Acting Business Boot Camp Peter Pamela Rose

Private Coaching
Today, I'm going to talk about the subject of Wisdom. 
Wisdom is my favorite word in the American language. 
God, do I love Wisdom. The reason why I love Wisdom is because Wisdom gives me power.
And sometimes it isn't even the power of knowledge, but the power of knowing what to do. 
And I don't have any script for this podcast or guidance for this podcast. I'm just talking to you about this subject because it is truly just the thing that I crave more of. 
This past week I turned another year older.
I help people to adjust their thoughts and their lives to work for them instead of against them.
And, that's a really crucial thing because it's certainly something that I did a lot when I was younger. 
I constantly worked against myself because I also was like, “Yeah I'm, I have so much energy and I'm so tough, I don't always have to be working for me.”
Oh, would I like to go back and talk to that 20 year old.
Becoming emotionally intelligent. 
And how do I teach them to do that?
 By teaching them to be emotionally self-sufficient. In order to be emotionally self-sufficient, I need to be very wise.
So I'm going to talk a bit today about a couple of prayers that I like that help me to become more wise. 
And the first one is very obvious. It is the serenity prayer. 
So if you're listening to this, I'm going to ask you to write the serenity prayer down. 
I'm going to give it to you as I'm writing. If you need to push pause, that's fine.
So here's the serenity prayer. 
“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.”
Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. So write that down and then skip a couple of lines.
Then I want you to write down the next line, which is “courage to change the things I can.”
And then skip a couple of lines. 
And wisdom to know the difference. 
And wisdom to know the difference. And I always, when I'm writing down the serenity prayer, I always circle the word wisdom.
Again, because it's something I want more of. 
So let's go back to that first line, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. 
Underneath that, I want you to write this: I cannot change or control other people, places, things, or situations. 
So grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. 
I cannot change other people, places, things, or situations. 
I cannot change or control other people, places, things, or situations. 
Let's go to the second part. 
Courage to change the things I can. 
I can only handle or manage, handle/ manage myself, my attitudes, my thoughts, and my actions.
I can only handle/ manage myself, my thoughts, my attitudes, my actions. That's the second part. 
And the third part is, wisdom to know the difference. 
Wisdom underneath that, right? 
Wisdom to know the difference between what I cannot control, which is other people, places, things, and situations, and what I can handle, which is myself, my attitudes, my thoughts, and my actions. 
So I am looking for the wisdom to be able to determine what I can do something about and what I cannot, because all anxiety, all unrest in me. It comes from my wanting to control something. 
But here's the thing, that may not be my job.
That may not be my job. My job is to handle or manage myself, my attitudes, my thoughts, and my actions. 
And here's the thing, when you really focus on that, your life is busy. 
You don't have time to control other things. You are not, you don't have time to control outcomes and other things like that.
You gotta focus on your own life. You gotta focus on your own life. 
The Universe is the pilot. I am the co pilot. 
And every morning I wake up and I say, good morning universe, Peter Pamela Rose reporting for duty. 
And I invite the Universe into my day. And I ask the Universe. 
This, and this is what comes from the 12 step programs. I pray for the knowledge of your will for me today and

Private Coaching
Now I wouldn't say that I would sometimes call myself Peter Pamela Perfectionism Rose, but sometimes I've called myself Peter Pamela Perfectionism Rose.
The biggest thing about perfectionism that I want to talk about today is that perfectionism leads to procrastination, leads to paralysis. 
The other thing that I think is so important about the lesson of perfectionism is to make your ears grow bigger, cunning, baffling, and powerful.
I look at all the ways, in fact even this too, recording today's podcast, I was looking for the right time to do it. 
But do you know what the right time to do it was? Right now. Right now was the right time to do it. 
See, my wanting to, and this is just me but maybe you can relate, my waiting to just feel like it is perfectionism in a very cunning, baffling, and powerful way, trying to get me to not do what I most need to do to move my career forward, which is because for the past, I think over two years now, I have put out a podcast every week, even when my house flooded, even when my house flooded and that If you can start to override that perfectionism and let it go for just a moment so that you do that action now, bingo, we got some serious success about to happen.
Now, I'm also going to lean into the fabulous Melody Beattie.
The Language of Letting Go
She talks about how perfectionism is an individual process that necessitates making mistakes. So recovering from perfectionism necessitates making mistakes, struggling through problems and facing tough issues. 
And it's especially when I have to do things I most don't want to do that my perfectionism kicks up. 
Again, waiting for the right time, waiting till I feel like it, waiting until somebody else tells me I should do it.
Again, cunning, baffling, and powerful, how I get in there, how perfectionism gets in there or my perfectionism gets in there to prevent me from doing the things that I most need to do in order to achieve what I most want to do. 
“Expecting ourselves to be perfect slows down the process to our getting to the level of success that we want to get to in whatever area of our life. It puts us in a guilty or anxious state. Expecting others to be perfect is equally destructive. It makes others feel ashamed and may interfere with their growth. Keep the focus on yourself.”
It was one of the craziest things I've learned in core work. Is that once I finally got the focus on me and off of everybody else, I was like, how the heck did I even have time to focus on other people and try and control them and try and manipulate them?
How did I even have the time? 
I'm so damn busy with me. I'm a freaking full time job. That's when the good stuff begins, when you start to really focus on you, that's when the good stuff starts. 
“People are human and vulnerable. We can accept and cherish that idea. Expecting others to be perfect puts us in a codependent state of moral superiority.” 
And sometimes I find I do that with myself. I put myself in “Peter, you're just gonna have to do it better than everybody else.” 
What the fuck is that? Oh, that's so much arrogance. That's so much moral superiority that I think I know what perfect is.
IIt's really all about process and life being a process. 
“Expecting ourselves to be perfect makes us feel rigid and inferior.”
And also as an actor, I find it makes us rigid. We have to do the scene the way we planned it. No, you don't. In fact, mistakes are the best things that can happen.
Mess ups are the best things that can happen. 
I was talking with my producing partner who told me about these mistakes that happened on the set and the actor was like no, I have to redo it. And the director, he was like, ah, no, you don't. Because that was comedic genius. Remember, there is that in imperfection, some of the greatest creativity can happen as an actor. 
“We do not need to go to the other extreme, tolerating anything that people throw our

Today I'm going to be talking about something that I have been doing recently, which I've been really taking risks.
It's been real. It's been an adventure. And I've said to myself, I remember earlier this year, I was in a foreign country. I was driving in a foreign country, on the opposite side of the road. And I went in my car. It was late at night and I'd been traveling for a while and I just said to myself, You are so brave.
You are so brave. 
And I think one of the things that I've learned in taking risks is really to encourage, be your own cheerleader while you're doing it. 
Because taking risks is scary. It gets us out of our comfort zone, and of course there's that, saying life begins at the end of our comfort zone, but it really is true.
And I don't think you are ever too old to take risks.
I did a podcast, oh gosh, I guess it was over a year ago, with my mom where, she shared with you all that she finished writing her 10th cookbook on her 80th birthday. 
And it's funny because now she's 85 years old and she said, I have this great idea for a cookbook.
I'm going to do this. And I'm just like, man, you go, mom, you just go. 
So today is where I'm going to be encouraging you to take risks, not only in your acting, but also in your life. 
And to encourage you and to help me along in the format of this podcast, I'm going to be reading from the fabulous Melody Beattie.
The Language of Letting Go
And the subject, like I said, for today is taking risks. 
“Take risks. Take a chance. We do not have to indulge in obviously foolhardy or self defeating risks, but we can allow ourselves to take positive risks in our life. We cannot afford to keep ourselves paralyzed.”
I really started to Up my game in terms of taking risks. About three years ago was right after I turned 50 and I don't know what it is about turning 50, but it's when you really realize, wow, I have less of my life in front of me, potentially, than I do in back of me. And I decided I wanted to have the best freaking second half of my life that I possibly could.
And I was no longer going to let fear or judgment or other people's opinions, no matter how close they are to me, stagnate my life. 
I want to live. And the thing is that if you want to live, you've got to take risks. Or else, you'll be paralyzed. 
“We do not have to keep ourselves stymied and trapped out of fear of making a mistake or falling.”
And here's the thing. One of the things about asking. Somebody says it says I don't know. Do you think they'll do it? And I go let's just ask. Because no is survivable. Hearing no is survivable. 
“Naturally, we will make mistakes and fail from time to time.” Again, that is survivable. 
“That's part of being fully alive. There are no guarantees. If we are waiting for guaranteed courses of action, we may spend much of our life waiting.”
I don't want to be at the effect of my life anymore. I don't want to wait for life to happen to me. I want to happen to life. I want to be at the cause of my life.
“We do not have to shame ourselves or accept shame from anyone. Anyone else, even those who are close to us for making mistakes, the goal of life is not to live it perfectly. The goal of life is to live, learn our lessons, and make our own decisions. And make  overall progress.”
 There's a wonderful phrase that I love called progress not perfection.
Progress not perfection.
Remaining teachable, which I think is also just a wonderful phrase like progress, not perfection.
Take a risk. Do not always wait for a guarantee. 
There again one of the things I've been thinking about recently is leap and the net will appear. 
Leap and the net will appear. 
Dust yourself off after a mistake and then move on to the success.
Dust yourself off and move on to the success. 
One of the things my mom used to always say to me when I was a little girl and I would be disappointed because, I don't know, I didn't get a role in the pl

PITCH PERFECT MASTERCLASS
Today, I'm going to talk about something that I've been feeling recently—vulnerability.
Yeah. Vulnerability. Just feeling a little tender. 
Now, the thing I always think about with vulnerability is vulnerability and emotional availability is two of the greatest assets that actors can have. 
All I have to say about that is that can also be like your cross to bear, as it were when dealing with the industry. 
Because as an actor, as an artist, we wear our hearts on our sleeves. 
But how I like to approach the business is the business. When I go in there, I do my work, my good work.
What I want to do is focus on that and not focus on the business. 
So that's what Acting Business Boot Camp is all about. It's about getting you to focus on the right things at the right time. 
But today, we're going to talk a little bit more about vulnerability. I'm going to use my dear friend Melody Beattie.
The Language of Letting Go 
She says, “I've learned that the more vulnerable I allow myself to be, the more in control of myself I really am.”
Now, I don't really like to think about it as in control. In a lot of my work and in my more chiropractor for the mind work, and think about that, chiropractor for the mind, really adjusting yourself so that you understand how you tick. I talk about emotional self-sufficiency, and it's not that I want to control myself.
It's that I want to know that I can manage and handle myself emotionally no matter what situation comes up, including losing my voice and feeling sick and feeling unwell. 
Tender. 
Melody goes on to say, “Many of us feel that we can only show our strong, confident side. We believe the face we have to show to the world should always be one of politeness, perfection, calm, strength, and control.”
But let's take a moment and let's take a step back and think about how incredibly unrealistic that is. 
I received some disappointing news the other day. And I just said to myself, Okay, it's disappointing. It's all right for you to feel sad. It's all right for you not to feel a hundred percent on, especially when I am someone who is on so much.
It's okay for me to show a little weakness. It's okay for me to be vulnerable. 
And it's okay, or I should say, it's more than okay, for me to take care of myself when I'm feeling that tenderness. 
One of my favorite phrases is go as slowly as you need to in order to take care of yourself.
And when you're feeling vulnerable, or you're feeling tender. 
Go as slowly as you need to in order to take care of that vulnerability and that tenderness in that day. 
This too shall pass. You won't always feel so vulnerable. You won't always feel so tender. My voice will not always sound like this. In fact, in a few podcasts, I hope it'll sound better.
She goes on to say, “While it is certainly good and often appropriate to be in calm controlling and strong moods, there is also another side of all of us, that part of us that feels needy, that becomes frightened, that has doubts and gets angry.”
Because, hello, guess what? You're human. That part of us needs care.
That part of us needs love. That part of us needs reassurance that things will be okay. 
And again reminding ourselves, go as slowly as you need to in order to take care of yourself. 
Expressing these needs makes us vulnerable, yes, and less than perfect, yes. But this side needs acceptance too. 
There's a wonderful phrase that says, don't go to the hardware store for lemons.
When I am feeling vulnerable, needy, or frightened, there may be people who are more appropriate for me to go to than not.
And the number one thing I want to do for self-care—make your ears grow bigger as I say this—is not to go to that person who is the hardware store for lemons.
Because they are not going to be able to give me that comfort, that love, that reassurance that I crave right now. 
It may be better for me to leave it out. When in do

NEW FREE MASTERCLASS
I'm going to be talking about something that a listener sent me, and I thought it was a really interesting idea for a podcast, which is about nepotism.
I do think it is yet another one of those areas of the industry where we can get our heads in the clouds and not on our bodies, and really allows us to make excuses for not showing up and taking responsibility.
As a NEPO baby, I am not one.
I do not come from anyone in the industry. You have an advantage in that you have those connections. However, you also have to have the talent, consistency, and persistence to back that up. The other thing is that, oh, you're so and so's daughter or you're so and so's child. Oh. Then you must be fantastic, and then you have to live up to that, or you can never be your own person.
Now, I have a friend of mine who is the child of an incredibly famous actor, but that child chooses to use a different name because they don't want to be known as so and so's child. Now, that is very admirable. 
I may go about it differently.
I would say use every advantage you have. 
But this is the thing, and this is the real key point because most of you listening to this podcast are not; do not have nepotism in your family. What do you do? 
And this is the best advice I can give you. You need to keep your focus. 
So often, I have actors who look at point A and point B, and instead of just drawing a line between point A to point B, they go up, they go down, they go around, they twirl around.
They walk outside, they come back inside, and then maybe eventually get to point B. 
The question, the thing is that things like nepotism and a lot of things that I feel in the industry, try to get your focus from the three points where you need to be putting your focus, which is your acting training, your business skills and the core work, the work on you are the things that distract you from taking real responsibility for the job that you have been given to do on this Earth, because I believe the universe has given you given all of us a gift.
The question is, are we going to nurture that gift and are we going to stay focused on pursuing that gift?
Or are we going to allow our focus to go off into things that we cannot control again? 
My favorite prayer or affirmation is the serenity prayer that reminds us of this. Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. I cannot change other people, places, times, things, or situations, and whether my competition has nepotism or not, courage to change the things I can.
I can only change myself, my attitudes, my thoughts, and my actions, and keep the focus on myself, my strengths, my career, and wisdom… 
Wisdom, my favorite word in the American language, to know the difference, which is the difference between what I cannot control or change, which is other people, places, things, or situations, or change.
Nepotism and other actors I may be competing against and what I can change, which is myself, my attitudes, my thoughts, and my actions. 
So, that's my response to the first part of that listener's question. I'm going to read the second part to you because I think this is very interesting.
Getting past the “what chance do I have?” misconception, ever having the opportunity to compete with a nepotism child. 
Again, what I would say about that is your job when you go into an audition is to focus on the work. 
It is not to focus on who your competition is. I joke about how I used to go into an audition room, and I'd sit in the audition room and basically pick the actor who I thought was going to get the job.
That is so working against ourselves instead of for ourselves. 
What I think is so crucial here is that when you go into audition, that your focus is again on that courage to change the things you can, which is really, truly freeing. 
Focusing in on your work as the actor and living the life of that character in that space and time, whether that be in a s

Work with me privately
About Angela Mickey:
Angela Mickey is the Managing Director of Casting at Liz Lewis Casting Partners, and has been working as a Casting Director for 24 years. 
Angela works across the board on commercial, voice-over, film, TV, and theater projects, with a concentration on comedy, real people, and theatrical casting. 
She enjoys working with both veteran and up-and-coming creatives, developing the best, unique plan for each project, and working as a partner to the producing process. 
Recent on-camera commercial projects: Spectrum, UberEats, DCU, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Tillamook, Door Dash, Woodbridge, NJ Lottery, Marriott. 
Recent real people projects: New York Presbyterian, Aleve, NorthAmerican Bancard, Redemption Whiskey, Chevy, Wells Fargo, JC Penney, as well as a variety of editorial projects for Condé Nast.
Recent animation/podcast vo projects: Dee and Friends in Oz (Netflix), SuperKitties (Disney Jr), Get Rolling with Otis (Apple TV +), The Snow Globe (in conjunction with Chik-Fil-A), This Job is History (Wondery), Killer Questions with Daryn Carp (ID). 
Recent film projects include "Martyr of Gowanus", Lifetime's "12 Days of Christmas Eve", "The Legend of Lake Ronkonkoma: The Lady of the Lake", Filipino movie musical "The Girl Who Left Home", and Hallmark's "Where Are You Christmas" and "Mystic Christmas." 
Angela's got a treasure trove of tips, secrets, and stories that are pure gold for anyone in the acting game, whether you're just starting out or you've been around the block a few times. Here's the lowdown on what we covered:
What You Need to Know:
Reading Instructions is Key: Angela talks about how something as simple as sending the wrong file type can throw a wrench in your audition. She's all about paying attention to the details. Make sure you know what they're asking for and nail it. Ace Your Online Auditions: With auditions going digital, Angela shares the scoop on making sure your setup is on point. Good internet, good lighting, and a space where you can do your thing without distractions are your best friends here. Bring Your Flavor to the Role: Angela's not looking for robots. She wants to see what you bring to the character. It's all about showing up with your take on the role and being ready to collaborate to make something awesome. Self-Care for the Win: One of the big themes Angela hits on is looking after yourself. Acting's a marathon, not a sprint, and giving yourself permission to take breaks and live life outside the acting bubble is crucial. Top Quotes from the episode:
"Making me work harder to fix your audition tape? Yeah, that's gonna make me think twice about calling you back." "Don't just show up expecting to be directed. Bring your own magic to the role. That's what gets noticed." "Worried about your online audition setup? Just do your best to keep things simple and stress-free. It's about what you do, not where you do it." "The industry isn't going anywhere. Taking a break for a bit of self-care or to just breathe is totally fine. You do you."