17 Goal Setting and Career Planning
Goal Setting and Career Planning
The Business of Theatre in Canada:
What you need to know as you graduate and pursue a career
By Cameron Mackenzie
My first thought when asked what graduates need to know about a career in theatre was “Don’t do it!”
But this is supposed to be 1000 words and I’m nothing if not diligent. So let’s expand on that.
There is a major difference between the art of theatre and the business of theatre.
The business is the hardest work. The work we aren’t always prepped for. For instance the realties of type casting, and personal biases and nepotism in the industry and leaders not wanting to take risks, lead to some folks getting hired ahead of others. Some people are just better at talking the talk and “schmoozing” and padding their resumes. Some people get ahead with very little talent or skill.
But theatre artists TALK and if you are bad at the job or not good in the room, word will get out. So don’t worry about others successes or even their failures, focus on your journey and do your work to the best of your abilities. That will eventually be noticed.
Here are some tips that I wish someone had told me:
Do not be an asshole (i.e. find value and respect in people regardless of gender, gender identity, gender expression, race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sexual orientation, religion, different ability, economic class, employment status, or education to name a few!).
Do not be difficult to work with.
Say yes to the offer.
Get the job done, and meet the deadlines agreed upon. Be diligent and detail oriented and a team player concerned about what your collaborators need regardless of how your brain, body and heart functions. Manage yourself and don’t make it other people’s problem.
You are not the most important person in the room. Theatre is a collaborative medium and many others have deadlines that intersect with yours.
Don’t use the past experiences of your life as a way to get out of doing the work. Making art can be hard and can feel unsafe. Examine what safe truly means. Coming into a process vulnerable and open is your responsibility but this is different from coming in messy and fragile. Make sure to ask questions about the story, the project, the team so you can make an informed decision – YOU CAN SAY NO to accepting a project, especially if it is likely to bring up unresolved trauma in the room. This is not the same as aforementioned “saying yes to the offer”. In that case once you’ve done your research and accepted the job….get fully on board.
Endeavour to create brave spaces with the team. Lay out community guidelines at the beginning of the process but don’t get too caught up in building a container that you forget to do the work that fills it.
Invite people to see your work but do your research. Know the person’s name, how to spell it and what their title is. Know the name of their theatre company and how to spell that correctly.
Know every theatre company in your town or city. Know their mandates. Know who runs them and who they took over from and when. Know what their upcoming season’s are and what they did over the last few years.
Go to openings or closings and stay for talk backs. If you can’t afford tickets some previews are free. Ask about discounted or subsidized tickets and rush tickets. Find the artist resources in your community (Vancouver has the Greater Vancouver Professional Theatre Alliance as an example) that will list artist meetups or search them out on social media. Sign up for newsletters of companies you like and read them. Donate to companies you like. Even if its $5 once a year. It will go a long way. Give back and be of service. Volunteer! Join Boards of Directors.
Say hello to people at the industry events. Introduce yourself. Ask genuine questions about other people at industry events. Do not tell people what you are working on next if they don’t ask you. Talk about life and your other passions and hobbies. Make genuine connections with people.
Be humble. When you think you’re working hard enough, work harder. Document ALL your work and learn how to make a good looking website so you can put it all on there. Look at other websites and make yours professional looking.
Get used to living with very little money and likely working 6 joe jobs. Find joe jobs in theatre if you can help it.
Find an industry mentor and try and work for and with them. There are grants you can apply for. Start writing them early. Ask for help with these. But sometimes you have to do a bit of free work for a while before you’ll get hired.
Your work is probably good but you are not that special. And there are many other people who can likely do what you do. So be a good human above all.
This is not rocket science or brain surgery. We are not literally savings lives or saving the world. We can work towards that but don’t get too precious with what you do and who you are.
Life is too short to work with assholes. So don’t be one yourself.
Remember that the final ingredient of theatre is the audience. They are vital. If they don’t come you are sitting in a dark room navel gazing. Find ways to connect to the communities you exist in and entice them to come to the theatre, make sure there’s something in it for them!
Keep in mind as you age the romance of being the starving artist might fade. There is always the realities of paying rent and perhaps trying to have a long term relationship and perhaps having children who need attention and focus and food and so much stuff!
Life isn’t and shouldn’t be all about work. And yet to get ahead in this industry you have to be hyper focused.
So sometimes its good to let your dreams change and evolve as you grow. Sometimes its good to let go of old ideas of what you think your life will be in favour of what actually makes you happy and fills your cup.
Wherever your path leads if you have given it your ALL (and then some more), if you have been a kind, considerate, team player dedicated to the bigger picture, dedicated to making positive change in this world then you have succeeded and you have likely had a positive impact on those around you.
Ok so 1088 words. Told you….always do more!
You may not want to be a manager, but you will need to manage your own career. This means deciding on at least some initial goals so you can dream them into being, but also figuring out a plan that will get you there. There is research that shows writing down your goals helps to solidify what you want and activates your pursuit of those things. So, now is the time to write out what you want and think through the steps to achieve your goals.
Most of us use a planning process of one sort or another to get through the day: “After class or work I have to go to the bank, then have lunch with Fred, and then head over to the library or the store this evening.” When people make the transition to a formal planning process they can become bogged down in a level of detail that makes the idea of planning daunting. Planning should be approached as a practical and enjoyable journey, not a set of abstract tasks.
– Management and the Arts by William J. Byrnes (p. 87)
Activity: Map out where you want to be in two years, five years, and ten years? This can include what city you want to live in, what you hope to be earning, how you will be spending your time, and any other career milestones you hope to reach. Then ask those who have achieved those things how they got there.
You can use this template to work out your goals if it’s helpful.
- What specific area or position are you interested in pursuing? (actor, director, producer, stage management, playwright, marketing, book-keeper, make-up artist, multi-disciplinary…)
- Who is your target market for getting hired? In other words, who are you sending your application to and who do you need to convince to hire you. (e.g. Artistic Directors, Producers, Directors, Production Managers, General Managers, or will you be creating your own work…)
- Find job descriptions for your desired role to make sure you fully understand what is entailed. Or read the appropriate track in this book.
- What skills, abilities, and/or services should you offer based on expectations in this area of employment?
- Outline at least one thing that differentiates you from your competitors?
- What skills and resources should you develop?
- What do you feel is the best way to make yourself known by your target market for hiring in order to guarantee a steady stream of contracts or a permanent position?
- Complete a SWOT analysis for yourself. (see Chapter 4 Theatre Management for SWOT details)
a) What are your strengths entering your chosen career in the arts?
b) What are your weaknesses that may affect your ability to meet your goals?
c) What external opportunities exist for you?
d) What external threats exist that may affect your ability to meet your goals? (These could be aspects of the theatre industry as a whole, the job market, or broader economic factors.) - Define your own mandate:
a) My Mission Statement
b) Core Values - Goal Setting:
a) 10 years from now (100% fantasy)
– I will be … (job or role)
– I will live in …
– I will earn …
– I will have …
– I will …
b) 5 years from now (50% fantasy, 50% reality)
– I will be … (job or role)
– I will live in …
– I will earn …
– I will have …
– I will …
c) 3 years from now (30% fantasy, 70% reality)
– I will be … (job or role)
– I will live in …
– I will earn …
– I will have …
– I will …
- If the work is freelance, what are the specific benefits and challenges you personally might experience working in a self-employed capacity?
- Who are professionals in your focus area that you could contact with questions?
Career planning will often be specific to what aspect of theatre you hope to work in, so there are more details in each track. Or perhaps you will be forging your own multi-disciplinary path and need to consider intersections with information from many tracks. Also, plans are just that. They will have to be updated, adjusted, adapted, and are therefore flexible.
Getting From Here (starting out) to There (your goal) – a few general things noted throughout this book:
- Look at who is doing what you want to do and see what they have done to get there, reach out and talk to them
- Keep training
- Volunteer
- Get involved
- Network
- Ask people how
- Don’t be afraid to suck at stuff as you are learning, with the caveat to be careful who you suck in front of and how you manage the process of sucking
- Figure out how to make a living wage while you work towards your goals (see the Viable Alternatives track for some options)
- Do not take on too much or something will give, possibly your mental health
Remember that you define what success is for you. This applies to your whole life, not just your theatre work. It is important not to measure yourself against others, but define what you want to achieve. The path you take also doesn’t have to follow a specific timeline, give yourself deadlines of course, but the pace can fit your current needs. Be realistic and kind to yourself to avoid disappointment and burnout.
A Plan
Now that you’ve got a sense of where you want to go, you can create a business plan for the next steps in pursuing your career.
Activity: Put your dream into action by outlining steps to achieve your ‘three years from now’ goal. Feel free to use this template if it’s useful.
- Overview
Based on what you have learned; what next steps do you need to take now or upon graduation in order to successfully begin your career? (For example, do you need to get headshots, create a portfolio, build up your resume, take workshops, meet with specific people to build a network…) - A Complete Schedule
Outline specific timeframes for things you need to complete based on the above overview of steps. Be specific. (For example, if you outlined wanting to get headshots then give yourself a set of deadlines. When you will find a photographer; when will you contact them; and when will you have the photos ready to use.) - Personal Budget
Projecting ahead to post-graduation, outline your anticipated expenses. This should include any earnings from your theatre-based work, as well as a realistic amount you may need to earn from other non-theatre work to cover the expenses. Within this budget you should include the items from your plan that come at a cost (e.g. headshots, workshop fees). You can refer back to the budget templates provided. - Additional documents you can create to get started:
– List of contacts related to the next steps (e.g. Artistic Directors you will approach)
– Evaluation tools (e.g. post-audition or interview self-assessment)
– Social media account plan
– Website design plan
Now What? Many things noted elsewhere in the book are great next steps.
- Theatre and the arts offer so many options. They intersect with so many areas. Keep exploring as you decide what it is you want.
- Continue to ask yourself – What can you bring to the arts? What can the arts do for you?
- Engross yourself in theatre, read the books, watch the videos, attend events and shows of all types.
- Be part of the conversations.
- Find mentors, guides, and a circle of support. Ask for help and ask questions.
- Meet with people – go for coffee with others in the industry doing what you want to do. Just take that first step of reaching out.
- Take every opportunity while you are still learning and building up your resume.
- Talk about your ideas with others who might become collaborators.
- Keep writing down your goals to activate your brain!
- Do the research about where you want to work and who you want to work with.
- Stay true to yourself.
- Be a business: a professional who takes the business side of the work seriously.
- Just because the work you want to do does not exist, doesn’t mean you can’t make it happen. Be the first.
- Practice patience and gratitude. It just might not be the right time yet for something to happen. And always be grateful for the opportunities you have and those who support you.
- Don’t be afraid to be a changemaker. Theatre should not be static; every generation should keep moving it forward.
Finally keep learning! There are so many opportunities with panels, roundtables, skill development workshops, and other ways to both keep abreast of industry changes as well as keeping your artistic muscles toned.
Caveat: The reality is that there are challenges and barriers. Sometimes the weight of these challenges becomes too great, and people decide to change directions and use their theatre skills elsewhere. Theatre does offer great rewards, and even if you decide it isn’t the career for you there are a lot of ways to continue to be involved without it having to be your full-time gig.