Impressions

When you submit an audition or start working with a new agent or a new client, do you ever think about how one little thing can have huge consequences? Seth Godin mentions today what it was like being in the same room watching someone read his blog for the first time, unbeknowst to the reader. Much of the time we don’t get to pick our first impressions. They happen when and where they do.

Some of them, no doubt, are better than others. We are all human. We’re not perfectly consistent from moment to moment. But thinking about this matter of first impressions (and for that matter second impressions and five thousandth impressions) reminds me how vitally important it is that we keep ourselves in top condition all the time. My voiceover coach Marice Tobias often says “there are no auditions, there are only performances.” Some we get paid for. Some we do in order to get paid.

Keeping this in mind is tough. I find it easy some days to slip into an attitude of “it’s only an audition and not all that important.” Actually it is important. Every time. This is why I keep studying with Marice. It helps keep me on my toes. So, what are you doing to stay sharp?