In 2012, Tom Holland told a reporter he’d love to play Spider-Man “in 10 years’ time.” Ahead of schedule, the actor leaped into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the iconic web-slinger in 2016’s “Captain America: Civil War.” Maybe it’s his spidey sense. Or maybe setting goals and following through with them is the key to success in any industry.
Here, we’ll discuss what it means to stick to your plans and ensure that your goals are S.M.A.R.T.: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.
Decide the specific goals you want to achieve. Ask yourself questions that will point to a clear way forward. If you’re pursuing acting, the road ahead will look different depending on you. What genres are you drawn to? Are you more interested in being in front of a camera or onstage? Which iconic performers have carved out careers you want to emulate?
Once you establish those kinds of parameters, figure out how they apply to you. Do you have the time (and budget) for a formal education, or is time to jump right in? What skills do you need to cultivate? What’s your type as an actor, and where do you best fit in? How are you going to meet like-minded creatives to start building a network?
Once your goals are defined, write them down somewhere you will see them every day to keep you focused.
Think big when it comes to your long-term goals, but don’t forget the power of accomplishing short-term tasks. These small wins keep you motivated. For example, maybe your long-term goal is to land a leading role in a movie, get hired on Broadway, or win an Academy Award. Define those North Stars and don’t lose sight of them.
But you also need to lay out the short-term steps that will build up to big successes. Make an effort to analyze a script every day. Learn and perform a new monologue every week. Attend one industry event a month. Focusing on the near future will compound; each small step adds something to your toolbox. Chart your progress in a visible way, like putting stickers on a calendar or crossing things off a to-do list.
Set goals you can control and develop a practical, applicable strategy to achieve them. There’s a difference between saying, “I will go to six auditions this week” and “I will book six jobs this week.” The former is in your hands; the latter isn’t. Getting hung up on setbacks that are not personal failings can be a goal-killer.
“It’s not some fundamental core value or essential part of you that [casting directors] are saying no to,” says Emmy-winning “Succession” star Sarah Snook. “They’re saying no for you in this character, for this moment, with all the many variables that you make up as an actor for this moment, for this character, for this time.... It’s not because you’re a bad actor or you’re a bad person or you aren’t very good or you’ll never get a job. It’s just no for the moment.”
Courtesy HBO
The road to success is long and winding, so make time to recenter yourself. Is the move you’re making right now really all that important? You might think you need to absorb every page of Uta Hagen’s “Respect for Acting” before tomorrow’s audition or watch John Ford’s 140-movie filmography to really understand Westerns. But getting caught up in minutia will only slow you down, and it’s easy to disguise procrastination with preparation. Keep your action plan as tight as possible. Study the top movies, watch the best performances, or read award-winning scripts in the genre of your choice.
Give yourself deadlines both big and small. Measure your success through daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly chunks. If you’re a student, measure by semester. "I moved out to L.A. when I was 25, and I was like, ‘If I'm 30 and I’m still waiting tables, it's time to move on to something else,’’ Emmy winner Jon Hamm once revealed. (He celebrated his 30th birthday on the set of “We Were Soldiers,” one of his first prominent projects.)
But remember: Deadlines are a motivator, not a mandate. If you reach a certain time, age, or milestone without achieving all your dreams, don’t give up. It’s a chance to reflect, regroup, and change tactics. Samuel L. Jackson played bit parts until his breakout in “Pulp Fiction” at 45. Ridley Scott didn’t direct a feature film until he was 40. J.R.R. Tolkien didn’t publish “The Lord of the Rings” until he was 62. Your main goal should always be: keep going.
