Just Another Rep

By Jenna Pastuszek

I was recently inspired by a podcast episode I listened to, Finding Mastery with Kevin Harlan. Kevin is a widely successful radio and television sports announcer. 

He talks about every opportunity, whether it’s to announce a high school football game or to  announce the NBA Finals, being “just another rep” aka another chance to do the thing and try  to improve. 

What if you reframed auditions as if they were just another rep at the gym? Pick one small thing to focus on. 

EXAMPLES: 

- saying hello 

- looking at the people behind the table in the eyes 

- taking a breath before you begin to sing 

- expressing your humanity and love for the piece 

- making a joke 

- noticing the colors of their shoes 

- anchoring your back 

- engaging your pelvic floor 

- feeling your feet on the floor 

- envisioning your “pinch” or moment before 

- allowing room for spontaneity 

Pick one small thing to focus on, and let that be your focus for the day. 

If we are always trying to do it all “perfectly”, we’ll never be able to get it right. What the hell  does perfect even look like? 

And remember, you can’t possibly book every job. It’s not possible. You’re only one person, and  you can only be in one place at a time. 

So, if you can only book so many jobs before your calendar explodes, how else can auditions be  useful for you? 

What if their true purpose is for you to have another chance to do what you love in a room that  other people paid for (that’s not my brilliance, it’s Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s)? What if their purpose is practice? 

Might that alleviate some of the stress we put on ourselves to “get it right”? If it's "just another rep", how might that give you the freedom to show up differently?