Do you remember in Into the Woods when Little Red Riding Hood sings about her encounter with the Big Bad Wolf? She goes on and on about being scared, well, excited and scared . . .
Ever feel like that before an audition? Callback? Booking?
And does the scared part usually end up taking over? You get so nervous you forget your lines, doubt yourself, screw up on set, wonder why you even try?
We’ve all done that, But here’s some good news—did you know that our bodies manifest nervousness and excitement exactly the same way?
Yes. But how is that good news? Because it means it all depends on how you look at it. Are you going to interpret the shortness of breath, shakiness of your body, the flutter in your stomach as nervousness or excitement? Because guess what, you do have the power to choose.
When I lived in LA I was fortunate enough to attend a few of Jack Plotnick’s acting seminars. Jack is a brilliant actor, a writer, a producer, a director and a fantastic acting coach. (Here’s his website: https://jackplotnick.com)
One thing I love about Jack is the focus he puts on mindset. He believes actors need to work on their “issues” if they are going to be successful. Because of my own life experiences, I whole hardily agree.
One thing he talks about which I find particularly helpful is this idea of nervous vs excited.
To quote Jack:
“There is no such thing as “nervous.”
“The physical sensation of what some people call “nervous”, i.e., your heart racing and butterflies in your stomach—is the exact same physical sensation as “excitement”.
“So, “nervous” is just “excitement” labeled negatively!”
When I first heard this idea I found it so liberating. I really thought about it, and it was true! I was excited to audition, I was excited to be on set and film, I was excited to walk out on stage. I had just kind of gotten in the habit of perceiving those feelings as anxiety and nervousness.
Once I turned that corner, I saw I could choose how I perceived those sensations. And I could see that the truth under nervousness really was excitement. I WANTED to audition. I LOVED it! Getting to put my acting out there, letting people see what I could do. That was thrilling to me, it fed me, feeds me as an artist.
Auditioning and being on set got a lot easier after I made that perception shift. It also got easier to prepare for a role, I could spend more time, I could really lean into the work.
It’s funny how we let our perceptions influence us so deeply, and often times so negatively. We all just need to stop that.
Jack Plotnick has written a fantastic ebook called, “New Thoughts for Actors.” Every actor should read it. So here’s the link: https://jackplotnick.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/newthoughts.pdf
Can’t wait for you to try this trick of switching your perception of nervous to excited. Let us know how it goes. We’re always looking for inspiring stories.
Now go book that role!
To learn more about our training visit us at www.actorsinactionconservatory.com. Or email at info@actorsinactionconservatory.com