors Creative Network, Film
Industry Network, Women In Film, and many more.

You can subscribe to Bob's free newsletter Show Biz
How-To - which is designed for show biz pros - by
going here:

http://www.showbizhowto.com

Or by visiting his blog ... The Show Biz Blog

http://www.theshowbizblog.com