Acting Business Boot Camp

Money Mastery for Actors

Guide to Booking Commercial VO Workshop

Time Management Replay

Ken Rea Class

The Language of Letting Go

"Love yourself into health and a good life of your own. Love yourself into relationships that work for you and the other person. Love yourself into peace, happiness, joy, success, and contentment. Love yourself into all that you always wanted."

I love the idea of loving myself into health.

And I think the first relationship that I always need to love myself into is, again, the one with me and also the one with the power that makes the sunshine.

A love affair with your higher, smarter self: the Universe.

Loving myself into peace means when I put my head on the pillow at night, it is to rest.

Not to worry. Not to fret.

I also love, love myself into happiness, which is allowing myself to be happy. Giving myself the space to be happy, to feel joy, to be successful, and not worry about whether the other shoe is going to drop.

And then this one. I think this is a toughie. Love yourself into contentment.

Can I be content?

Loving myself into peace means allowing myself the stop time.

A wonderful exercise is to write down all the ways you want to love yourself and have love in your life.

"We can stop treating ourselves the way others treated us if they behaved in less than healthy or desirable ways. If we have learned to see ourselves critically, conditionally, and in diminishing and punishing ways, well, hey, it's time to stop. Other people treated us this way, but it doesn't mean that we have to treat ourselves this way. It's so incredible to love ourselves this way."

Now, how do we love ourselves? Well, sometimes we have to force ourselves at first. Sometimes we have to fake it till we make it.

Can you work as hard at loving yourself as much as you did working not to love yourself?

How do you expect somebody else to love you if you aren't loving yourself?

How do you expect someone to value your work as an actor if you aren't valuing yourself and your work as an actor?

Have a love affair with yourself.

Wouldn't that be the kindest, most loving thing you could possibly do?

Time Management Replay

Money Mastery for Actors

Today we're going to talk about money and we're going to talk about our emotional connection to money. And our faith and money, meaning faith that the money will come.

I am still working on my thought patterns around money.

The Language of Letting Go

"Sometimes there is not enough money to make ends meet, much less afford any luxuries. People may tell us we need to do a budget and we chuckle. The expenses we need to pay for survival surpass the income. We look at the situation, shake our heads and say, No way. Many of us have had to live through these situations. This is not the time to panic. This is not the time to despair."

I used to be one of those people that would look at my finances and go, okay, well, I have I'm just going to make up numbers here, 1500 dollars in expenses and I have $1,000 to pay it with. What am I going to do?

And when people would talk to me about budgeting, I would burst into tears over money situations.

Learning a budget system that worked for someone like me who has a terribly unpredictable income.

And that's what actors and freelancers have, incredibly unpredictable incomes.

So the first part that I would say the huge change I had was really learning my numbers. And I'm going to tell you this. I did it with a tissue box next to me.

I would look at the size of my bank account and I would say, well, that's my worth as a human being. And that's just bullshit.

So the first thing I needed to do was get clarity, get clarity around my numbers. And then this was kind of the magical thing. Once I got the clarity. It wasn't so frightening.

Once I knew what the situation was, I felt more empowered to do something about it.

But yet there was another piece, which is piece number two, which is the emotional part around money.

Louise Hay says that she would rather teach a seminar around sex and talk about all sorts of kinky sex than teach a seminar around money. Why? Because we all get so worked up about it.

We all tie our self-worth into it.

Use our minds to govern our brains, to help us to see what we are doing, to spot it, to notice it, to become aware of it, to accept it, and then to take action to get rid of those thoughts around money that don't work for us. All the gates open.

And then then, as I talk about in time management, then things can really start to happen.

"Panic and desperation will lead to bad judgment and desperate moves. This is the time to substitute faith for fear. This is the time to trust the universe to meet our needs. I am willing for you to show me a way around money. I am willing to learn how to manage my money. I am willing to change my thoughts around money. I am willing. Take life one day at a time and one need at a time. Use your survival skills positively. Know that your possibilities are not limited by the past. Examine any blocks that might be stopping the flow of money in your life. Do you have an attitude, an issue, a lesson that might be yours to change or to learn?"

The great thing about shitty situations that come up in your life is, is that you can look at them and learn from them. But it does take that effort and that bravery and that courage to do so.

"Maybe the lesson is a simple one of faith. Faith in the universe, but also faith in yourself. In biblical times, it is said that Jesus walked on water. It is said that his followers could too, but the moment they let fear take over, they sank. During financial hard times. We can learn to walk on water with our money issues. If we make out a budget and there's not enough money to survive and pay legitimate expenses, do your best. And then let it go. Trust. Source. To supply your needs. If an emergency arises and there is no cash to meet the need, look beyond your wallet. Look to your source, claim a divine supply, an unlimited supply for all that you need. Do your part. Strive for an attitude of financial responsibility in thought and action. Ask for divine wisdom. Listen to the universe's leading. Then let go of your fears and your need to control."

Once you learn it and you understand it, it's like getting on a bike.

You can align yourself with abundance. And bring more abundance into your life.

Katie Flahive On Camera Class

Time Management Replay

About Lev:

Lev is a celebrated actor, photographer, fine artist, and award-winning filmmaker.

He is currently recurring on Apple TV's FOR ALL MANKIND, and Starz' RAISING KANAN. Lev's acting career covers over 50 films and TV series.

He is widely recognized for his role as Arkady Ivonovich on FX's EMMY WINNING THE AMERICANS, and as the character of Eton on the HBO series THE WIRE.

In film, he has worked with WOODY ALLEN, SUSAN SARANDON, ROBERT DENIRO, and many others. He is set to direct his first feature film in the Fall of 2023.

What really influenced my acting as I got older is when I began to realize that good acting is really bad acting.

So for me, what became really important is behavior. Truthful behavior in imaginary circumstances.

If you approach roles, if you approach parts, if you approach scenes as behavior. Then you're not taking a page and trying to justify what the writer wrote.

I'm not going to pretend to do something if it's not me.

What I started to think of when I look at scripts now is commitment.

Just bringing the skill of utter 1,000% commitment because that's what I practice every day at my work. All of a sudden and you have an imagination of what's happened to this character, all of a sudden you have this life.

If you want to get stronger as a human being and get to know yourself better, let's just talk about AB exercises, okay? So I hate this exercise called mountain climbers. It's fucking painful. I fucking hate it. But you know, what is the number one exercise I always go to when I'm working on abs? Mountain climbers.

Why? Because that is the area of my body that is weak, that I want to strengthen. I get stronger and I build the one thing you cannot buy no matter if you are a billionaire or not. And that is self-esteem.

And the other thing that happens is, is that you gain knowledge of yourself. And the more I understand how Peter Pamela Rose ticks, the more I will be able to incorporate that into her character.

You need to face yourself on the top of the mountain every day.

Letting yourself be present in the work.

And I think that that takes a tremendous amount of self-trust and self-esteem. Because it's an incredibly brave thing to do.

Being entitled and having confidence is slightly different. I think being entitled is a positive thing. You should expect only the best. You should be entitled.

I don't mean be an asshole, be arrogant, be rude, be mean. Those things are not being entitled. Those things are just being insecure and rude and mean. Being entitled means. Yes, this. I deserve this. This is coming to me.

Be entitled. Be confident. Have humility.

But be confident enough to say, I deserve this. So feel entitled. It's okay.

Katie Flahive Class

"Setting our own course. We are powerless over other people's expectations of us. We cannot control what they want, what they expect, or what they want us to do or be."

Keep the focus on yourself.

What other people think of me is none of my business.

Taking care of myself pays enormous dividends.

Take care of yourself first, and the rest will follow.

Put on your bubble suit. When you go into difficult situations with people who push your buttons, probably because they install them, it's really helpful to know that you have a little space around you that nobody can penetrate.

"We can, however, control how we respond to other people's expectations."

We are not responsible for our first thought, but we are responsible for our second.

I encourage you to stop taking a step back and ask yourself, "is this healthy for me or unhealthy for me?" And then responding.

A response is a reaction with a pause and a thought behind it.

"During the course of any day, people may make demands on our time, talents, energy, money, and emotions. We do not have to say yes to every request. No is a complete sentence. We do not have to feel guilty if we say no, and we do not have to allow the barrage of demands to control the course of our life."

They are on their time, but that doesn't mean it has to wreck my day.

No is a complete sentence.

I do not bring stuff into my life anymore that I am not 1,000% committed to.

"We do not have to spend our life reacting to others and to the course they would prefer we took in our life."

We can, through core work, be strong enough in and of ourselves to know that we are enough. And keep the course steady ourselves.

As Diana Nyad said, "find a way, find a way to stay on course. Find a way to stay on course."

We can set boundaries.

We can firm up limits on how far we will go with others.

We can trust and listen to ourselves.

We can set goals and direction for our life.

And we can. This is so important to place value on our life, on what we want.

We can own our power with people.

"Think about what you want. Consider how responding to another's need will affect the course of your life. We live our own life, not by letting other people, their expectations, and their demands control the course of our life. We can let them have their demands and their expectations, and we can allow them to have their feelings. But we can also own our own power to choose the path that is right for us."

Taking that time to plan out and think about what I want and my needs are.

So it's finding that balance and setting my own course of maintaining the wonderful goals that I have already achieved, but yet still shooting for more.

And not worrying about what anybody thinks.

It's learning what is best for you and following that.

Time Management Workshop

Do the next right thing.

The Language of Letting Go

"Rest when you're tired. Take a drink of cold water when you're thirsty. Call a friend when you're lonely. Ask the universe to help when you feel overwhelmed."

Yeah, I was in a very challenging, difficult place, along with millions of other people. But I'm here. I survived. I handled it. And out of that came self-esteem, more self-esteem that I'm capable of and will never, ever be given more than I can handle.

I will never be given more than I can handle, but I will be given more than I can control.

"Many of us have learned how to deprive and neglect ourselves. Many of us have learned to push ourselves hard when the problem is that we've already pushed too hard. Many of us are afraid the work won't get done if we rest when we're tired. The work will get done. It will be done better than work that emerges from tiredness of soul and spirit."

Refuel. With self-love, with good food, with tea.

Because nourished, nurtured people who love themselves and care for themselves are the delight of the universe.

They are well-timed, efficient, and divinely led.

And that is why self-care, especially during stressful times, is so very, very, very important.

Time Management Workshop

Everything is fixable.

Time Management Workshop

Ask Me Anything

I always find December to be actually the hardest time of the year. I feel like there are more demands put on me in all areas of my life.

I will allow myself just to be where I'm at.

So if you feel like you're starting the new year exhausted. I just wanted to say I hear you. I'm kind of there myself, but it's all right.

Find the pockets of time when you can take care of yourself.

The Language of Letting Go:

"Make New Year's goals. Dig within and discover what you would like to have happen in your life this year. This helps you do your part."

If you want to change your own life, you need to take responsibility for it.

"It is an affirmation that you're interested in fully living in the year to come."

Goals give us direction. They put a powerful force into play on a universal, conscious and subconscious level. Goals give our life direction.

What would you like to have happen in your life this year?

"What would you like to do? What would you like to accomplish? What good would you like to attract into your life? What particular areas of growth would you like to have happen to you? What blocks or character defects would you like to have removed?

What would you like to attain? What little things would you like to attain? What big things would you like to attain? Where would you like to go? Where do you want to travel to this year? How would you like your mind to open this year? What would you like to have happen in your friendships? What would you like to have happen in your love life? What would you like to have happen in your family life?"

Remember, we aren't controlling others with our goals.

"What problems would you like to see solved? What decisions would you like to make? What would you like to have happen in your career?"

"Write it down. Take a piece of paper. Take the time out as an affirmation of you, your life. Your ability to choose. Then let it go. Certainly, things happen that are out of our control. Sometimes these events are pleasant surprises. Sometimes they are of another nature. But they are all part of the chapter that will be this year in our life and will move us forward in the story. The New Year stands before us like a chapter in a book waiting to be written. We can help write that story by setting goals."

One of the things that I spent a lot of time over the holiday doing is going over my goals, motivations, and next steps and planning things out for 2023.

I'm really grateful for this year.

I want you to think of a few things that you are grateful for.

• What's number one? Fill in the blank.
• What's the number two? Fill in the blank.
• And what's the third thing you're grateful for this year, in 2022? Fill in the blank.

Also, start to look forward to 2023.

• Are you looking to this year coming up with anticipation and excitement? Dread? Worry? Fill in the blank.
• What are the three emotions you are looking at 2023 with?

Feelings aren't facts.

Take your emotions out of your to do list.

When we are worried or anxious, the real question is, "what are we not taking responsibility for?"

So if you have some sort of negative feeling toward 2023, ask yourself, "what are you not taking responsibility for?"

Ask yourself, How can I baby step and take responsibility?

Once taking responsibility, especially when you're frightened, especially when you're scared. When you're able to do that, you build so much self-esteem.

Take contrary action.

Breathing Meditation

When you connect to your breath, you feel a little bit better. You feel a little more connected to what you're grateful for.

I wish you a wonderful, incredible holiday season. And an even better 2023.

Time Management Workshop

About Geneva:

GENEVA CARR is best known for her portrayal of Marissa Morgan on 6 seasons of the CBS television series BULL.

Additional TV credits include Law & Order: SVU and Criminal Intent, Rescue Me, Younger, The Mysteries of Laura, Royal Pains, Elementary, The Good Wife, and Sex and the City.

Film credits include Wonder Wheel, Love and Other Drugs, Ava's possessions, It's Complicated, College Road Trip, and the upcoming Asian Persuasion.

Geneva earned a 2015 Tony Nomination for Lead Actress in a Play for her performance as 'Margery' in Broadway's Hand To God.

Additional NY theatre credits include Trevor, Just Sex, I Wanna Destroy You, Finding Claire, Rose's Dilemma, Clash by Night, Betty's Summer Vacation, and Boise.

You have to create a space where you can find work for yourself.

Bull was my eighth pilot, which I like telling actors about because it doesn't happen overnight. This was my eighth.

Hand to God led to Bull on CBS. I did that for six seasons.

And the truth is, nobody loves to audition as much as me because it's a 30-second movie starring me right now.

I love to prepare. It's like going to the gym. It's like putting on a show. And you know that for 5 minutes, you have a captive audience.

Casting directors want to like you. They want to get to know you. So if you can put your nerves aside and realize that it's a real treat to be in that room.

You have to watch everything ON TV.

"I don't put people on TV if they don't watch TV."

You can only be yourself.

Maybe it's easier for me now because I know who I am. I'm not apologizing for who I am. I can't please everyone. But the truth is, I don't like everyone, and the more you are authentically yourself, the more you will work.

If you want to build somebody up, give them an honest compliment.

I had to go back to being an actor looking for work with a whole new toolkit.

The Director Tells the Story

Being a costar and a guest star has zero to do with being a series regular. It is very challenging being a series regular.

Costars and guest stars- savor those opportunities to learn because a series regular is really hard.

Ask Me Anything

Time Management Class

What to get Casting Directors, Managers, and Agents over the holidays.

This year I'm suggesting one of two things: a thoughtful gift card or a charity donation.

So a thoughtful gift card would be that you contact someone else in the casting office or agency and ask what their fellow employees like.

"Hey, are they a Starbucks person, or are they a Costco person? Are they a McDonald's person or a Dunkin Donuts person?"

And then, you can send them an electronic gift card.

If you're booking a lot. Yes. You want to be thinking more $50, $75, $100.

But if you're a new client or you haven't been booking that year, or there's a casting office that has maybe thought of you a few times throughout the year. A simple $20 gift card. A $25 gift card is fine.

Defaults:

• Amazon, you can buy anything there.
• Starbucks, you can get food, you can get coffee, you can get tea

Or, the charity donation, which, again, you could ask someone in the office or even ask that person, "I'd like to make a donation to a charity of your choice this year. Would you please let me know what charity you support?"

And then you make a donation in their name.

Or you could choose a charity yourself. The Actors Fund or Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS are wonderful charities that the industry recognizes.

The gifts are just tokens.

A well-written card, something that says something from the heart, is also a wonderful, wonderful way for you to show your appreciation.

You're not going to buy your way into that casting director's heart. You're not going to buy your way into that agent or manager's heart.

You're just genuinely letting them know that you appreciate how they have thought of you this year.