Sam Valentine (0:00)

Fast Forward Productions. The women are speaking. What's up, guys? Welcome back to another episode of the One Broke Actress podcast. An honest account of actor life, plus a few lessons I learned in the process. I am your host, Sam Valentine and we are back in 2025. It is still January when I'm recording this and I don't actually know how that's possible because it's been 1500 days of January, but. But we are here. Oh, you guys, there's been so much going on since my last episode in November. It feels weird to sit here. Which is part of the reason we are going to talk about what we are going to talk about today. Just a casual update for you guys. Not a lot has changed on my backend. It's been a few months off. If you want like intricate inner world information, then that is what the bonus episodes are for. You can get them on Patreon, you can get them on Apple, you can get them on Spotify, and if enough of you ask me for them, I will give them to you on YouTube. Just say the word because I am doing them via video now. So that is what's going on in that world. The membership is living and thriving. Everything with Gabrielle has been amazing. At home, we are fine. How long can I start this 2025 podcast without talking about the fires in LA or the political climate? Not very long. Hi. One minute in. Okay, great. It's heavy out there. I was told not to curse in the first 60 seconds of a video that goes on YouTube. So now I will say it's fucking heavy out there. The world has been a lot. There's been a lot going on and so we are changing the formula of how the podcast goes. This year. We'll see if it's different sticks. We'll see how I feel about it. But in the early years of the podcast, I didn't feel very confident in my own voice. I leaned heavily on guests in order to help tell the stories. And while I still want to do that in so many ways, because there are so many things I have yet to learn or understand in this business, in this world, I want to bring more of myself this year. So you're going to get a lot more solo podcasts. I think that my voice has changed in quite a few ways as the industry has changed and I have grown and we're all going to talk about it together. So if you are only here for the guest episodes, cool. I think that you will get some great stuff from these Sam episodes. I have a feeling today's episode is going to come exactly when you need it. So all of my creatives, all of my actors, so much of my audience is based in Los Angeles. And regardless, a lot of you are based in the creative markets. And the world has changed no matter how often we try and stop it. And we need to talk about struggling to prioritize acting and why it feels so heavy right now and why it still matters and why you can still move the needle in your career and in your art in this current climate. So if you are listening to this and you are struggling to prioritize your creative career, me too. It feels silly. And at the same time, that makes doing the work I know I need to do even harder to get done. This job is hard no matter what, because more often than not we are doing more work than we are ever getting back. Because we love it and because we know sometimes the rewards do pay out really well if we can stick around long enough to get there. So this is relevant even if you're not listening to this in the beginning of January 2025. This is also relevant during any rough season, during any burnout when life gets overwhelming. Hi Covid. Heard right? I could have used this episode back then. But this is why priorities matter, because not everything in your life deserves equal attention. And those of us who can succeed in staying in this game long enough are the ones who try to focus on what truly matters, to move forward, and that shifts and changes based on what season you're in. So I do want to acknowledge the way to the world. It feels so easy right now to get discouraged by personal struggles and global events. And listen, I'm a very liberal girl. This Trump shit is horrific and it's really hard to stomach all the time. I would actually be shocked if any of my listeners at this point were big Trump fans because that would mean that you've listened to a woman this many hours in a row. Let's call a spade a spade. So things are heavy and they are real, which makes us feel crazy and silly and discouraged and unmotivated. But I'm here to tell you today that you and I and our art and our pursuit of that art, even though sometimes it looks like reading two lines for a co star audition for a show you don't even watch, still matters. So we are going to talk about identifying what truly moves the needle. We're going to talk about why it's hard to prioritize acting and how to overcome it. And we're going to talk about why your art still matters. Even when life feels heavy. I'm going to try to fit this in in less than 20 minutes from here. Let's see how she does. First things first. Identifying what truly moves the needle. This is the urgent versus important trap. Urgent but not important tasks like answering emails right away, worrying about the Instagram algorithm, obsessing over how your agent responds to an email. Those things are somewhere on the urgent scale, but they're not important. They're taking up a lot of space in your brain. Your important tasks are deepening your actor craft. Always, always, always building meaningful relationships and continuing to pursue this career in the means you can at this time. Okay, so I get it. We are inundated constantly. Here's an email reply to this, reply to that. Your friends need you on text. Oh, maybe you want to take this casting director workshop. Oh, do you want to listen to this podcast to that podcast? Did you watch that YouTube? You should have listened to that clubhouse when they used to have Clubhouse. Remember TikTok? You should be creating your own content on TikTok. Should you be creating your own content on TikTok? Does it still matter? Should you create your own YouTube show? Does everybody need a million followers? Oh, my God. All of these things weigh us down and they feel urgent. Some of them are. Most of them aren't. And almost none of them are important. It takes a lot of wherewithal to start to decide for you what works for you and what is kind of busy work. I actually just did a whole podcast about this in the bonus episodes about actor busy work versus deep work. So if you want more on that topic, feel free to go check that out. But you need to identify for you what moves the needle, because the answer for each of us is going to be very different. The things I'm doing for my career right now are going to be so different than someone who just started in this business. And they're going to be so different from someone who's been in this business and has booked some big movies and some big credits. And they're going to be different for someone in this business who just signed with their first agent. We all are in a different place. So let's add a little filter here. Let's make our lives a little easier and take everything through the filter of three main things. Your act or craft. I know, I know. You're so sick of hearing it. You're so think of hearing it. Yes, you should be working on this constantly. Does that mean you need to do 20 hours a week of self tapes? Not in my personal opinion. Does it mean you need to be reading a script every other day? I don't think so. You know for you, what could potentially move the needle in terms of your craft? If you don't know that it's time to seek out a coach or or a mentor or an accountability team to help you figure that out, to help you decide if it's an acting class, if it's scene study, if it's script analysis, if it's writing, if it's watching more stuff. It might be a combination of all of them, but that is a specific category that we have to prioritize. The next is career growth. This would be the output of things to the people. So this is your if you enjoy social media Putting yourself out on social Media I took a three week hiatus from Instagram in this month because life was too heavy and I was tired of looking at pictures of the fire that I could see outside of my window. That's fine. Now I am back and I'm deciding what I'm going to consume and what I'm going to put out there. That growth of creating, making funny videos, doing my auditions well, deciding what workshops could move the needle for me, deciding what areas of my life need to be up leveled in terms of relationships or what relationships I have neglected that I want to go back to, those are all part of that growth aspect of putting yourself out there. Someone asked if I would make a podcast about putting yourself out there as an actor and existing on social media and in these platforms. And if I do decide to do that, I think I want to bring Gab on for that because she's so, so dedicated to that and I love long form content but it's not the same for everyone. So maybe we'll, maybe we'll do that episode in the future. Let me know in my Instagram comments section for this podcast if that is something you are interested in. And the third area, don't think I didn't forget about this part mindset and well being motherfuckers. I'm not taking that out. This is so important to me. So many of us want to do all of the things and are willing to work on our craft and are willing to put ourselves out there. But the second things get quiet, the second the industry takes over and we're left to our own devices, we feel like a trash bag because we have put all of our worth in the work portion and we have no personal value to ourselves. This also means leaving town and booking out. This means reading a book that has Nothing to do with acting or self help. I'm reading A Court of Thorns and Roses right now, guys. It's fascinating. I feel like I'm in the psyche of so many different people. It's wild. It also means having a mindset practice that doesn't have to mean meditating. It can mean going for a walk for five minutes where you don't have headphones in, which is, I know, crazy to my podcast listeners. The ability to sit with your own thoughts is very, very important to your acting career. I'm going to say that again. The ability to sit with your your own thoughts is very important to your actor career. So if you feel like craft is great, I'm outreaching. Great growth is great mindset. Who is she? Whoop. Let's come back to center. Let's talk about that priority. Because in times like this, when the world is heavy and you throw yourself into work, but maybe work doesn't exist, or maybe it doesn't feel as fulfilling, or maybe you're not really sure what you're doing it for, that mindset and wellbeing section is so important because it can take you back to center. There's a term someone introduced me to a long time ago called ikigai I k I g a I and it's a Japanese word that means a reason for living or life's purpose. And I understand that when I say that that feels very heavy. And you're like, sam, why are you telling me this when you're also talking about how heavy the world is? This is something that will keep you on what you want to do when everything else feels heavy. In thinking about this and in thinking about what I matter to the world and why it matters that I want to audition for ncis. And what's the point of having, you know, my ring light set up so I can put this podcast on? It can all feel so silly. Or I can remind myself that one of my life's purposes is to succeed in my creative career and share it while it's happening so others can follow along and feel confident that they too can do it in one way or another. It's really scary to say that out loud because then what if it doesn't happen? I don't know. I don't know. But if you don't have this, I would really do some deep googling. There's like 10 bajillion YouTube videos on it. But figuring out what is your purpose for pursuing this career is gonn help with these heavy moments so much. And it will Help you give yourself permission to prioritize your craft and prioritize your growth and prioritize your mindset and wellbeing in times where it does feel silly. The next piece of this is why it's actually hard to prioritize acting and how we're going to get over that. Because I can say these big concepts, but when it gets down to the day to day, life is a little bit different. So first things first is we all have a bunch of excuses and distractions. We all have a lot going on in our lives. We have our own priorities. We have other people's priorities. Some of you take care of loved ones. Some of you have children. Some of you are taking care of your parents. Some of you have homes and pets and, and 10,000 gajillion responsibilities. But you also have excuses and distractions. So I'm not talking about taking care of your parent who's sick. I'm not talking about taking care of your three year old. I'm talking about the things that you do have control over that are on you. I'm gonna say some phrases right now and it's gonna upset some people who are listening to this podcast. Take a moment. Don't get mad at me, okay? Because I've used them too. Trust me, everything on this podcast is for me as much as it is for you. First phrase that we like to use is I don't have time. The second phrase we like to use is I just need a break. And the third phrase we like to use is the industry is too hard. Okay, all right. Everyone who hates me right now, just, just, just, just, just go with me on this journey, okay? Because this is very hard to stomach. If no one said this to you before, but those are overarching excuse sentences. Have I said them? Yes. Will you hear me say them again? For sure. But do we need to think about this in terms of our priorities and our purpose and our acting career? A hundred percent. So when you say things like I don't have time, my question is, where is your time going? Yes, it is to a lot of things. It's keeping a roof over your head, it's keeping groceries in your house. And some of us have to, you know, occasionally wipe our floorboards with a dryer sheet because that's apparently how you keep dust from getting on them, which I've yet to see happen. Everyone tells me to do that, but I don't really think it works that well. So, yes, day to day life takes up most of our time, but there's More. And I'm not about to tell you that like Beyonce and you and Taylor Swift and you have the same amount of hours in a day. I hate that phrase. I hate it because those people have assistants and butlers. Do people have butlers? They have, they have private jets and they have someone to cook for them and someone to clean for them and all of those things. So they have other things going on outside of this. But I think what people like to take from that phrase is they got to where they are with the same amount of time in the day as you have. We could get a little into the Nepo baby of it all for some people, but the point is, if you don't know where your time goes and you feel like you don't have time to prioritize anything else, but the next thing, you're either in a very heavy phase that has an end date at some point, or there is parts of your time that you are not using wisely. And listen, listen, I'm not about to tell you stop scrolling on your phone. Cause you already know that. I'm not about to tell you to stop checking your email every five seconds because you're probably going to do it anyway. I'm not about to tell you to stop surfing the Internet or whatever. Do people still say surfing the Internet? Hi, I'm old, I don't care. So yes, maybe you don't have time for everything right now. That's what priorities are for. You need to evaluate what you're doing and where your time is going. Cause if you can't tell me what you did today, then I would highly suggest checking in on your time tracking, checking in on your focus, checking in on where you are spending moments and if you can congeal them and put them elsewhere, that phrase next, I need a break. Heard same. Is it burnout or are you overwhelmed by the wrong tasks? Once again, that episode I just did for Patreon about busy work versus deep work. Deep work doesn't often put you in the place where you say I need a break. Also, why don't you take a break? It's. I don't mean go spend money. I don't mean go on a five star vacation. I mean take a day where you just like stare at a wall or watch reality tv. Can you take a whole day if you're really busy and you have all of these dependents? Probably not. But can you take an hour? Why are we working ourselves into this place where we are in a position where all we can feel like is I Need a break. That is deprioritizing the important things. Because one of the things I told you to prioritize is your mental health and well being. As an example, last week I owed everyone in the bonus podcast an episode. Very committed to it. It is every other week. It is one of my top priorities. However, my number one priority, which is acting, got very heavy all of a sudden. I had a bunch of auditions in the same day. They were all theatrical auditions, by the way. So everyone who's like, the business in Los Angeles is dead. It's not true. Stop spreading lies. I had to put the podcast on the back burner. I had to say, hey, guys, this is gonna be late. Acting's gotta come first. And all I got was accolades. Sure, some people might have been upset, maybe I lost a subscriber or two, but at the end of the day, that's not why I'm here. And then this last phrase. The industry is too hard. Yes, it is very hard. It has always been hard. It will always be hard. It's hard for different people at different times, in different circumstances. And if you knew you were going to achieve everything you wanted in 10 years and then two years later you were going to be back to where you are right now, would that feel meaningful for you? That's like a really dark question, but I think one that needs to be thought about because this is not a upward slope career. This is an in and out and in and out and up and down roller coaster. It's always going to be hard in some capacity. There is a great section of Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert where she talks about a shit sandwich and she talks about what type of shit sandwich you want to eat. And for this job, the shit sandwich. It's such a fucking gross analogy. The shit sandwich is distinctive. It is specific. It is toiling and working nonstop to get a little bit that means a lot to you, but doesn't look like a lot on the outside. Yeah, the industry is hard. And if you want a job, that's easier. Honestly, I don't actually know what to tell you because I don't think there's such a thing as easy jobs anymore. I don't think job security exists in our current climate. I think that everything is up for chance constantly. And I think we are all in charge of deciding how hard we are willing to work in hard industries. So all of those things considered. Those of you who haven't turned off this podcast yet, let's talk about reclaiming your focus. The 8020 rule. I know it's so lame. It's so lame. Stick with me. Hold on, I'm going to drive this bus home. The 8020 rule is that 80% of your results comes from 20% of your effort. So I'm not telling you that 80% of life matters. No, I'm telling you 20% matters. So what's your 20%? What? What? What? What? What is your 20? Is your 20 doing self tapes on the weekends because you had to move them around and you couldn't go to your friend's birthday party? Is your 20% working an extra shift at your side job so that you can save up money and recut your reel? Is it taking a break because the outside world feels so heavy? You need a moment to realize what your priorities are. And right now with everything going on, it might not be self taping, it might not be auditioning, it might be getting your mental health right. And you can come back to the 80 at any point in time. But this 20 is going to set you up for success on what is looking like is going to be a very long year alongside the 8020 rule. I think accountability is so key because this is a job where people don't see us doing work and our work doesn't matter to everyone. Like I said earlier, doing a random co star that is. Can I get you another drink? Feels really dumb when a bunch of your friends in Altadena just lost their houses. I get it. Spoken from reality. So having someone you can say that to and talk about it with and help you prioritize to keep going. If you don't have an accountability person, it can be a fellow actor, it can be your class, it can be an admin group you work with. It can be a group of people you talk to in the DMs online constantly. We run them in the membership. We do like quarterly meetings. We have a whole accountability channel. It can be a coach you work with, it can be a mentor. I guess it can be your partner. I hadn't really thought about that before, but if you are super, super close with your significant other, yeah, for sure. Have them be your accountability partner. It's a lot of weight to put on someone, so consider that if you're in a good place for it, but that will help you keep your focus and keep your momentum even when it feels silly. Regularly check in with them. Figure out what regular means for you. Some of you are quite full on the scheduling range, so maybe it's once a month, maybe it's every two weeks, maybe it's every week. Okay, but those of us who find a way to keep going even when it's hard are the ones who are still here today. And those of you who have not turned off this podcast yet are the ones who are still with me for the last section of why your Art Still Matters Even When Things Feel Heavy I spent my first eight years in this industry without hitting any of the goals I set for myself. I had agents that scared the shit out of me. I had never booked a co star. I couldn't get seen for anything and the stuff I did book was so small and so insignificant feeling. And the footage was mostly terrible and I jumped from class to class and I spent money on so many things that didn't matter because I thought I had to. And I thought, what is the point? During COVID acting felt fucking useless. Productions shut down, the world was in crisis, people were dying. We didn't know if we could go outside from our apartment building. It made me feel like, who cares about self tapes? Who. What am I even allowed to matter right now? In the elections in 2016 and this past year and in the LA fires, I have felt so small. I questioned if acting was important at all when the world had so many bigger problems to deal with and in every tough moment, people still turned on their TVs. After we could wear masks and go, people went to theater again. They wanted perspective, they wanted escape, they wanted to feel things that didn't have to burden themselves. So even when I felt unimportant, perhaps especially when I felt unimportant, art is what helped us all survive the hard times. Art and vaccinations. I'm not. I'm not getting it. So if you are struggling to prioritize your acting, I want you to remind yourself that someone someday is going to be moved by the stories that you tell or something that you do. And yes, acting is not life or death. That co star is not life or death. Getting that one line on that procedural you don't even watch is not life or death, but the moments surrounding it can make your life richer and you can share that with other people. And that makes life and art and the pursuit of this career worth prioritizing, no matter how things feel. And with that, I'm going to end the first episode of the One Broke Actress podcast in 2025. I will encourage you guys if you like this type of chat and maybe my little whips here and there. There's a lot of that inside of the bonus podcasts. Patreon, Spotify, Apple, they're on there. If you have a specific question, I do a Q and A inside of those episodes every other week. And if you want even more, Gabrielle and I are running the membership constantly. It is a 24.7place for us to take care of actors. You can learn more about it in the links below as well as a apply for your membership. We are moving away from the wait list and so it's going to be a little bit different and we cannot wait to start welcoming people in again. If this helped you, if this podcast was great, encouraging, you know, a giggle here and there. She likes to think she's funny. Please send it to a friend and tell them this episode is for them. If you're feeling extra encouraged you can post on your Instagram story and tag me ambalentine and you can comment to this podcast. If you are listening on Spotify, you can now comment on this podcast. I would love to know what about this episode hit you the strongest Or I don't know, I guess if you disagree with something I said that's chill. I'm all about the engagement. Just remember I'm a cancer and something a super sensitive soul. So I need you to be nice to me. Okay? If you guys want more you can Follow on Instagram am Valentine. Make sure to watch this on YouTube. If you enjoy it there, drop me a comment. Let me know how you like this episode format. And as always, thank you guys so much for listening and do not worry because I will talk to you next week.