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My mentor, David Shandz, threw out a um a question which still has me reeling and simmering with the answer. And he asked, What is your North Star? So I'm gonna break it down because I am trying to figure this out for myself. So I thought I would share it with you today. So let's let's dig into our North Star, what that is, how that looks like. So the definition of a North Star is it is a guiding principle, purpose, or vision that keeps you orientated toward what matters most, even when everything around you is uncertain or chaotic. And as actors, it's important that we have a North Star. Um, the name comes from Polaris, the actual North Star in the sky, which sailors and travelers use to navigate for centuries. It doesn't move. The North Star doesn't move, no matter where you are or how lost you feel. You can look up and find it. It tells you true North. So as it applies to life, career, brand, or anything important to you, a North Star is the clearest, most honest answer to the question: what am I ultimately here to do and for whom? It is not a goal. Goals are checkpoints, it's not a mission statement. Those could be incorpor, those could be corporate and hollow. It's the why beneath the why. Oh that's it's the why beneath the why. I like it. The thing that would still be true even if you never got famous, never booked a big acting job, never won an award. For an actor, it might sound like I am here to tell stories of women who look like my mother. The ones who were never uh the lead in anyone else's version of the world. That's a North Star. It's personal, it's specific, it's unshakable, it's very decision, training, audition, collaboration, social media brand can be measured against it. The simple version, your North Star is the one true thing that keeps you coming back, no matter how many detours life takes you on. So I alright, I'm in it, that North Star. So I am figuring out what my North Star is, how to describe it, how to um focus on it. Um, one of the things that David said to me this morning was, what is it that I want my life to look like? So I'm looking at that. What do I want my life to look like? What is it that I want my life to look like? And this came up because last week, uh some of you may know that I hit a thousand videos on my YouTube channel, and I have uh accumulated a hundred and twenty eight thousand, almost a hundred and twenty-nine thousand followers on YouTube. And so when when I hit that big thousand, I was like, okay, so what's next? What do I do next? And so David came with the North Star. It was like right, I was asking the question, and then he he came up with the question of what's your North Star. So I'm sitting with it, don't have an answer, but I thought I would talk to you about it today and ask you, what is your North Star? Do you know what your North Star is? Um, when I talk to actors, when I work with actors, when I'm coaching actors, I'll hear actors say, I gotta be acting. You know, acting is everything. And so I'm just sitting with it. I don't have an answer, I'm just asking questions today. Um, and um I have a new AI friend named Claude AI. Claude.ai. And so I went to Claude and asked it some questions. So the first one I asked it was, what does following your North Star look like? And he said, for an actor, well, I shouldn't say he, Claude A.I. said, for an actor, following your North Star looks like making decisions from a place of clarity instead of desperation. That is so different because a lot of actors that I work with are desperate. They're not, they there's no clarity, they're they're not focused, they're just, I just want a job, any job. And my thing is, no, you don't want any job. You want to be specific with the job. So I'm liking, I'm liking your answer, Claude.ai. And it and so it means you know why you're acting, not just I love it, but the specific impact you want to make, the stories you feel called to tell, the audience you want to move, you use that clarity as a filter. When an opportunity comes up, you ask, does this move me toward who I am becoming? Or does it just feel good right now? Oh, that is so good because that is what I teach. You know, uh helping you to focus on what kind of actor you want to be, not just, well, I just want to get parts. No, you don't, you don't want to get parts, because you can get you can book jobs that keep you um very horizontal, meaning they're random jobs, they don't connect, they don't move you up the ladder. They're just like, I did a cop, I played a social worker, I played, you know, the lady at the bank, but there's nothing to them. It it doesn't uh move you, it it doesn't make a good reel because people don't know how to sell you. So I'm I'm really liking this. Um, and so it goes on to say you stop chasing every trend, every casting director's preference, every you should be doing reels moment, um, and instead invest energy in what's aligned. Like it. I like it, it's good, I like it. Um, your brand, your headshots, your reel, your social media, your training choices, they all point to the same direction. There's a through line. Yes, that's what I teach. There's a through line for the actor. I love this. I I'm I'm searching for my North Star, but it's coming back to what I teach actors all the time. Being specific, finding uh what it is that you do, what is your special sauce, what makes you you that nobody else can do. And um, I love this. It doesn't mean turning down work, it means knowing when you're taking a job for survival versus when you're taking a job for purpose and not confusing the two. And that is so important. Oh my God, that is so important because a lot of times we take jobs we don't want, but we got to pay the rent. So we take them. Um and and I stopped doing that a long time ago. I was like, yeah, no, I'm not taking that job. I'm sorry. It's gonna cost me more than what it's going, what I'm gonna make from it. So I like this. Um I then I asked Claude A.I., my new best friend, how can a floundering actor find their North Star? Because I find that a lot of actors I work with are floundering. They don't know what they want. So it responded back by saying floundering usually isn't a skills problem, it's a clarity problem. So here's some questions that cut through the fog. This is what Claude told me. What broke your heart open about acting in the first place? Not, I always love performing. Go deeper. What specific moment, story, or character made you feel like you were finally seen or finally able to make someone else feel seen? That emotional origin is data. Ooh, that's good. So for me, that moment that broke my heart open was being in first grade, being at a a um a Christmas pageant in my school, and seeing uh seeing the kids on stage performing. And I was like, wait a minute, I'm supposed to be doing that. That's mine, I'm supposed to be doing that. And just and and getting on stage at uh in fourth grade and making the audience laugh. That is what um really broke me open. It's like wanting uh to make audiences laugh. So I love this. I love this. I love I'm learning, I'm I'm on a journey with you. I'm on a journey. So then it's then it asks, who do you want in the room crying, laughing, or transformed when you're done? So who is it that you want to see transformed through your work? Your audience matters. A North Star is almost always about impact on a specific person. The actor who says, I want to tell stories from my grandmother's generation that I have never been told. Well, I'm sorry, I want to tell stories from my grandmother's generation that have never been told has a North Star. The actor who says, I want to book work does not have a North Star. Sorry. What work have you done that made time disappear? When you were in a rehearsal room on a set or in a class and completely lost track of time, what was the type of story, the type of character, the genre, the world? That's a clue. Mm-hmm. Okay, number four question. It asked, what are you the only one or one of very few who can bring? I'm not sure. I understand that. What are you the only one who can bring? I think what it's saying is, what is it that only you can do? I think that's what it wants to say. It got a little delulu on me, but I think that's what it wanted to say to me. Your unique combination of lived experience, culture, physicality, voice, and perspective is irreplaceable. And that is true for every one of us. Our unique combination of a lived experience, of our culture, of our physicality, our voice, our perspective, our gender is irreplaceable. A North Star is often found at the intersection of what you uniquely carry and what the world needs to see. Ooh, did you get that? I'm gonna say it again because that was good. That was good. Listen up, actor. Your unique combination of lived experience, culture, physicality, voice, and perspective is irreplaceable. A North Star is often found at the intersection of what you uniquely carry and what the world needs to see. And as actors, we bring uh our special sauce to the party. And we gotta we gotta have courage to bring that special sauce. I'm loving it. I'm I'm here for it, even though I still don't know my north. All right, here we go. I'm having fun today. Okay. Uh today is a little bit different than what I normally do because I'm in seeking mode today. Now you get to see how I how I go through my process, how I'm seeking stuff. You'll you usually see me already having found the stuff to give to you, but I'm seeking today. Um, and the word says, if you seek, you will find. If you booked your dream project tomorrow, describe it. What would it be? Don't censor, don't make it realistic. Who are you playing? What's the story? What does the work mean? Work backwards from that vision. Oh, that is good. That you could actually start working on your solo show, your web series, your short film by doing this. What is your dream project? What is it? Who would you be playing? What is the story? What does it mean? And now work backwards, see it, envision it. Ooh, I like it. Okay. Then I asked it, why is having a North Star important? Why? Porque dimme, yo quiero saber. No, no, no, say. And it said, without a North Star, you're not building a career, you're reacting to one.

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Ooh.

SPEAKER_00 14:11

Here's why it matters practically. It ends the comparison spiral. When you know your lane, someone else booking a role you audition for doesn't dish you because it wasn't your North Star role anyway. Oh, we're gonna park the car right here because this is a good one. You know, a lot of times we go up for stuff, we don't get it, and then we feel destroyed. I've been there, oh my God, in my 20s, I used to go there a lot. Like, that was my role. And then I started to learn that you know what? If it had my name on it, it would come back to me. And that happened quite a few times when um I was told by my agent, oh, you didn't get that role. And then a week later, two weeks later, even a couple months later, they came back and said, We want to see Lydia again. And I booked the role. So you never know. But to be willing to release it, let it go. If it's if it's for you, it will come back to you. Um, and then the other thing it says is it makes your brand visible. Casting directors, producers, and collaborators can only find you if you are findable. That means you gotta be working on your social media page. You gotta have, you gotta be uh connecting with casting directors, producers, writers, letting people know you're out there, get in plays, uh do demo reels, do um scenes, monologues, put them up on on social media so people know who you are and what you're doing. It's really important. You can be the star in your acting class, but if you never take it out of the acting class, no one's gonna know who you are. That is a bar. Um, so a North Star makes you specific. Specific is memorable, generic is forgettable. I say that all the time. I say that, I say that. No, uh no, um, it transforms rejection. Every no either means not yet or not for you, and a North Star helps you know which one it is, it sustains you through the dry seasons. Uh, the actors who've lasted 40 years in the industry, like me, um from personal experiences that it isn't about the most talented people. Yes, I know that for sure because I have seen many, many, many, many incredibly talented actors leave the business because they um weren't prepared business-wise, they didn't know what they were selling, they just had a gift, but they didn't know how to how to channel it into anything. Um, so they um the ones who make it are the ones who have a reason bigger than booking that keeps them in the game. So, what's keeping you in the game? Or uh what's gonna bring you back to the game? What's your North Star? What is your North Star? I'm I'm working on mine, I'm gonna come back and tell you what mine is. But what is do you know what your North Star is? Can you can you figure it out? Do you have um an idea of what it is, not just being an actor who books jobs, but what kind of change do you want to make? What is it? So your North Star attracts your people, the right collaborators, the right audience, the right representatives. They're drawn to clarity. When you know who you are and what you're doing, you stop wasting energy trying to be everything to everyone. Don't do it, don't try to be everything to everyone because it leaves you out of the room. So a North Star isn't a luxury for actors who already have made it, it is a survival tool for actors who are still in the fight. You don't find your North Star after you succeed. That's good. You find your North Star so you can succeed. I love this. We're gonna talk more about this. We're gonna go more and more in depth because it is important for us to know our North Star. You know, it is important. Take your time, start, start figuring out what is your brand, what is it that you do so that it can help you um get to your North Star, you know? It it is so important. I've I I'm at a place right now with this question. I feel like this is a big piece for me of finding my North Star. What is it that I want to be? What is it that I mean, uh, and I've been doing this for a long time. I've been in the game for uh almost 50 years. Um, and that question has just electrified my mind, like, okay, what's my North Star? How do I get there? What do I do? How what is it? What is it that I do? I know I love I love um telling stories, I love educating, I love working with actors and helping them find their brand and find their their specialness because I can see it. You know, that is a gift that I have. I can see who you are, I can see what it is that you do, and I've had it uh for a long time. I I I've been trained in it, it is in my DNA. Um and so the North Star is um just that question is speaking to me. David Chance, what did you do to my mind? You just I can't let it go. I'm like, I'm I'm having this, what's my North Star moment? And I know it's gonna be deep and profound and amazing. And so I'm I'm just uh I'm tickled, I'm tickled. What can I tell you? I'm just tickled by this whole sentence. What is your North Star as actors? What do you do to find your North Star? What is it that you like? What is it that you love? What is it that um what speaks to you? What what makes you want to get up in the morning? What is that thing? So um, yeah, I'm just asking questions today. Just asking questions on the concept of the North Star for self-improvement. Yes, yes, yes, yes, that is that is what we're doing. We're just asking questions, you know. What makes a great actor? A great actor uh is made because of the the questions they ask themselves, right? When you are breaking down your character, when you're breaking down your your script, you are asking questions. Who am I talking to? Who who is this person to me? What is it that I want? What you know, what is it that I need? What is it that I'm fighting for here? It is all about the questions we ask. And today the question is the North Star. So I love it. I love it, I love it, I love it. It is amazing. It is amazing. So um that that's that's it. That's it in a nutshell. I think. Thank you for uh being on this little conversation with me. And I would love to know your thoughts in the comments. What is your North Star? Have you thought about that? Is that something you you've ever thought of? I've never thought about that. I'm never even until David Shand said, What is your North Star? That was not in my universe nor my orbit. I was. But it is now. It is now. So we'll have another conversation and talk about our North Star as I discover mine. All right. Well, you have a fantastic day. I will see you on the other side. And check out today's video. I am interviewing the amazing um uh Mr. Who am I? Uh uh Oh God, who am I interviewing? Um well I have a great interview today, Mr. Oh, Ronnie Marmo. Ronnie Marmo is an amazing actor. He knows his North Star. He's the artistic director of Theater Uh 68, and he's uh the artistic director of another theater in New York, and he's got a dynamite show called uh I Am Not Lenny Bruce. Um, and anyway, we did a fantastic um interview, and it is up today at 3:30 LA time. So if you um are near a computer or your phone, check it out. And before I leave, I want to tell you about my program, Booked and Unstoppable. So if you need help with your branding, I'm the one to help you. I can help you with your headshot, with putting all your material together. So just go to acting smarternow.com slash book and unstoppable and sign up so I can help you. Well, that's all I got for you today. Have a fantastic day. Talk to you later. Bye bye.