What does it take to be successful as an actor?

Question: What does it take to be successful as an actor!?

I just dropped out of A/P Mechanic school to pursue my dream of being an actor!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Just as with anything else, you will need
Talent
The ability to learn the craft of acting!. Singers, dancers, doctors, lawyers, computer technicians and sales people all need a base of skill and aptitude to do those jobs!. If they don't have it, it will be difficult for them to make it in their chosen field!. The same is true for acting, which brings me to the next point!.

Training!. If you really want to be good, you will need to train!.

You need to be specific about what kind of career you really want and what success really will look like for you!. In other words, you have to visualize it down to the smallest detail!. What your days will look like, where you will live, how you will be getting work, how much money you want to make, etc!. If you are not used to thinking like that, you might find it difficult, but I assure you that it is a good exercise!.

In order to be able to do that, (next point): you need to study what being an actor really means, know what actors do day to day even when they are not working or when they are looking for work, how they train, about the different acting techniques, about agents and managers and what they do, about the unions, about the classes you need to take, about a whole variety of things that will make you smarter and more competitive!. Talk to and look at the bios of actors who have 'made it' or who have the kind of success you are looking for!. also talk to those actors (or aspiring actors) who have been struggling to get an agent, who are not taking classes, who are complaining that they never get any work and who are doing the one agent at a time thing!. You can learn from both the successful people and the unsuccessful people, what to do and what NOT TO DO!.

I'm smiling to myself, because I can only imagine that this is not the kind of answer you expected and at first read, it might sound a little fluffy!. If so, read it again and again!. Copy it and paste it and read it again after 6 months or a year and I can almost bet that you will find a lot of truth in what I've written!.

This is a tough field with a lot of competition and if you go about it like so many young, aspiring actors who either try to get one agent a time, then wait for a few months and then try again with another agent they heard about and then wait again, that is not a winning strategy!.

Just like waking up one day and deciding to become an actor and then the first thing you do is to go get a head shot, write a résumé and try to get an agent ARE NOT the first steps IF YOU REALLY WANT TO BE SUCCESSFUL!.

It all takes time and lots of it!. It takes patience!. It takes lazer focus, determination, a plan, skill, talent, a good team around you, thick skin (you will hear no a lot), knowing how far you are willing to go and a whole lot of other things!

I changed my life around completely from a successful manager at a high level in two multi-national companies to becoming an author, actor, seminar leader and motivational speaker!. I did this in a time when the economy had begun to suffer!. People told me I was crazy!. They asked me why I would leave a successful career!. They asked me where I was going to go to work!?

My answer was that I was not going to go get another job, but that I was going to create something from nothing, doing all the things that I love to do, acting, writing, speaking in public, conducting seminars and making videos!.
Today, after 5 years, I am doing all those things, because I followed the advice I just gave you!.

Have a look at this page on my site for new and aspiring actors!. As you are at the beginning of your dream, you might find useful some of the 23 links that you will find there that have to do with different aspects of starting an acting career including some of the steps you need to take to get started, 17 things you can do to start getting some work, why CLASSES and training are important, how to choose a school and a lot of industry resources you might find helpful to help you start studying!.
http://www!.actingcareerstartup!.com/teen_!.!.!.

Good luck!

Tony

p!.s!. If you dropped out of school, you need to be really focused and motivated!. If you are not, then you might want to think about learning a second skill in life, whether it is mechanics or something else!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Just like she said being able to handle rejection and also having an oupportunity to meet some kind of talent agent!!! What u need to be succesful is a talent agent and a manager 2 most important!! Best thing to also do is find casting fusion interveiws and they REALLY help u even though might pay a couple hundread it is worth it!!! Normanly these things are about like 15 thousand dollars just to get face to face with a talent agent!!! There if u make is through the interview the confrence where u meet 25 casting directors is only 695 that is a GOOD price!! Go to castingfusion!.com to find out more! I am thinking about going to the confrence cause i made it through the interveiw!!Www@QuestionHome@Com

1) PASSION! you gotta want it more than anything else!. during your career it must be your main priority!.

2) being able to handle rejection!. You don't always get the role but you need to realize that you need to keep moving forward looking for new auditions!.

3)take it slow!. Nobody is an overnight success!. start out small and work your way up to bigger roles!.

4) get thick skin!. Don't let what people say about the way you look affect you!. Just ignore what they say; looks shouldn't get you the job, talent should!.

hope this helps!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

wow, that's quite a move! i guess dedication will help you be successful, but i think you have no problems there!. try checking this site for casting calls: hollywood-opportunities(dotcom)Www@QuestionHome@Com

BEING ABLE TO HANDLE REJECTION!.Www@QuestionHome@Com