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A dream career in the arts - you need to have a plan

By Shiona Long

I love talking to young artists. I love your passion, your determination and your optimism. Many of you can paint me a vivid and detailed picture of just how it will be when you ‘make it’. The power of such a dream cannot be underestimated.

What I notice is that many of you do not have a clear plan as to how you are going to get there. I can tell you this with absolute certainty; if you don’t break it down to the specific steps and take specific action, your chances of success are very, very low.

There are two parts to achieving the big dream. There is who you need to be and what you need to do.

You need to be talented, passionate and committed. These to me are givens. You also need to be focused, determined, disciplined, certain, resilient, courageous – I could go on.

I believe it is imperative to have a strong sense of who you really are as a person, what you truly want in your life and why it is so important to you. You need to take the time to ask these questions. This will give you the ‘inspiration’ to do what you need to do time, and time, and time again, to achieve your dream.

It has been said that given a BIG enough WHY, the HOW will take care of itself.

The next step is to map out the plan to achieve your dream. Map out each step along the path.

Firstly, ask yourself; where am I now? You need to be really honest and also really encouraging – your own best friend!

Then ask… What is the next step that I need to take? It may be to get a singing teacher, or get a lead role in an amateur show or an audition for a professional show. If you are being honest you will know what the next step should be.

Write a SMART Goal. If it is not written down it is still a concept that you don’t need to action.

S = Simple and Specific

M = Measurable

A = Attractive and As If Now

R = Realistic

T = Timed

So a SMART goal would go something like this

It is November 1st 2008 I am so excited to have landed my first lead role in an amateur musical theatre production. I love what I do and am so proud of my achievements.

The goal is simple and specific; you can measure whether it has been achieved, it is timed and it is stated as if you have it now. Only you can decide if it is realistic and attractive!

Then break it down into the specific actions that you need to take to achieve your goal. Allocate adequate time for each step and DO IT!

Do the practice, learn the lines, make the phone calls, have the courage to go to the audition. Do whatever it takes to have your goal real in your life. Look at what you have written down EVERYDAY.

By all means dream. Visualize that you have it now in you life. Feel it. See it. Hear it. Say your goal. Love it. Visualization works.

More importantly TAKE ACTION.

I can tell you this with absolute certainty; it won’t happen if you just sit there!!

This article was written by Shiona Long – Specialist Success Coach for the Performing Arts. You can contact Shiona at shiona@whenyoubelieve.com.au.


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