Big shots are only little shots who keep shooting. – Christopher Morley
So much of the entertainment business is about being smart, lucky and being at the right place at the right time. But there is also a factor that some people fail to hit – resilience. One of my favourite hosts/actresses currently is Olivia Munn, she had a Vanity Fair interview about what it took for her to get to where she was and she said, “I worked every single day – I went out for everything, auditions that I knew that I wouldn’t get. I exposed myself to rejection everyday.”
Even my little niece Keira said to me once, “Aunty Sarah, we can’t give up, we gotta keep trying” when I told her that the snow was too soft to build a snowman. But she was right, we did it and we tried to make it work. Jeremy Lin’s story also resonates with everyone because he didn’t come out of nowhere, he always had it – maybe a less polished version prior to getting cut and being sent to the d-league which probably ate away at his pride, but he did it. He hung around and when the opportunity came knocking, he made it happen.
So this week is about not giving up and to keep trying. It sometimes feels like forever, sitting around, waiting for an audition to swing by, crossing fingers for a callback, wishing for another opportunity and the cycle never ends. But that exposure can lead to good things if you have characteristics that are worthy to mention – professionalism, easy to work with, talent. However attitude problems, being late, and disrespectful can also spread just as fast so remember to be courteous to everyone. Although I’d hate to count the number of blockbusters, tv shows and campaigns I didn’t get but people won’t remember those, they will remember the jobs that I did get so no use lamenting on the past.
Keep your head straight, focused and keep shooting.
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