Setting your Actor goals for 2023

If you got a U.S.  audition tomorrow would you be ready?

Or, are you like most struggling Actors who let other things get in the way from perfecting your American accent and preparing for US self tap auditions?

If you're feeling like you need to start afresh in the new year and put your Acting career in center stage then join me today as we get your Actor goals in check for 2023.

Listen as we talk about:

• The essential goals you should be setting as an Actor
• How to set your unrealistic long term goals, your semi-realistic mid term goals & your realistic short term goals
• The importance of having a clear vision as an Actor on how to stay on track of your goals

LINKS MENTIONED:
Ready to Master the All American accent so you can book U.S. roles? The doors to All American Voice are opening soon. Get on the waitlist now to be the first notified as soon as the doors open. Join The All American Voice Waitlist Here.

LEARN MORE FROM KATHERINE BECK:

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SHOW TRANSCRIPT

You're listening to the All American actors Podcast, episode 81. In today's episode, get ready because we're gonna be talking about setting your actor goals for 2023. That's coming up next, ready to go behind the scenes and learn what it really takes to build a sustainable career as a working actor in the US film and TV industry. Join me Katherine Beck, your all American accent coach, as I give you the insight and inspiration to take action on your career, learn my best tips and tricks to performing with an American accent and hear from working actors and other industry professionals. To give you a comprehensive overview of this biz we call show them. This is the All American actors podcast. All right, let's dive into today's episode, which is all about setting goals for 2023. Now, if you are a loyal listener to the podcast, you would have noticed that I've done this the past three years in a row. And that's why we're doing it again, because it tends to be a crowd favorite. Obviously, this is a time where we start to reflect think about the past year, what we've accomplished what we haven't. And I think, especially for actors in the new year, we really start to think about where do we want to be? What do we want to be doing? You know, traditionally, you've got pilot season that starts at the beginning of the year. Look, pilot season is not exactly what it used to be. But I think the concept of it is a great way for us to get reinvigorated within our careers and start thinking about, Okay, what could I be doing differently, let's take a hard look at what I've been doing in the past and see if we can start shifting things so we can start to shift the results. And I'm going to share something with you. A lot of times I do complimentary calls with actors to have a discussion to see where they're at with their career and how we possibly could work together, see if we're right fit to work together. And one of the things I noticed quite often is when I speak to most actors, and I ask them what their goals are, they hold back. And I want you to think about that. Now, if I was speaking to you, and I said, What are your goals? What are your actor goals? What would you say? Would you hold back? Does it make you uncomfortable? to dream big? To attain something that almost feels unattainable? Do you believe that you could win an Academy Award? Do you believe that you could get a million dollars for a role in a feature film? What is something that feels and seems unattainable? Could you set that goal for yourself? Now, when we're talking about setting goals for ourselves, it doesn't have to be realistic. But what I like to do is I like to have the very big goals in there. Because I say dream big because you never know what could possibly happen. But if we don't dream it, if we don't think it, then how can it possibly happen? Right? So at least we have to first start with the vision, the idea, the big picture of ultimately, what would we like to happen. So if it's win an Academy Award, write that down. And let's see if we can layer on that. Some medium size goals and some smaller goals. So if we start with the smaller, more attainable, like attainable in the now goal, what would that be for you? So I'll give you some examples. It could be things like, you know, a lot of you that are listening, want to achieve a perfect American accent. Now again, if you know me, I will tell you that there is no perfect American accent. But I know a lot of people say oh, I want a flawless American accent. So I get that. But if we're thinking about the American accent as being one of our goals, well, could it be like in three months time, I want to be able to perform with an American accent and not drop out when the stakes are high. So see, I'm going really specific. So it's not just like, Oh, perfect American accent but it's performing in the accent and not dropping out when the stakes are high. When something's really emotional. I'm getting a little bit more specific then from there we go. Okay, well, what are the steps to get me there? What do I need to do every day to get myself to that step in 90 days or less? And that's what you want to write down for yourself. And that's what's going to build your weekly and your daily plan. This is where you want things to become attainable. So what's attainable for you might be different to somebody else. So for example, you might be able to practice your American accent. Every day for an hour, but somebody else who might be super busy can't. And if they set that as their goal, they may not be able to achieve it. And then what happens is they stop practicing. And then they stop doing the things that will get them to their 90 Day goal. And then they hit the 90 days, and they feel bad because they feel like they let themselves down. And then you start to doubt yourself. And question, well, will I ever get this accent is starting to sound familiar. So maybe for you, if you're busy, it's five minutes a day, or maybe it's three times a week, and it's a half an hour, right? So setting some realistic and attainable goals for those smaller goals is key. Because when we start to get those small, instant gratifications where we go, Okay, I did it, I achieved that small goal, then that's where we can start building towards the bigger goals, because we've got some results, we've taken some action, and we can see that things are happening in our favor. Right? So is this starting to make sense to you? Is it resonating with you? I hope so. So we want to set some bigger goals. So let's say like five years, 10 years, where do you want to be? Those could be the really big goals like win an Academy Award or being on a hit TV show, then the medium sized goals? Where would you want to be a year from now? Where would you like to be? And that can still be not 100%? Realistic, it can still be something that seems almost unattainable. Like, let's say, for example, a year from now, I want to see myself booking a role on a Netflix series. So it seems attainable yet not like you're all you're not quite sure will it happen, won't it but it definitely could happen. It feels a little bit more attainable than maybe winning the Academy Award, right? And so from there, then we want to go to the 90 day goals, what can we do 90 days that feels so actionable, that you can definitely do it, but we just got to lay out that plan. And that's going to be your smaller, short term goal. Starting to feel a little bit more attainable, isn't it? Are you liking this? I am, I definitely am. Okay, so I'm going to give you some examples of things that I think you should be putting into your goals. And these are things that you want to put in your short term goals and your midterm goals, your one year things that I want you to be building into your daily routine, your habits, as an actor, the discipline, the things that we should always be doing. As actors, you should be reading a play, I'm gonna say once a month, once a week would be great. But again, I live in the realistic world where we've got lives were busy, you know, we can't possibly fit in all the things that we are expected to do. So maybe once a month, read a great play. And I want you to read a variety of different plays from the classics. Even things like Greek tragedies, Shakespeare replays from different countries, definitely the US because you know, obviously, if you're here with me on the podcast, it's about the American accent and propelling your career that way. So definitely a great way to learn about the US and work on your craft is through us play. So once a month, that's my recommendation. Okay, then as well as actors, you should be doing something for your craft to keep it up. And of course, this is going to vary depending on what stage you are in your skill set. But you should be doing something for your acting for your voice and movement every single week. Okay, so let's break that down. So obviously, if your goal is the American accent, then you should be doing something to speak in the American accent every day. Now, again, I say this to my students all the time, who are an all American voice and ultimate screen actor, my monthly workout group, it does not have to be an hour, two hours a day, it does not have to take over your entire life. But bring it into your awareness, you should be aware and keep it in the forefront of your brain every single day. But to be able to flawlessly perform in the American accent it needs to become an automatic speech response, something that you do automatically. How do you do that? By having that habitual practice? How do you get that by practicing every day. So it's up to you how much you want to practice and to what degree you want to practice but every day so at the very least I always say five minutes a day. And you definitely want to do a combination of speaking off the cuff and the accents speaking freely without a script and speaking with a script or doing some sort of sound pronunciation practice but vary it up for yourself so it keeps it interesting and that can include voice work as well warming up your voice placing it forward projection all the things range, all the bells and whistles. You can incorporate all of it. I like to multitask so that I'm really maximizing that time for myself movement. My favorite way to incorporate move meant as an actor is to get physical being physically fit, I think is so very important for actors. And so I go to the gym. Now if you have other time, or you want to learn a specialized skill, I would highly recommend some sort of stage combat training. But that can be a variety of different things. It could also be a special skill that you acquire, it could be martial arts, it could be horseback riding, it could be different types of actor movement training. Again, you want to always be increasing your skill set as an actor learning new things, you can never stop learning. And that's going to be really great for you as well as you get older. And it helps keep you young is to keep learning never stop learning. So movement, so many different ways that you can incorporate movement into your daily routine as an actor. Next is acting. Of course, this is so important because you don't just take an acting class or you don't just go to university, get a degree and bam, you're ready to go. It's an ongoing practice, right, especially auditioning, that's a skill set in itself. So you definitely should be practicing self tape auditions at home, whether in something like I've got, which is a monthly workout group for my actors or doing it on your own or with another actor, you should be practicing the art of auditioning, but you should also be in some sort of acting class, you know, whether it's online in person, something that's regular, where you're always getting that workout and learning different techniques, it doesn't mean that you have to use all the techniques, but it's great to learn the different techniques that are out there and pick and choose what works for you. So that's for your skill set your craft. Now community is so important as well, the world can be a lonely place at times, you know, when you're working on your skill set at home. That's why it's so important to be in some sort of class, whether it is in person or online, truthfully, it doesn't matter. Obviously, you do want something in person, because the skill of acting does require other people most of the time. So it is something that you know, an acting class, I would definitely recommend doing in person. But things like you know, when you do American accent training with me, you do not have to be in the room with me, and actually sometimes do better not being in the room, I find that my students actually feel way more comfortable when they're working with me or practicing from the comfort of your own home. Because what happens is, is you relaxed, and when you relax, you create nice open space for the American accent. Sometimes when you work with me in person, you inadvertently create tension and tension is not good for the American accent. So what I teach, I actually find it's better if we're not in the same room. So that's why, you know, for my actors that are in Sydney going well, why don't you teach in person anymore. And this is why is because I've noticed I actually get better results with my students if we're not in person. Okay? So community is so important to feel like you're not going at it alone, but also to get the support of your fellow actors when you need readers for your auditions. And that's, you know, one of the things I noticed in ultimate screen actor, my monthly workout group is, it's a small community of actors. But anytime somebody posts and says, Hey, I need a reader, can somebody read for me that someone's hand always goes up. And that makes me feel so happy, it warms my heart to know that, you know, is a community of actors. We're really out there to support each other, as well as we have to remember to champion each other to allow ourselves to say, Hey, I booked this role and be proud of it and know that the other actors are going to come to your side and cheer you on as well. That's one thing I noticed in living in Australia is this whole tall poppy syndrome is that there's not enough of that not enough of feeling comfortable saying, Look what I've done. I'm so excited. I booked this role. You know, it's because there's that fear of judgment, fear of people putting you down, and I hope my hope is to change that to tell you that it's okay to boast to be proud of your accomplishments. And when you form a really solid community, you'll feel that and I think that's what's been so great about ultimate screen actor is I can feel that evolving and bubbling and coming to the surface more and more the humble more that I inflict on my students that I want them to shout to the rooftops when they book something because I want to be their biggest cheerleader. I want all of us to be a cheerleader to cheer for your accomplishment. So community super important. All right next, but first let me have a sip of my Starbucks coffee. One moment please. So yummy. Okay, I digress from the Starbucks coffee is connection. Now what I mean by this is networking. And that can be kind of a scary word for a lot of us. Because, you know, it's like, well, how do I do it? What do I do? What do I say? Where do I go? How do I network? How do I meet the right people? And the first step is to just do it to get that chatter out of your head and start taking steps and going, Okay, well, how can I meet key players in the industry? Where are they? Where can I find them? And what could I be doing? Now, the beautiful thing is you don't have to be in LA these days, there are things happening online, I would recommend doing a little bit of research, don't always leave things up to other people to source for you start doing the research, start researching different casting directors in what they're casting research producers, research directors, and see what they're up to, and start going to the different trade magazines, I don't know if I can even call them magazines anymore, but going to places like backstage.com and things like that, where you can start to read articles online about who's doing what, and see, you know, if you can get information about things that are happening online, and as soon as you see there's a free masterclass with this person, or free talk on how to create your own web series with this person, go to as many things as you can, because like I said before, you can never stop learning, and you never know who you're going to meet in these connections. And as much as you can get in the room, live in person, do it. But when you can't attend things online, ask questions. You know, when there's Q and A's, make sure that you've got a question, a valid question, a smart question and ask your question and keep track of the people that you are meeting and learning from because you never know when that's going to become important down the line. What if you get in front of a casting director that you met five years prior? And you go, Oh, my gosh, I remember I met this person, and they were talking about this, that or the other and then you get into the room with them. And you can say hi, I actually was in your free, masterclass five years ago when you talked about blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And it really meant a lot a lot to me, because I learned about this than the other. And they'll go Oh, wow, that's amazing. Thank you so much. I'm so grateful for your feedback. And I'm so glad that you enjoyed it. That creates a personal connection. Right? So you want to start tracking the things that you go to the people that you meet, and doing some research on some of the key players. Easy to do. We talked about accent, but let's talk like specifically, what are some other things you could be doing? Oh, this is the thing I wanted to talk about accent is when you're practicing, and you decide, okay, how much time am I going to be practicing every day or every week? This is the thing that like, if you get anything from this episode, please get this. If you are practicing your American accent and you're going, I'm not seeing results. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I want you to pause for a second and check in and see how effectively Are you practicing? Because chances are, you may be going through the motions. And this is very common. Because oftentimes we do when we start to do something that becomes a habit, a daily practice. Sometimes we just go through the motions, and we just check it off the list. But we're not actually intentionally practicing thinking about our goal. What is your goal? In that moment? Why are you practicing today? What is that end result? If you're not thinking about your objective for practicing, then you may not get the results that you're after. So I want you to practice effectively and intentionally. So it's not just going through the motions. And this is a very common mistake I see with so many actors, and I don't want you to go into 2023 with this common mistake as well. So make a note of that. Write that down. Practice effectively and intentionally. Okay. And then the last thing and this is something that you're probably likely not even thinking about but I want you to think about this is where a lot of actors fall short is treating acting like a business and I get it this was one of the reasons why I stopped acting is because I didn't want to play the game because it took away from the love of the craft. I became an actor because I felt the I felt like I was home. When I got on stage. I felt like I was home when I got on stage. When those lights hit my body. I could feel the warmth and the energy of the audience and it was like I was home and I felt whole for the first time was when I was on stage. Such a beautiful feeling and I didn't want the business side of things to take that. And so I actually repelled away from acting because I was like, I just, I don't want to play the game, I don't want to do all the things. And that's perfectly fine. It just wasn't for me, which is why I'm on the other side to help coach you through it, to help you with your American accent, to help you with your American character, to help you with your American auditions to help you with your American brand, to help you stand out in the US TV and film industry. So you can get that agent, you can book roles, and you can build a sustainable career as a working actor. That's what I'm here to do, and support you through that entire process. So one of the first steps that you can do is think about your brand. This is both in your natural accent and in the American accent, but I'm going to take it from the American perspective. And one of the benefits you have as being an international actor is that when you can nail the American accent, and you have a clear vision of your brand, how you position yourself within the US industry that can be highly attractive to agents and managers in your local country, as well as overseas if you're in Hollywood, or New York or Canada, Vancouver, right? So it's to your advantage to be very clear on your brand. And so take the holidays, to think about that. I'm going to give you a little starter on this. It all starts with who you are, what makes you uniquely you. So think about that. What makes you uniquely you. And that's going to help you think about the roles that you want to play, the roles that you thrive in, and the roles that you can book in. And then you want to create a body of work that represents that and represents you in the American accent far too often. I see actors that will just say, okay, my agent wants, you know, something in the American accent. So I've got this monologue and I've had it for years. Can you help me prepare it? So I can put it on tape and show them? No, I will not. I will not do that. And I will tell you why. I don't want to work on something that's iconic or classic like A Streetcar Named Desire. Or here's another one that I get a lot. Biff the beef. Yeah. Beef from Death of a Salesman. So there's certain monologues that I just won't do but also because, look, if it doesn't represent who you are, and why you're doing it, right, it's not serving a greater purpose. So for me, it's very important to get a clear vision of who you are, who you are as an actor, and how will you thrive within the industry in creating materials that will support that I don't like working on things that you've worked on in the past, because inadvertently, you've already developed a pattern of speaking and performing it. And it's hard to unravel that. So I like working fresh with a fresh piece of copy a monologue or scene and building it together. So that's your brand. Alright, so you've got your brand, or some sort of marketing for yourself, like what are you doing for your business in the next 90 days in the next year? Your accent? Very important, of course, of course, connection and networking community building a community to help support you along the way and your craft. What are you doing for your acting, you're auditioning your voice, and movement. And that's all the things it's not too many things is it? Those are your goals for 2023. So we're going to think short term, midterm long term. So that's an every 90 Days NEW cycle, your one year goal and a five or 10 year goal. Now to support you in this, I actually reached out to my actors who are in all American voice and ultimate screen actor recently, and I had this thought about creating an actor journal like a planner to help support tracking your goals. If this is something that interests you, can you do me a favor and DM me on Instagram, it's at Katherine underscore Beck underscore and just say planter and all know that that interests you but also if you have any ideas of the things that you would like to see in it, this is going to be something that is digital and or hardcopy. Okay, it will be for purchase. So it'll be you know, less for the digital more for the hardcopy version, of course. And I think it's going to be a really great thing for actors. And I want to get really specific, which is why I'm asking you your advice. So at the time of this recording, this episode should go out the end of December. So we're almost into the new year. So I will be thinking about this and conceptualizing yet It's in December towards the end of December and just having a play around with what I think should be involved, but I really want to hear from you before I do any sort of final structuring of it. So please, please, please let me know in the DMS at Katherine underscore Beck underscore what you want in there because it's really it's for you, I want it to be really tailored for actors and I want it to be something that you actually use and that you see helps you keep on track of your goals and get the results that you want. Now one other thing I want to let you know before we wrap up today's episode is make sure you get on my waitlist for all American voice because the doors are going to be opening towards the end of January. So I just want to let you know if you want to be the first or one of the first to know when the doors open. Make sure you get on the waitlist. It's Katherine beck.com forward slash a v dash waitlist. I will put that in the show notes. All right, that is it for today's show. Now coming up next week on the show, we're going to be talking about something rather controversial, which is why you should stop focusing on the American accent when you get a US audition. Now it's a little controversial, but you'll understand why next week. Now make sure to share the show with all your actor friends, let them know what's coming up next week and invite them to tune in with you to learn how to become an All American actor. So you can be the Working Actor you dream to be until then go on, get out there and practice your American accent. And I'll see you back here next time.