I’ve got 4 words for you: Do. What. You. Love.
Are you having fun? That’s the most important part of this whole thing! If you’re doing what you love, you should be having fun! We have to remind ourselves as we build our skills and learn the VO biz that we started this journey because it spoke to our hearts. The creative kid inside of us was like, “Hey! I want to play! I wanna tell stories and bring kooky characters to life!” Heck yeah, baby! You were born to do this.
But something weird happens as we get older: we lose our ability to let go and play. Maybe it’s all the external pressure and obligations getting to you. You’ve got bills to pay, jobs to do, kids to raise, cars to repair, errands to run, and on and on and on. Who has time to play when you’re juggling a million adult duties at once?
Or maybe it’s that nasty voice of society that tells you to “grow up,” that you’re an “adult” now and have to take things “seriously.” And sure, it’s important to take some things seriously. But you should never lose that childlike love for letting go and having a ball.
Remember when you were a kid and played in the sandbox at recess? You were just having fun. You weren’t worried if your shovel was good enough, or if you were talented enough to be in there digging away with the other kids. You were just doing your thing Like. A. Boss. (Maybe even eating sand. I knew a kid who did that. Gross.)
Please treat your time in the booth like your own personal sandbox! YOU, my friend are a creative genius. Play! Play with ALL your heart! There’s not enough room in the sandbox for a creative and a critic. Send your inner critic packin’!
We’re voice actors, remember, and the best actors surrender themselves to the moment. The best actors haven’t lost that childlike ability to play.
So let go and have FUN with it. And guess what? I bet your reads will rock.