The Lies That Keep You Down

You must be pretty. Only pretty people are actors. You must be talented, only talented people are actors.

You must chosen, only the chosen can be actors. You must come from a rich family, only rich people can be actors.

You must be extroverted, only extroverts are actors. You must move to London, Paris, Berlin, Sydney, New York, Tokyo, Los Angeles or Toronto, only actors that live in those cities are successful.

You must have come to acting early, only those who started their career early will be actors. You must have been to an accredited drama school, only those who have the approval of industry gatekeepers will be successful.

You must choose between having children and being an actor, only childless women can be actors. If you are an actor you can’t do other things too.

You must be a masochist, because acting is a terrible life. You must be highly strung, because all actors are highly strung. 

You must be emotional, have the knack, been to the stage school as a kid, have the best agent, have a mind for ‘literature’, be a touchy-feely-huggy-hippy.

To be an actor, you must be all these things, and you are not, therefore you cannot be an actor and you should not try.

These are the lies that convince you that you cannot achieve your career goals. 

When other people use them, they may be trying to save you from pain.

Sometimes we use them ourselves, sometimes we tell ourselves these lies to protect ourselves. But all they do is hold us down. 

COACH