Finding some Olympic Inspiration

I love the Olympics.  Every four years I completely forgo sleep and watch as many events as possible.  The work the athletes put into their sports is awe-inspiring.  So, what's the Olympics have to do with acting?  Well, I've related actors to athletes before, especially when it comes to training.  To be good at anything you need to practice - lots.

One thing training gives you is a place to turn when you hit a snag or run out of steam or things just aren't going your way.  There is the story of Michael Phelps winning a race even though his goggles filled with water and he couldn't see.  He trained so thoroughly that his body knew how many strokes away the wall was and he didn't need to see it to know when to touch.

When you see a gymnast falter during a routine and fall off an apparatus, they get back on and finish with their back arched.  The ability to push slip-ups out of their mind and simply continue is all because of their training.  They are able to do this because they have done this routine so much that their body has the muscle memory of it, they don't have to think.

Actors are the same.  When you are tired, facing hour 12 on set, and have to create an emotion filled scene; it is your training that will get you through.  By training so much that you can do it without thinking.  Actors can create the same muscle memory through training in their craft.

The American Skeet Shooter, Kim Rhode, who won gold in her fifth consecutive Olympics shoots between 500-1,000 rounds a day, everyday.  She figures she has over 3 million targets under her belt.  That is what it takes to be a champion.  How much time do you spend working on your craft?

Well, I have some more swimming and gymnastics to watch.  Go team USA!!!

 

Do you treat your career like an Athlete?

Actors and athletes may seem on the surface to have made opposite life choices to get to those careers, but deep down they are actually quite similar.

For one, if you want to be great at either of these careers you have to practice ... a lot.  Plus, there is a certain level of luck that goes alongside all that practice if you want to be a star athlete or a star actor.  The best college ball player ever can be sidelined by a bad injury and never go pro.  Some of the most talented actors are never at the right place at the right time to get that star-making role.

I recently heard a story on NPR about a baseball player who got drafted into the Minors.  He was getting paid to do what he loved and many actors will say that in itself would be a dream come true for them.  The ballplayer said that from the moment he got drafted he thought the call to go up to The Show (that's what they call the Majors if you believe "Bull Durham") would come at any moment.  Every once in a while, one of his teammates would get the call and he knew if they took that guy surely they were going to call him next.

Then years started to pass and he never got the call.  There are so many actors in Hollywood that have similar stories.  They watch their friends start booking and become successful.  They think why not me and know their big break is right around the corner.

Here is where the story splits.  The ballplayer eventually got too old and had to retire.  With most sports, the retirement age can be 30.  Actors get to keep going and many are just starting at 30.  It's one of the wonderful things about this profession: there is no age limit on success.  Examples of actors who found success later in life include Chris Cooper, Michael Emerson, Melissa Leo, and even Tom Hanks waited tables for most of his twenties.

What's so wonderful about that, is it gives you so much time to become a great actor.  They say you have to spend 10,000 hours working at something to become an expert.  That is approximately 3 hours a day, every day for ten years.  Actors can keep working at it for a lifetime, so just think how amazing you'll get to be.  It just takes work.

How many hours a day are you working on your craft?