Sunday musings...
Look at this:
Yes that's a rejection letter. Yes, it's Bono.
Yes it's audition season.
Yes there are more people auditioning than there are roles.
Yes, you are going to get frustrated.
Yes, you will be "rejected".
What do you do with that? Is it really rejection?
I prefer to consider it another way. It's not that you aren't good enough, it's that you are needing to re-direct and find out where you will be seen.
"I must be doing something wrong."
I hear that a lot. A LOT. Perhaps you are not. Perhaps you are just not in the right place. Or not revealing what IS right about you. Perhaps your desperation is showing, and not your openness and freedom to take on the job you want.
Or, perhaps the person behind the table can't hear/see/respond.
Or, perhaps there are just so many to choose from and you just were not chosen.
Does it suck? Sure. But YOU chose to be there. No one is holding a gun to your head.
So if this is YOUR choice, then you must claim it fully: the good, the bad AND the ugly.
You have chosen a profession where only 5% of us are working regularly at any given time. It has the highest unemployment rate of any profession.
It is subjective.
So, when you aren't getting work, or feeling frustrated, or any of the other negatives, what do you DO?
Sit down. Take a breath. Be still. Have a good cry.
And RE-DIRECT yourself.
What do you want?
Why?
What are you doing regularly to achieve it?
What are you ignoring?
Perhaps, that which you are seeing in your peripheral vision and ignoring is really what you need to consider, and face it, head on.
Is something nagging you?
Is something re-appearing in theme or in conversation?
Perhaps, that is what you need to face head on, instead of feeling the glass is half empty.
Just because one person, or one season says "no", doesn't mean you stop trying. It might mean you are trying in ways you need to re-evaluate.
Frustration & rejection does not have to equal failure.
That is a choice.
Frustration & rejection should lead to focus and re-direction to discover your truth and where you SHOULD be, not where you think you want to be. It does not mean giving up. It does mean walking away. It means another possibility, a different perspective, a walking toward something.
Yes, there are too many people auditioning.
Yes, you will submit for many projects and never get an audition.
Yes, you will get typed out.
Yes, you will get frustrated.
Yes, your responsibility is to find out the direction you need to face, and start walking, and gathering momentum, and discovering what you need to DO in order to be where you will BE.
Saying you know and DOING what you know are not the same.
Talent.
Training.
Tenacity.
And an ongoing re-direction until you figure out where you are.
Rejection does not define you, unless you allow it to.
Re-direction allows you to re-define yourself.
Choose well.
Look at this:
Yes that's a rejection letter. Yes, it's Bono.
Yes it's audition season.
Yes there are more people auditioning than there are roles.
Yes, you are going to get frustrated.
Yes, you will be "rejected".
What do you do with that? Is it really rejection?
I prefer to consider it another way. It's not that you aren't good enough, it's that you are needing to re-direct and find out where you will be seen.
"I must be doing something wrong."
I hear that a lot. A LOT. Perhaps you are not. Perhaps you are just not in the right place. Or not revealing what IS right about you. Perhaps your desperation is showing, and not your openness and freedom to take on the job you want.
Or, perhaps the person behind the table can't hear/see/respond.
Or, perhaps there are just so many to choose from and you just were not chosen.
Does it suck? Sure. But YOU chose to be there. No one is holding a gun to your head.
So if this is YOUR choice, then you must claim it fully: the good, the bad AND the ugly.
You have chosen a profession where only 5% of us are working regularly at any given time. It has the highest unemployment rate of any profession.
It is subjective.
So, when you aren't getting work, or feeling frustrated, or any of the other negatives, what do you DO?
Sit down. Take a breath. Be still. Have a good cry.
And RE-DIRECT yourself.
What do you want?
Why?
What are you doing regularly to achieve it?
What are you ignoring?
Perhaps, that which you are seeing in your peripheral vision and ignoring is really what you need to consider, and face it, head on.
Is something nagging you?
Is something re-appearing in theme or in conversation?
Perhaps, that is what you need to face head on, instead of feeling the glass is half empty.
Just because one person, or one season says "no", doesn't mean you stop trying. It might mean you are trying in ways you need to re-evaluate.
Frustration & rejection does not have to equal failure.
That is a choice.
Frustration & rejection should lead to focus and re-direction to discover your truth and where you SHOULD be, not where you think you want to be. It does not mean giving up. It does mean walking away. It means another possibility, a different perspective, a walking toward something.
Yes, there are too many people auditioning.
Yes, you will submit for many projects and never get an audition.
Yes, you will get typed out.
Yes, you will get frustrated.
Yes, your responsibility is to find out the direction you need to face, and start walking, and gathering momentum, and discovering what you need to DO in order to be where you will BE.
Saying you know and DOING what you know are not the same.
Talent.
Training.
Tenacity.
And an ongoing re-direction until you figure out where you are.
Rejection does not define you, unless you allow it to.
Re-direction allows you to re-define yourself.
Choose well.
Your timing is so good with this post Susan. Along with others, I'm sure, I'm moving on from a not so fun series of "character building emails" from graduate schools with nothing but bad news. It's been a struggle but I've been working towards moving on, keeping my audition material sharp, while gently assessing what happened in the room and how I can make it better. Always good to hear someone else give me a good kickstart into really using the experience for a positive transformation in my work.
ReplyDelete