You are Enough

“Talent is not enough. Always remember that.”

When I was young, I will never forget when a certain Broadway actor said these words to me in a workshop in New York City. I had asked if they had any advice for me in pursuing the so-called “acting life,” and that is what they said.

I would not understand until much later in life all of the intricate details woven into this one, small sentence.

In my field, or any field, really, talent isn’t enough. There are so many other elements it takes in order for one to be successful.

First of all: hard work.

That’s right. If you are naturally-gifted in your area of expertise, good for you. Guess what? It’s not enough. There are so many other individuals who are equally as gifted as you are. However, what is the one thing that will set you apart? Working at your craft, every chance that you get. No matter what you do, there is always room for improvement. Love drives us to do immense things, so work for what you love.

Second of all: Recognizing that comparison is the thief of joy.

Seriously. When you look at someone else’s career, longing for what they have, you are robbing yourself of all of the personal milestones in your own life. Be proud of what YOU have accomplished. Everyone’s journey is different. But guess what? No matter what stage of life you are in, know that you are supposed to be there for a reason. And, if you do not like something, change it! The world is your oyster. People spend so much time wishing for someone else’s life, they never make time to stop, look at themselves, and have the courage to make a change in their own life. If you want something, GO FOR IT! You have all of the power in the tips of your fingers.

Third of all: Believe in yourself.

This one sounds so clique, but believing in yourself is the key to success.

When you do not believe in yourself, you stop putting yourself out there, and thus halt any opportunity that may come your way. When you take yourself out of the equation before the equation is even made, you are completely denying yourself of something HUGE! STOP IT. You are your own worst enemy!

When I first got out of eating disorder treatment, I can honestly say that I hated myself. I felt so lost without my eating disorder, and truly felt that I had no purpose in life. Slowly, I began to re-discover the joy of life and all that it has to offer, but part of me still felt that I was not good enough, especially when it came to my career. I have always been very confident in myself as a performer. I was never scared to audition, I was never afraid to make bold choices, and I truly believed that I was talented. Not by my own accord, but because God had given me a special gift to use for His glory. However, my eating disorder seemed to change all of that. For one, I completely lost my vocal range due to my constant purging during my eating disorder behaviors. For two, I was so afraid to be vulnerable, I completely went into my head as an actor. I was anxious, timid, fearful, and just scared to do what I had always loved to do. As I began to heal, I worked hard to get my voice back in top shape, and also started taking acting classes again. To sum it up: I started to do the work. And I succeeded. I restored my voice to my pre-treatment range, and began to let my walls down as an actor. In the meantime, I also did some heart work. I recognized that even though I took two years out of my career to receive treatment for my eating disorder, it did not matter. I was alive. I was in recovery. And that was good enough for me. So what if some of my friends were making their Broadway debuts? I was actually living outside of my eating disorder! For me, that was the greatest success of all.

The only problem: I stopped believing in myself. I became so afraid of being rejected that I just completely stopped auditioning. I stopped performing because I was so scared to mess it up. I lost a part of what made me ME because I did not believe that I could do it. Other people did, but I did not.

After two years of not performing, I suddenly realized that a huge part of my soul was missing. I was just feeling empty, and I could not figure out why. Then, while on a mission trip, God whispered (as He so often does) what I was missing: my passion.

I stopped doing what I love because I stopped believing in myself. And I am certainly not the only one. So often in life, we stop pursuing our passions because we tell ourselves we are not good enough. What if we told ourselves that we WERE good enough? What if we actually had the spirit to go confidently in the direction of our dreams? What if we looked at the equation, and instead of taking ourselves out of it, we PUT ourselves in it? I am not saying that everything is going to work out exactly how we want it. I am saying that we at least have to try. If we don’t, we will never get anywhere.

So yes, talent is not enough. Hard work is not enough. It is a combination of talent, hard work, accepting yourself in the spot that you are in, AND believing in yourself. When you put all of those things together, whether it is what you thought you wanted or something entirely different, I guarantee you: it will be enough.

You are enough. You are always enough. And, if I ever become the Broadway actor giving advice to 12-year old little girls in a workshop, I am going to say exactly that. But, you heard it here first 🙂