For many years I’ve looked at the world of the Arts differently I think than many actors in my peer group. I’m stabbing in the dark here but I think I’m close to being on the money. I’ve looked at what I do as not only an artist but an Enterpeneur. This idea has become more prevalent in the past couple of years, more and more actors (I’m talking Broadway here) are creating their own outlets, their own avenues to ply their wares.
Here’s the simple fact, the Aurdra McDonald’s of the world rare, that level of talent comes around very infrequently. I had the good fortune to work with her in The Secret Garden while she was still attending Juilliard and then again in Carousel at LCT. We all, everyone of us, knew that she was special the moment we saw her perform. She is magical.
Don’t get me wrong…she worked her tail off to get where she is and continues to do so, it’s just that she has that certain “thing” that those rare and special artists have that sets them apart. I consider her to be one of those artists.
So what do you do if you’re not Aurdra? What do you do if you want to reach certain goals in your life but don’t necessarily have all the tools and opportunities someone else might. What do you do?
You create them yourself.
This is not an easy business and I’ve spoken about this many times. It is in fact one of the hardest professions in which to succeed. There are no guarantees, there are not certainties…none. But what is certain in me is that I have a passion burning inside of me to create. I’m talking about creating on more than one level; acting, singing, painting, photography, whatever…I LOVE to create.
So how do I turn that passion into a profession…simple…make money at it. That’s really all a professional is isn’t it…someone who gets paid a fee or salary for doing something. So if you want to reach your goals in a given area, go out and create your own opportunities.
Yeah yeah yeah, I know people out there are saying “Hey, Barbour, It’s not as simple as it sounds!”
YES…it is.
Remember “Winter Warlock” from that 1970’s claymation Christmas special “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”…they sang “Put one foot in front of the other and soon you’ll be walking out the door.” Well take a step toward the life you want…not what someone else wants for you, but what YOU want for YOURSELF.
Just make the choice to do something and DO IT. Is there risk involved? Absolutely. Life on a daily basis is a risk and if we don’t take them we would end up never leaving our home or cardboard box But if you take one step each day, identify something that you want to accomplish, and take a step toward reaching that goal pretty soon you’ll be standing at the doorway to your dreams.
Even if you’re not an performing, or fine artist, or in the arts at all (Howard Roark
and Elon Musk…although one fictitious, the other real, one an architect, the other an entrepreneur) you like they, are artists in their own right and took the steps to fulfill the dreams burning inside them.
There are steps along the way that can help you achieve these things and from my experience and perspective things that you can do to mitigate the risk and make the creation of these things more stable and I’ll share them with you in future posts. I’m making it a priority to talk more and more about this topic because for me, it is the basis for success or failure in business and in life. I see more and more people getting “stuck” unable to move for “fear of” or “lack of guidance toward” etc. Well let’s get unstuck!
We must look forward with zest and gusto. Taking the bull by the horns and riding that thing until we either get bucked off or the buzzer rings. And what if you get bucked off…you get off your ass, brush the dust off and get back on the damn bull. This is YOUR LIFE we’re talking about here! You’re living it not watching it on TV.
We’ve heard that old cliche many times “You are the architect of your own destiny.” Yeah…true…but I say, you’re also the entrepreneur of your life.
LIVE IT!