Hey hey, besties. Can I just start by saying: how the freaking heck is it nearing the END OF JUNE? Pardon? Excuse me? The fact I am turning twenty-two years old NEXT FRIDAY is scary. I mean, I do feel like turning twenty-two during my Taylor Swift summer is pretty iconic. I will be blasting 22 by Taylor Swift the entire weekend just to warn my friends and family. I am going to enjoy my final week of being twenty-one. I have been thinking back to this past year and all that has happened. Lucy this time last year would not BELIEVE where she is now. She had so many ideas which NOW I am transporting from my brain to reality which is SO EXCITING. I love my lil creative brain.
Okay, let’s delve into some chit chat, shall we? Any of my musical theatre people may have seen a certain creator/coach on TikTok this week claiming to their followers that you SHOULD be getting in the room for your dream roles, you SHOULD be on the West End right now, there is NO REASON why you shouldn’t be achieving those things: but you’re not working hard enough to make it happen. Yes, I must strongly disagree with that statement, as did many other fellow actors. Here’s how it is. I’ve been into audition rooms, knowing people on the panel, confident in my abilities, putting my training into practise, leaving the room telling myself that I COULD NOT DO ANY BETTER and still not get the job.
Here are some examples of reasons why in the past I did not book the job:
- I was too tall. Just work harder to be shorter.
- I had blonde hair. They wanted brunette. Damn it. I need to work harder to become a brunette.
- My availability. Shit. I need to work harder to miss my important life events.
- The role isn’t available. Ah okay. Let me work harder to make sure no one else works ever again but me. Sorted.
- I have a baby face but a womanly figure. Yeah. I am NOT working harder to get rid of any of that because they are my favourite things about myself.
As you can see from the above list, all I need to do is work harder and I’ll be playing my dream roles in no time. Yeah. Basically. This mindset is what leads to burnout. Telling yourself that you are never doing enough. You could always be working harder. For a long time, I had this mindset but gradually I began to understand the importance of self-care but also just reminding myself that so much of my destiny in this industry is completely out of my control. I know that I work hard. I know that I deserve success. I know that I am doing enough. My time just hasn’t come yet. Working hard, of course, is a factor in creating success for yourself in the industry HOWEVER it is not the ONLY factor. That is very important to remember. Do not EVER let anyone make you feel like you are not doing enough. You are doing enough. Focus on your own energy. What you want to achieve. Give yourself the tools to point you in the direct you want to go but PLEASE do not measure your levels of success solely on how quickly you burn yourself out.
Be kind to yourself. You deserve it. It’s summer. The sun is shining. Enjoy it. Soak it in. Fall in love with life outside of the craziness of your career. Life is so much more than that.
I am sending you all so much love.
Lucy Xxx
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