💫 This conversation was like deja vu

Cue up Green Day, someone please wake me up when September ends.

At least that's what my husband Jordan is feeling on a daily basis.

But first, have you met Jordan? He's just the best. We met on an airplane in December 2019, had a whirlwind dating relationship, and then eloped in my parents backyard during the pandemic 😅

But that's NOT what today's email is about! (But what a teaser, right??)

Jordan's a unicorn in a multitude of ways, but most applicably to us here today is that he is the rare breed of musical theatre lover who doesn't actually work in musical theatre.

What did I do to deserve this? I know, I know.

One step BEYOND that though, he's an incredible pianist (he'll sometimes make piano tracks for my students) and he's a great singer. I won't even make you scroll all the way back to our pandemic content to find videos of him crushing some JRB on the keys and singing so many duets with me, I'll just link them here. And here.

(He's gonna see this email and be mildly (moderately?!) embarrassed that I shared these. BABE, IT'S ON THE INTERNET! IT'S FAIR GAME!)

In his day-to-day life, when he's not moonlighting as my accompanist, he's a children's dentist.

Is he a saint? He might be.

And in September, he takes the Oral Clinical Exam to become a board certified pediatric dentist.

Let's just say, it's freaking him out.

The "oral" part of this exam means that it's not a written test, it's spoken. He has to show up to a room, sit with some judges behind a table, and talk through hypothetical dental cases as if they were his patients.

On our drive to Costco last night, as one does on a Tuesday in the suburbs, his anxieties about the exam started to come out in sentences that felt like deja vu...

• "I keep reminding myself that I know what I need to know and am good at it, but it's the test setting that freaks me out."
• "The people behind the table want me to succeed, but it's still scary."
• "Once it gets started, I hope it won't feel as nerve-wracking."
• "I do this work every day, but there's so much pressure on this one event."

 

All of this is sounding very familiar....

Have these words ever escaped your mouth? :

• I know I can do this role, but auditioning freaks me out so much so I don't think I'll get the part.
• Everyone says the people behind the table WANT me to be great, but I still can't relax in the room.
• By the time the audition is over my stress has subsided, but by then it's too late!
• I have trained and trained for this (performing), but auditioning is like a whole other thing!

My friend, I get it. I SO get it!

I've been in the audition rooms, in the final callbacks, for high stakes jobs, Broadway shows, college auditions, you name it. It can feel like so much pressure, on a very short moment, to "prove" that you can do this thing.

But what if you shifted your mindset to...

• Gaining the auditioners' trust, instead of getting them to like you?
• Putting the room at ease?
• Showing up like you would the first day of rehearsal, like you've already got the role?

And what if you spoke to yourself like a supportive friend?

I mean it: out loud, verbal, positive affirmations?

• I have trained and prepared for moments like these. I've got this.
• I have all the skills I need to do this well.
• I can live in the moment and be present with those in the room.
• If my version of this character isn't what they're looking for, that's ok! I get to do my thing and that's all I can ever do.
• I've practiced and rehearsed, now I can depend on my body and voice to deliver what I practiced.
• I'm a human being going into an audition room with other human beings, they're not different from me!

As we chatted about his upcoming board exam, these are the same themes that emerged from our conversation: Jordan is more prepared than he thinks he is, he does this every day and this exam is an opportunity for him to communicate his expertise, the folks behind the table want him to do well, and with a positive attitude he can be himself and do his best.

It's the same advice I'd give to you.

Take those affirmations (and write some of your own!) and say them out loud! Or record them into a voice memo and play them on repeat before every audition!

In fact, I think that's what I'm gonna do for Jordan! Record some affirmations for him so he can start to believe he's GOT THIS!

What affirmations would you add to my list? And should I record a pre-audition meditation for all of us??

Send me an email and let me know 😘

❤️ Chelsea