A
couple months ago I had the pleasure of hearing Shelly Gillyard (Senior
VP of talent at Nickelodeon) speak about that pesky little guy, fear.
Of course fear is something we battle with constantly as actors– fear
of not getting the job, fear we are not good enough, fear that success
will never happen, and on and on. But perhaps we battle that demon
because it’s the only story we’ve been telling ourselves. At some point
in our life, we failed at something we really wanted, or our parents
told us we’d never make it– something however seemingly small or
insignificant was the beginning of that story we have been telling
ourselves ever since: fear. Shelly brought up a great point– why not
tell ourselves a new story? It’s just a story after all. It’s not the
truth. I do not have to take fear on and internalize it only to fight it
constantly as I navigate this crazy career. And we all know how
powerful language is– we’re actors after all– so why not use that power
for good? Why not tell ourselves a new story of success and happiness
and worth and positivity?
