While on the way to a meeting with a journalist last week, I snapped a photo of a restaurant because its awning provides not just shade, but a great look into the risk of having too much range. Here, see for yourself:
So, at this ONE restaurant (a fish place, by its name), we can indulge in Japanese, Italian, Israeli, and Persian cuisine. What range!
But wait. Do you actually believe that this place has built a brand as “the best…” anything? When their marketing is all about *everything* they can do, have they created confidence amongst buyers that they are THE go-to, when something specific is desired?
If I want the best Persian food in LA, I wanna go to the restaurant that does nothing BUT Persian food, all day, every day, and better than anyone else does it. I want my meal to be prepared by someone who basically MAJORS in making the best Persian food possible, and whose life’s work is all about upping his or her game, constantly doing better at exactly this specialty.
Same with hiring actors. Your range could actually be hurting you, if you’re sacrificing your brand for it. Now, I’m not saying you need to put yourself into such a tight-fitting box that you never get to play. No way! But I am saying that when you try to be everything to everyone, you accomplish being nothing to anyone. Because no one GETS you.
So, what is that one thing that you do better than anything else? What is your bullseye? If you HAD TO only prepare one cuisine for the rest of your career as a master chef, what would it be? Keep in mind, this doesn’t prevent you from branching out, later. Once your restaurant is THE best one for the cuisine in which it specializes, opening another restaurant to cater to other tastes is not just do-able, it’s encouraged!
But don’t lead off trying to do everything, trying to BE everything. There’s all the time in the world for that. Meanwhile, take a look at your headshots, the credits on your resumé, and all the clips for your reel… get rid of anything that talks buyers out of understanding that thing that is your oxygen, as a performer. Do it today.
NOTE: Y’all know I wrote Self-Management for Actors but did you know that we’re doing free quarterly SMFA Tune-Up calls? Our first one is April 11th and you can sign up to join us here: https://bonniegillespie.com/the-book Hooray!
Bonnie Gillespie is living her dreams by helping others figure out how to live theirs. Wanna work with Bon? Start here. Thanks!
Originally published by Actors Access at http://more.showfax.com/columns/avoice/archives/001795.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.