Got a couple of good emails in response to last week’s column on The Dead Pile. Let’s dive in!
Hi Bonnie,
I’m an actress from Madrid, Spain. I’ve been reading your column for the last few months and I find it extremely useful. Although the market over here is slightly different, your guidance is pretty universal, it applies perfectly well, and I’m starting to feel “ahead of the class” with all your advice. It’ll also be fantastic research for when I decide to make the move to LA.
Thanks very much for your last article, The Dead Pile. It really hit home. I recently did an audition with thousands of other young actors for the “next social phenomenon” show in Spain, I didn’t get the part but I got through to the last round with the last handful of people.
All the best,
Daniela de Angel
Congratulations, Daniela! It’s so important to recognize the value in getting so far through the process, as so many actors never even get invited in for an opportunity! But it’s also very easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day rituals of pursuing an acting career, and that’s why actors tend to lose sight of the “letting go,” which is valuable perspective for all of us. And thank you for your kind comments about my work. I’m just glad to share my words with anyone who shows up here to read ’em. 🙂 That it’s helping prepare you for your eventual journey to Los Angeles is a bonus! Thanks for the feedback and good luck to you!
Hi, Bonnie!
I greatly enjoy your columns and have a question after reading “The Dead Pile.” Have you experienced the vacuum law of prosperity in your career after decluttering? In other words, you get rid of what you don’t want to make room for what you do want. It’s happened to me more than once, and I recently blogged about it.
Thanks again for taking the time to write your fantastic, thought-provoking, and encouraging articles!
Hi Karen,
Indeed I have had that exact experience! Your blog post covers it so concisely (and I’m totally going to check out those books you mentioned, especially the one by Michael Port. That looks great) and that’s precisely how prosperity often works, isn’t it? I’ve absolutely found purging the “dead” files (or projects I sooo hope will come back from the dead, but it turns out it’s only me feeding that energy, everyone else in the crew has moved on and the project is never to be, no matter how great I thought it would be to cast it) sets forth a chain reaction for an amazing amount of new contacts, new projects, new money flowing through! It’s awesome.
Thank you for sharing your blog and giving me a “yes, and” on the column. Always appreciated!
Dear Bonnie,
Sometimes I place auditions so far in the back of my mind that when I do get a callback it can take a few embarrassing moments before I realize what project they are talking about!
All the best,
John-Christian Bateman
That’s the best, J-C. I love it! That’s an ideal level of attachment to what happens after leaving the room for an audition. Perhaps you’ll write back and share exactly how it is that you manage to put the auditions out of your mind. (Or how you FIRST figured out how to do so, before it became such an automatic thing.) I know many actors would benefit from reading strategies on letting go from those who’ve been successful in doing so to such a great extent!
Thanks for sharing your experiences. Looking forward to hearing from you again!
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/000938.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.