5 Things You Know (Even If You Don’t Know You Know)

Written by Anthony Meindl

Part of life is about owning up to the fact that we know more than we think we do.

We’re sometimes not aware of our inner-knowing because we’ve spent a lot of time playing outer roles in life (the dumb blonde, the slacker, the jock, the weirdo) that often got us what we wanted in the short-term, but in the long-term robbed us of the deeper, more connected and empowered truth of who we are. The truth that we do actually know more than we let on.

So, here’s 5 of what you know (but sometimes forget) in 2012.

1). Know Your Self-Worth

How can you ever know what you deserve in life if you don’t have a sense of self? And how can you ever ask for what you need if your sense of worth is too low to allow yourself to ask?

2). Know Your Value

This may sound similar because it does have to do with the intrinsic sense of self. But I’m also talking about how your value shows up in the outside world. Look at how much value you bring to people without you even realizing it? Certainly, in your family and friendships and jobs, but also in the seemingly inconsequential events that occur every day: you smile at your neighbor, you ask a stranger how they’re doing, you take the time to really listen to someone. Your value is in who you are. Not in what you do.  Read more

L.A. is a Film and Television Town

Written by Jamison Haase, L.A. On-Camera Training Center

If you haven’t noticed… Los Angeles is a film and television town. Hell, that’s why the city was made. But many actors have a problem — most trained heavily as theater actors, and thus received extremely limited experience (if any) working in film prior to coming to Los Angeles. Then, once arriving here, can’t figure out why they’re not booking jobs like they used to in theatre.

You must understand the difference between these mediums, because If you don’t, chances are the only feedback you’ll hear is, “Good, thanks… Next!”

However – if you understand the differences between the two, then you can make CRUCIAL adjustments to your performance and truly shine in your film and television auditions. And that’s how you book.   Read more

Why Do We Have Ego?

Written by Anthony Meindl

People often ask me, “Why do we have ego?”

Well without it, you wouldn’t be able to know that there’s another part of you. Something grander. More brave. More joyous.

The soulful part of you. Spirit. Infinite Intelligence. The Creative Matrix. Potential.

Living in a world of duality, you can’t know something without having the experience of its opposite.

We know joy because we’ve experienced sorrow. We know what compassion is because we’ve been indifferent. We know what generosity is because we’ve experienced greed. And so on.

So to have ego creates the possibility to know the bigger part of you.

But ego tries to keep us in the dark, hiding from our Light. And its incompatible with creativity.

The journey of our lives in general – and of our artistic expression specifically – is to try to dismantle the ego so we live more and more in potential. But that’s difficult because the ego’s job is self-preservation. And its been preserving you for a very long time.  Read more

Steve Martin, Owen Wilson and Jack Black on how they bring ‘real life’ into their performances

The Big Year came out this past weekend and I can safely say that 99% of you reading this didn’t see it because it flopped at the box office. Unfortunately, I’m in that 1% and saw it and yes, it did in fact stink.

I wish it didn’t because I love Steve Martin. I grew up idolizing him – still do – and regardless of what he’s in, I’ll still see it. Owen Wilson and Jack Black aren’t too shabby either but the film was just boring and kind of pointless.

That being said, here’s a video of Martin, Wilson and Black talking about the film (you can skip that part), the process that enabled them to work together as a comedic ensemble and how they bring ‘real life’ into their performances. 

Skip to the 1:25 mark for the good stuff.   Read more

What You’re Looking For, You Already Have

Written by Anthony Meindl

Often the experiences we are seeking in life show up – out there – out in the world.

They may be in the form of getting a new boyfriend, getting a promotion, going on a vacation, or booking a commercial.

But what they really represent is the feeling you are looking for (and actually already possess) inside you.

We think that getting “the thing” is what we need to finally be who we are.

In actuality, who we naturally are already is – ironically – how we get the things we desire.

Life is a circle. It’s not a horizontal line leading to somewhere out there in the future. It’s a journey of coming back to you. As adults we’re trying to get back to that core essence of who we were (and still are) as children. The part of us that is nonjudgmental, innocent, fully-expressed, free, emotionally connected, playful, committed, fearless.

And as children, we don’t wait for “events” to give us permission to express ourselves. We express ourselves fully moment-to-moment in each moment.

Read more

Life’s too short! Get rid of the distractions in our lives!

This is a guest post by Anthony Meindl

JUDITH LASATER, a wonderful yoga teacher and writer, tells a story about “selling the goat.”  The story is a metaphor about giving stressful situations in your life room to breathe, to see them with a new pair of eyes from a different perspective. She suggests, “selling the goat” – which simply means, to let go of your fixed, fear based hold on things and see the situation from a more accurate, more objective perspective.

Breathe.

I’m taking her idea one step further. To me, “the goat” represents not only our conditioned way of thinking about things and our habituated response from a negative, limited-view way of thinking, but also, it represents the multitude of distractions in our lives.

You know the ones.

Unsupportive friends. Negative lovers. Disrespectful agents. Toxic relationships. Two-timing partners. Mean managers.

Sell it. Get rid of it. Life is too short.

We end up expending so much wasted energy on things (i.e. Drama!) that don’t hasten our growth. That don’t nurture our talent. That make us question and doubt ourselves. That make us feel unworthy and untalented.

Read more

Trust Yourself! Take what resonates and toss what doesn’t work for you

This is a guest post by Dallas Travers

Along with flexibility and patience, the business of acting requires some serious trust. You must trust yourself during your journey, even when things don’t look the way you thought they would.  You must trust in your own decisions enough to know when to change your mind or make adjustments.  You must trust that you are doing your job to the best of your abilities and trust that others are doing the same.  You must trust in your long-term vision and know that each step you take brings you one step closer to living the career of your dreams.  The Tao of Show Business outlines a path to success and fulfillment in this industry, but only you can know your way.  Trust yourself to discover and master your own perfect way.

Besides, the opinions of others are really none of your business. You can meet with the industry’s most powerful talent agent who shares with you all her secrets to how this business really works.  Though some or even most of the insight may resonate with you, you cannot expect or allow these words of wisdom to directly apply to you in your own journey.  That’s just not how it works.  I said it before, and I’ll say it again:  there is no single set path to success in this business.  So eat the fish and spit out the bones.  Take what resonates and test it out while you toss whatever doesn’t work for you.

Do Whatever You Want.

Read more

Creative Ideas: We Think. Then Doubt.

This is a guest post by Anthony Meindl

The light bulb moment. The great idea. The spark of inspiration. We all have them. Thoughts that are fueled by intuition and creativity.

These brilliant flashes of genius reside within us but are connected to something much larger than ourselves.

And then we THINK about them. (Don’t do that!)

Over and over. And again and again. The more we think about the original idea, the further we move from its original intent: to take action and give birth to the idea out in the world.

We think. Then doubt. We become fearful of what it will take to make the idea come to life. We fast-forward into the future and worry about worst-case scenarios. We over-think and then ask other people what they think. We listen to them and begin to doubt ourselves more. We come up with innumerable reasons why the idea won’t work.

And so it doesn’t. It becomes entombed. Fossilized. Buried. Shelved.

We have this amazing, creative thought. And then we have thoughts about that thought and more thoughts and more thoughts and more thoughts until the original creative idea is buried so deep within our left-brains, it has no outlet for expression.

You would need a backhoe to get it out! And who’s got a backhoe? (Well HARD HAT HARRY does but that’s another story.)
Read more

The ‘Lana Turner’ Myth

This is a guest post by Anthony Meindl

It’s a great story, a story that has entertained the imagination and hopes of all aspiring actors at some point in their lives:  A 16 year old girl gets discovered sipping a strawberry shake at Schwab’s pharmacy in Los Angeles. (Actually, it might be a myth-within-a-myth because some people say she wasn’t even at SCHWAB’S. See how illusions prosper!)

Anyway. That story creates the unhealthy myth association within each actor’s psyche that when they move to LA they’re going to be “discovered.” And then when a few years go by and that hasn’t happened yet, the actor thinks it’s never going to happen. That they’re doing something wrong. That they’re talentless. And they stop trying.

The reality of a life in show business is to Just. Keep. Going.

And actually, that’s life. Period.

I was at a restaurant the other night and started talking to this woman, Judy, who sells a new line of tequila. She told me how she’s competing against these larger companies and brands that are more established and that she has to keep hustling and work hard to get her product to different bars.

So you see? You think having to forge forward and overcome obstacles is specific to your life. Or to being an actor.

All people in all walks of life are faced with the same challenges.
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Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?

This is a guest post by Anthony Meindl

You are!

Duh.

The problem is that most of us don’t see ourselves that way. You see yourself through the dirty mirror of the left-brain’s MADDENING MIND MATRIX.

That is, when life gives us a big fat “No!” – which it will invariably do if you’re out in the world pursuing your dreams – we personalize the “No” in a way that triggers our left-brain’s default neural groove.

Hearing a “No” isn’t really that big a deal. But when we associate that “No” with incorrect interpretations in our left hemisphere (“I’m talentless.” “It’s never going to happen for me.” “I suck.”) we immediately let the “No” defeat us.

We stop moving forward. We move back to Baltimore. We reach for that Ben & Jerry’s CHUBBY HUBBY.

Or we personalize the defeats by beating ourselves up for the way we look or who we are — thinking that if we were someone else it would just be easier.

Well, first of all, it wouldn’t. (Unless maybe you’re BRAD PITT.)  And actually, he’s got his shit too. Everyone does!

So all we need to do is a bit of radical re-working of our brain’s neural wiring. It’s like Frankenstein’s monster. You have to start re-booting your neural groove so you don’t let defeats defeat you.

Why are we wired to the lies of our left-brain and not the truths of our hearts?
Read more

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