Labor Day Lay Out
By Jenna Pastuszek
Well, friends, summer is unofficially over. I hope yours involved lots of sun kissed afternoon laughter, many ice cream cones, some strategically placed sunscreen, a good book or two, an adventure, and a few moments of well-deserved quiet relaxation.
Here at IVS, we’ve decided that it’s important to use September as a month to SET UP for the fall audition season and upcoming year in general.
Using the first Monday of a new month is a motivating way to start setting new goals and experimenting with shifting beliefs and routines. So, yes, enjoy today, and consider spending a few minutes looking at the days, weeks, month to come and brainstorming a game-plan to better serve how you’re going to show up this month.
Beliefs subconsciously drive our daily routines and habitual practices. So how do we get smarter about strategy? By setting daily and weekly intentions to eliminate the stress and anxiety and replace it with flexibility and freedom. I’m stealing some ideas from my every day adult life and putting an audition spin on them:
• Audition Prep like you Meal Prep. Set aside an hour or two on Saturday or Sunday to think about the week ahead, write down auditions on your calendar, and decide what you’re going to go to, what you’re going to sing, what shoes you need to pack, and what you can skip. Staple your HS/R now. Double check that your sheet music is double sided and marked in your audition book now. Maybe even set aside the clothes you’re going to wear so that they’re readily available for you to grab the morning of. Failing to plan ahead will leave you rushed, stressed, and anxious in the moment, and you’ll most likely bring that energy into the room with you.
• Voice Budget like you Monthly Budget. You only have so many vocal dollars in the bank for your daily and weekly life. Where can you minimize your voice usage so that you’re showing up to your auditions, coachings, and classes in top voice? Can you spread out your large vocal buck purchases (like loud bars or birthday parties or teaching without a mic) so that you have time to save in between? Can you do anything to help pad your vocal wallet like drinking water, steaming, taking vocal naps, stretching, etc.?
• Pack lightly like you’re only bringing a carry-on. Pretend that you’re packing your bag to fly on Spirit or Frontier and you can only bring a bag that will fit under the seat in front of you. I see the bags (read: multiple) my clients bring into the studio. I, myself, have a reputation amongst my muggle friends of being “the bag lady”. Regardless, every week, I go through my backpack, and I Marie Kondo-style hold each thing and ask if it’s necessary to carry around on my upcoming adventures. These heavy packs are burdens that we ask our bodies to carry every day. I bet, if you dig around, there’s some sheet music, some make up, some shoes, or some trash in that bag that you can remove to make your daily journey lighter emotionally and physically.
• Gratitude Journaling. I’m not great at journaling. I LOVE the idea of it, but I haven’t figured out a way to make it a desirable, consistent habit. Nonetheless, I think it’s important to spend time reflecting on people, places, and things that make you feel happy to show up to existing every day. Consider having a journal, notebook, or dedicated notes page on your iPhone to the people, places, and things that make you happy regarding your professional theatre life. Did someone add your name to the unofficial list? Is there a coffee shop near Pearl 500 that makes you happy (CULTURE 36)? Did someone compliment your awesome boots? Did you look up while walking down 8th Avenue and see a blue sky? So often, we only stop to reflect on what didn’t go well. What if instead we focused on what did?
• Prioritize sleep like you…prioritize sleep. Whether attempting to simply be a functioning member of society or to show up fully to your auditions, sleep is a requirement. Did you know your voice and body need sleep to function optimally? 7-8 hours in fact. That last email can wait. You won’t miss anything by skipping another Facebook scroll. Be that girl who leaves the party early so you can get home and into your pjs by 10.
What else can we add to this list?
How else can we life hack our audition season so that we can show up as our best selves and live a daily life that makes us sparkle?
We can’t wait to watch you radiantly enter rooms with open-hearted energy and enthusiasm this audition season. Go get ‘em!
