A bird in the hand
The saying that a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush is a lesson helpful for those who want to stay safe or who are perhaps starving (I am assuming the origin of this was hunting related). But, be wary of applying it to your acting career.
Of course, as humans we naturally crave a certain amount of security, but security comes at a cost, which also means a loss.
Think about this. You can be a caged animal, with no fear from predators. You are secure. But, you are not free. The security comes at a cost. Freedom does too, of course, as free animals are open to attack from predators.
Where am I going with all these animal metaphors? I’m going here. Don’t say Yes to all acting work, just because it is a bird in the hand. We have a limited amount of resources (time, energy, money) so accepting work, just for the sake of working is not advisable. It may give a sense of security, maybe even progress, it will certainly stop you from feeling the ‘out-of-work’ fear, but at what cost?
The cost of perceived security
The cost is that – if the job is not aligned with where you want to go – then it is a distraction, it is taking you off course. It takes courage to say no to work, but this is where the real growth occurs. Taking that risk, that you might be out of work for even longer or FOMO (fear of missing out) is uncomfortable but you can’t succeed without getting out of your comfort zone. So you must take a leap of faith.
So how do you decide what work is a distraction and what might help your progress?
Well, firstly you need to know where you are going. Then you can ask questions such as: if your dream is purely screen acting related, would a fringe theatre production tale you toward that or distract you? A better us our time might be to work extra hours on our day job to fund the development of your showreel, for example.
Make a list
My suggestion is to write down the criteria a job needs to fulfil and know this before you are offered the job.
For example, criteria by which you might take a role could be:
- It is great stretch for you as an actor,
- There will be a lot of exposure doing the job, or
- It’s paid,
- You get to work with a hero
- (Feel free to add your own, expand the list)
You can decide how many criteria each job must fulfil, but the key thing is to turn down work that does not meet it.
Accepting work we don’t really want to do, but feel we ought to do, is a fear-based decision. Ideally we don’t want to make decisions from this negative space. It does take guts, but like they say, no guts, no glory.
To read how Saying No, changed my career for the better, read my book Talent Isn’t Enough.
